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  1. #1
    Member HeathC's Avatar
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    Maryville, Tenn hang?

    Hey folks, I was wondering if anybody from the Maryville, TN area or near could help me find some good places for an over nighter. I'm taking a neighbor's sister back home to Maryville on Saturday, and a friend and I thought it would be a great time to finally get to hang in the Smokies. We're on limited time and will probably only have a few hours Saturday afternoon to take a small hike and find a good backpacking camp site for the night.

    What are the rules about camping along trails up there? Is it allowed to set up camp just about everywhere inside the forest area?

    We don't really want to stay in a campground, but want to camp off/on a good trail somewhere, but we have no idea of where to start. So giving Abrams Creek Campgrounds as a reference point that we possibly could hike from. Would love it if any of you could help out some. I would like to stay on the Maryville side and maybe down as far as the Chilhowee Ranger Station.

    Thanks,

    Heath
    It's a hammock thing, you won't understand!

    The wife no longer kicks me out of bed after she saw a hammock hanging in the dog house.

  2. #2
    Senior Member spamburglar's Avatar
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    Try hitting cades cove and camping at site 12 on the gregory ridge trail. Its a relatively easy 2 mile trek from the trailhead
    "Go sell crazy somewhere else, we're all stocked up here"~Jack Nicholson/As Good As It Gets

  3. #3
    Senior Member bowl-maker's Avatar
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    wow I was thinking gregory ridge/bald as well and then scrolled to spamburglars comment. +1 on that. just remember the bears have multiplied.
    if you don't mind a short drive you might like the cumberland trail from lafollette to cove lake state park. 12 miles and foot per foot more exciting and more sights than the smokies. easy 2 day hike and there is a shelter if you want and plent of good hammock sites if you pass the shelter.

  4. #4
    Senior Member spamburglar's Avatar
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    I had a 250+ lb bear stroll into camp my first night at 12. They aren't interested in you, just your food. Use the bear lines and follow bear encounter procedure and you should be fine
    "Go sell crazy somewhere else, we're all stocked up here"~Jack Nicholson/As Good As It Gets

  5. #5
    Senior Member Les Rust's Avatar
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    CS 17 up from Abrams Creek Campground is also only a few miles. You might combine it with a short hike on up to Abrams Falls. A year or so ago there was a family of otters in the pool at the bottom of the falls. Coming from that side you'll have fewer folks on the trail. There has been some storm damage on that end of the park in the past couple of years, so there are trees down and some trails are closed. Check the GSMNP site for what's closed at the moment.

  6. #6
    Senior Member spamburglar's Avatar
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    If you go Abrams Falls then you'll need to check before hand for trail closings. I looked into it a few weeks ago, and several of the trails were closed due to storm damage. Also, site 17 is a reservation site, so you will need to call and get that done as well.
    "Go sell crazy somewhere else, we're all stocked up here"~Jack Nicholson/As Good As It Gets

  7. #7
    Member HeathC's Avatar
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    Thanks for the help. I did the east side of Abrams Falls last Sept. and it was a good hike.

    I'm going to do a search but where can i find a map of the designated camp sites for those trails?

    EDIT: Found it Here
    Last edited by HeathC; 09-24-2012 at 16:39.
    It's a hammock thing, you won't understand!

    The wife no longer kicks me out of bed after she saw a hammock hanging in the dog house.

  8. #8
    Senior Member seawolf's Avatar
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    Go to twenty mile ranger station, fill out permit for CS 93 or 95. CS 12 is ok, but it will take longer to drive to the back of the loop than to hike the 2 miles.

  9. #9
    Senior Member spamburglar's Avatar
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    Twenty mile is a good place. The trail was in really bad shape the first couple miles when Roche and I hiked it a few weeks ago. Several large blowdowns that forced us to crawl through passing our packs back and forth as we went. Dont know if its cleaned up yet or not
    "Go sell crazy somewhere else, we're all stocked up here"~Jack Nicholson/As Good As It Gets

  10. #10
    Senior Member SGT Rock's Avatar
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    It is cleaned up.
    NO SNIVELING!
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