Hike #4: Rocky Mountain AT to Old AT/ Raccoon Run Trail Loop, 12 miles
My AT Loop adventure continued with a large loop that combined the current Appalachian Trail over Rocky Mountain with the Old AT, now Raccoon Run Trail. The re-routing of the AT in this area took place beginning in the 1990s with the aim to elevate the trail across the ridge of the mountain for scenic, geological, and stewardship reasons. The re-routing also resulted in new trail shelters throughout Michaux State Forest with new dispersed camping and park access options. I parked at the farthest parking area open in winter in Caledonia State Park - which is one of my favorite state parks, btw - where the AT comes right past and is easy to jump right on.
I want to say right away that the crossing of RT 30 is a dangerous one. I think if I had been starting out from the park on a busy Saturday or weekday morning instead of a quiet early Sunday, it would have been crazy. Even so, I had to calm Amos as big loud trucks roared past at 60+mph just feet from where we stood. Anyone hiking with small children or who may have to move a little slower for whatever reason may want to walk to the entrance of the park (there is a a large parking area at the stop light) and use the pedestrian crossing there and road walk (still scary as hell) along Rt 30 to the AT on the opposite shoulder.
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| Sign post just after crossing the creek bridge off the parking area. |
Rocky Mountain begins with a long slow hike uphill to the crest of the ridge which is lined the rest of the way to Rt 233 with a palisade wall of quartzite and conglomerate rock. The AT climbs up and along the wall at several points while also following a gentler path just below it through the forest.
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| Climbing the wall. |
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| Conglomerate formations of the Rocky Mountain ridge. |
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| Watch your step! |
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| Stone stack formations. |
As a fairly new section of the AT, I have to thank the trail crews that maintain this area. Skillfully-built stone steps, careful trimming back of vegetation, and safe access points created from the trail to the stone stacks all combine to make this stretch a beautiful hike. Thank you, trail crews!
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| Banded quartz and conglomerate. |
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| Walking behind the crest wall of the ridge. |
Amos and I came down off Rocky Mountain after five miles of ridge walking to the crossing at Rt 233. From here we road walked the quiet, wide-shouldered valley road to find the start of the Raccoon Run Trail, blue-blazed, the old AT. Soon we were on a very rocky path that challenged even my four-footed hiking partner. I was never so grateful for my hiking poles, though I did crash one time, luckily in a soft bed of grass and not on the sharp rocks! The old AT had been well washed away and its well-traveled surface was mostly roots and sharp rocks. It was slow going.
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| Trail marker at the crossing of Rt 233 |
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| A mossy break to rest sore paws. |
Reasons for re-routing the AT are numerous but sometimes its just because it's time. This old route certainly demonstrated that it was certainly time to move it off this old path due to the excessive wear and tear that tens of thousands of hikers can inflict on fragile ground. Partly in the flood plain of Raccoon Run and partly on hilly land, the effect of decades of hikers has caused spring seeps to turn to muddy holes and delicate mountain soils to wash away leaving an ankle-twisting two miles of trail heading north, back towards the park. A re-routing, however, calls for years of planning and when all is secured, approved, and set, the back-breaking work of building new trail begins. I was ever so much more thankful for the hard work needed to create the Rocky Mountain section as I stumbled, tumbled, and grumbled my way up Raccoon Run Trail!
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| A spring seep turned mud pit caused by hikers - now bridged. |
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| Raccoon Run. |
I was trying really hard to enjoy Raccoon Run Trail but was finding the going so slow that I got a little grumpy. Ok, a lot grumpy. Fortunately for both Amos and I the last two and half miles became less a chore and I was actually able to take in the surroundings without having to stay laser-focused on every step and misstep where I was actually saying out loud "Pay attention!"
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| Rhyolite boulder along the trail |
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| So many charcoal pits I stopped counting |
The trail climbed a beautiful hemlock covered slope and I began to find rhyolite flakes in the trail. Someone before me had placed a worked piece of rhyolite on a log to share with hikers who knew what its shape and flaking meant - this area had once been quarried by indigenous people for the tough, sharp stone to make into blades, points, and scrapers. Nearby is a known Native American bank quarry and this rock type was prized and traded all along the East Coast. I did not photograph the worked scraper b/c I do not want to draw attention to the specific area, but thank the previous hiker who left that great piece to ponder and turn over and over in my hands.
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| The last two miles on Raccoon Run Trail |
There were so many charcoal pits along the last two miles that I stopped counting them at 18. Many had become old campsites for AT hikers and two are still in use with large fire rings and log benches. I scuffed the surface of each one I came across and found charcoal chunks and black charred soil just below the moss layer. This whole area had been logged and turned into charcoal for the ironmaking industry that consumed what is now Michaux State Forest and though the forest here is thick and mature today, in 1900 this landscape was devoid of trees completely after 100 years of fueling the iron furnaces nearby.
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Salvage notice.
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Amos and I took a proper lunch break at mile 11 at an Old AT campsite where a hemlock grove shaded out the late afternoon sun. He sunk his snout into my entire bag of crunchy granola while I had my back turned to set and fill his water bowl. That granola was gone in ten seconds! I had to laugh as I thought about hungry hikers at this very spot doing the same thing. Caledonia State Park was only a mile further on so he'd have more snacks when we got back to the car. I don't know why I waited so long to eat, but it was the perfect space to sit in the cool of the hemlocks and relax. Soon my hiking buddy was wagging his tail and tugging on his leash to get going again. In a half hour he was prancing proudly through the park, making a bee-line for the car where he knew his goody bag awaited his return.
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