Ben Anderson photo
Huskey Gap, Sugarland Mountain
Huskey Gap Trail and the one-mile section of Sugarland Mountain Trail combine for a pleasant woodland walk near busy Gatlinburg.
Huskey Gap Trail is probably not on anyone’s list of must-do hikes in Great Smoky Mountains National Park; its cozy trailhead parking area perhaps is evidence of that.
However, it makes for a fine excursion regardless of the season, with caveats that the trail isn’t readily accessible when Newfound Gap Road is closed and there may be a large blowdown or two across the path to negotiate.
The trailhead, about 1½ miles south of Sugarlands Visitor Center, is actually across the road from the small parking area; exercise caution in crossing heavily traveled Newfound Gap Road. But soon enough, the clamor of road traffic will fade as you make your way through a pleasant forest ecosystem.
Near its start, the trail skirts a former homesite and an old rock wall. If you are hiking the trail in April or early May, you may see crested dwarf iris in full purple bloom, along with many other colorful wildflowers.
Soon the trail begins to climb rather sharply for about ¾ mile as it nears a large boulder field and Flint Rock Branch. The boulders are relics of the latest ice age and the fracturing of rocks along Sugarland Mountain. Downstream is the intersection of an old settlers road with what was formerly Huskey Gap Road.
Above Flint Rock Branch, some unexpected gaps in the forest canopy yield long-range views of peaks to the north and east. You likely will get a glimpse of English Mountain to the northeast, rising above the Tennessee foothills outside the park.
The trail continues climbing toward Sugarland Mountain, a prominent and lengthy divide between Little River and the West Prong of the Little Pigeon River. A mix of hardwood trees stands guard over mountain laurel as you approach Huskey Gap and the trail’s intersection with the 12-mile-long Sugarland Mountain Trail, one of the park’s longest. Upon reaching the gap you are about three miles south of Little River Road and slightly less than nine miles north of the Smokies crest and the mighty Appalachian Trail.
Huskey Gap Trail continues for two more miles to a junction with Little River Trail, but I favor turning left onto Sugarland Mountain Trail, toward the AT, and hiking a mile or so to a former backcountry campsite called Medicine Branch Bluff.
Above the gap, pine trees are plentiful before the trail proceeds through a somewhat scraggly second-growth hardwood forest toward the abandoned campsite. Wedged among a collection of boulders, it was one of the most curiously situated camps in the park before it was removed from the backcountry roster. But it does make for a good lunch spot.
Go for a hike
- Trailhead: Huskey Gap Trail, 1.5 miles south of Sugarlands Visitor Center on Newfound Gap Road
- Length: 6.2 miles round trip if hiking suggested route
- Difficulty: Moderate
About the author: Ben Anderson is author of Smokies Chronicle: A Year of Hiking in Great Smoky Mountains National Park (blairpub.com).