Late Fall Trip Back To Tennessee Best State Park...Rocky Fork!

There are not many places that can make me change hiking plans. However, one is my favorite Tennessee State Park...Rocky Fork.

I was thinking of a hike to Pinnacle Mountain for Saturday, but as I was going to bed Friday night I looked at the Mid-Appalachian Hiking Club schedule I read they were going from Devil's Fork Gap back to Rocky Fork. This was going to be, another key swap hike, with Johnson City Hiking Club. 

After switching vehicles we started at Devil's Fork Gap. I had last been here back in the Summer on my birthday. This time I was going the opposite way, South on the Appalachian Trail (AT). But, this wasn't my first time going this direction on the AT. I last went this way on a hike to Shelton Graves three years ago. We were only doing half this hike as we would turn into Rocky Fork at Flint Gap.

The highlight of this first half of the hike was Flint Mountain Shelter. It is 2.7 miles from Devil's Fork Gap and is a log shelter, built-in 1988 by the Carolina Hiking Club. The shelter sleeps eight and has bear cables and a privy. This is where we stopped for lunch. Our leader Shambhavi brought some really good sweets called Kaju Pista Roll, it was very tasty.

Something else that was good to see, the whole day was up high there were patches of snow. It wasn't anything like Wednesday, but some snow is better than no snow. It was less than a mile to Flint Gap and where we got off the AT and headed down towards Rocky Fork. It isn't easy to find, but the Flint Connector Spur which is to the right. If you look close there is a brown Rocky Fork blaze and a log with two arrows and the initials RF.

The first part heading down is steep, but it isn't terribly long. It was here where we met the Johnson City Club for the key swap. Once it flattened out the hike wasn't too bad. We first passed a drained old pond, then the "closed" Flint Mountain Trail and then reached the junction of the Blockstand Creek and Flint Creek Trails.

We took the green one to the right. The Flint Creek Trail had several small waterfalls and footbridges, with a couple still with ice. We eventually came to a junction with the Flint Mountain Trail Backcountry Campsite. While I didn't hike too it, I take it that it's similar to the Headwaters Trail Campsite, complete with a bear box.

We finally reached a sign which is near the site of a "battle" or "massacre," between John Sevier and the Cherokee, take your pick. Then we passed the second pond before coming to were they are putting the new big bridge. I hope they keep the old one, it has Rocky Fork (spelled out in sticks...see cover photo). Then it was on back to the trailhead. I will say I made the right decision as this was an excellent hike all around, but hiking the AT and then into Rocky Fork...how could it not be.