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Tuesday, March 14, 2017

Collins Gap to Fork Ridge Trail - Appalachian Trail - Great Smoky Mountains National Park


A couple of days after our late October 2016 hiking from Clingmans Dome to Collins Gap, we continued our northbound hike on the AT from Collins Gap to Fork Ridge Trail. This 1.5 mile section parallels Clingmans Dome Road to the west of the road. The parking area at Collins Gap consists of eleven pull-in spots on the east side of the road. The trail can be accessed by walking along the road a few hundred feet in either direction and looking for one of the two social trails that head west to the AT. The parking area at Fork Ridge Trail consists of parallel parking of six to eight vehicles, depending on how people park.

From Collins Gap, the trail climbs 400 feet up Mount Collins in 0.9 miles before descending about 300 feet to the Fork Ridge Trail junction.

Topographic map with GPS route

Elevation profile

Leaves obscure the trail

Roots used as steps

More roots

More typical trail conditions

The trail follows a ridgeline

Undergrowth crowds the trail in a small clearing

Root ball of a fallen tree

Rocks compete with roots to slow progress

Easy hiking path

A break in the forest provides this view to the west

The path is clearly cut into the ground

Timber steps lead down the mountain

More leaves obscure the path

Thick forest to the east of the trail

Sugarland Mountain Trail to Mount Collins shelter and Laurel Falls

AT to the left and Fork Ridge Trail to the right

Small parking area on Clingmans Dome Road at Fork Ridge Trail

Entry to Great Smoky Mountains National Park is free.

The park website is https://www.nps.gov/grsm.

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