Last month a 5 day planned solo in Grayson Highlands ended with a ripped hammock on the first evening. During the week after, Dutch came out with his Hexon hammocks so it was an easy choice to pick one up and head back to VA if only for the weekend.
I left Massie gap just after 11AM and took the horse trail to the camp ground. From there I took Wilburn Branch towards the picnic area. This is pretty steep and was slow going. I almost had to side hill down it and was very glad I wasn’t climbing back up it. I had my first run in with stinging nettles along the way. Eventually I got to a T intersection with Upchurch. My Trails Illustrated map gets a bit confusing here as it implies Upchurch road and Wilburn Branch trail are very close but separate trails. For most of the way between the picnic area and the camp ground they are the same trail with both blaze colors used side by side. To make things more confusing the hills have lots of old trails that break away like ramps going down or up but are long overgrown with saplings. Then there are trails that actually see use and have signs beside them restricting horses or directing you down the main trail to get to the picnic area but there's no clue what the side trail might be. There was one gravel path tucked under some branches that had such a sign but nothing to indicate what it actually is. I'm about 98% sure its the end of Mill Creek lane. There are a handful of power line cuts as well which from a distance look like they might be an established trail till you see the poles and lines.
At some point I stopped beside a trail split trying to figure out where it might go or if it were the actual Upchurch road trail when it started to rain. I made my way through the rain to the picnic area and then started the Rockhouse Ridge loop which is nice and has an impressive view of the valley at one part. The north end of the trail ends at Wilburn Branch a few hundred feet from the picnic area so it’s probably easier to start on the Southern side to find the trailhead. At one point on the trail there were several very close lightning strikes. I found a school bus sized rock with enough of an overhang I could lay out my blue foam pad and lay down out of the weather for lunch while the weather passed.
I finished the loop and headed back down Wilburn Branch to take the side trail I had been examining when the rain started. This took be down to Wilson Creek passing more side trails and eventually to a stream crossing at the bottom of Little Wilson Trail. I headed up the trail stopping to tank up along the way. The climb is fairly mild and the trail easy to follow even without markings. When I got to where I think the end is I did see a single reflective white diamond tacked to a tree. The forest away from the creek was pretty open with lots of deer runs. It’s possible the trail kept going down one of those. I decided to head towards the knob at the top of the small ridge between Little Wilson and Big Wilson Creek trails.
To get past the creek itself I had to push through perhaps 100 feet of thick rodo which was rather obnoxious. When I finally got through and the trees opened up again I looked upstream and noticed I could see all the way across the stream so I probably just picked the wrong spot to cross. There were also some strips of red bandana tied in the branches in what seemed to be an attempt to mark a trail but I'm not quite sure where either side was going. One side more or less headed where I wanted to go but then ended or I lost it. On top of the ridge the trees opened up perfectly I made camp, slept a good 10 hours or more, sampled several items from PackitGourmet and didn't break camp till noon the next morning.
Sunday I left camp and using my phone aimed for the intersection of Big Wilson Creek trail and Kabel. I was attempting to 'aim off' towards the Kabel side so I'd know I could turn left and get to the intersection but the terrain drops off pretty steeply back towards the creek I had crossed the day before and this forced me more West than I wanted. Fortunately I happened to spot the actual wooden sign at the intersection through the trees so it worked out well and it was less than 10 minutes from leaving camp. I've done the section of Big Wilson between Bear Pen and Kabel so I headed towards the creak going downhill on Big Wilson. I saw a few side trails one of which had a small stick teepee beside it much like rock carin. I suspect these just go to camp sites but I didn't explore them.
Aside from when passing through the campground and picnic area I hadn’t seen anyone all weekend. Walking down the trail I head something behind me. Three younger guys caught up and asked me if I had a map and then followed that up with, "how far is it to the parking lot" and “do you know where we’re at”. I've asked that question before, you never like the answer. I told them it could be quiet a few miles depending on how they went but since I was headed back anyway we continued together. From there we passed several more side trails and these don't even count the trails mentioned in Murray's book or the conflicting lines Bear Pen and Kabel take depending on which topo map you look at. There's lots to explore in this area still.
We got to the edge of the creek and they contemplated hopping across and driving strait up the end of Hickory Ridge to the camp ground, but 40+ lb packs and a steep ~600ft climb through the brush changed their minds. I talked them into walking downstream a little ways and we went past yet more side trails not on the map. Eventually I took one that seemed to be in the right place. We rock hopped over the creek and up the trail on the other side. One more side trail later and I was clearly back on Wilburn Branch/Upchurch at an unmarked spot I had been looking at the day before. This is right below the spot on the hill where they diverge and go around the campground in different directions. We started climbing up the trail I had expressly hoped to avoid climbing the day before. I usually get winded fast on the uphills but between my full load out of under 20lbs (finally!) and their killer heavy loads I was the guy everyone else was trying to keep up with for once. After several breaks we finally got to the campground and took the road back to the parking lot which always feels like it takes three times longer than any trail. Finally after about 2 hours total we were back at the vehicles and said goodbye.
All in all this was a very nice trip. When I look at the Wilson Creek corner of the map it always feels like it will be pretty crowded since it looks so close to the campground but it’s by far the most back country isolated section I know of in those Hills. There are always footprints that don't look very weathered but I never see anyone else. I’m itching to go back and record some tracks in this area to build a reliable map.
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