MT. CAMMERER FIRE TOWER
The second week of October seemed like a promising one for
Fall Colors and for great hiking, and so we packed up the car and headed for
Great Smoky Mountain National Park for a 4-day weekend. We had an open agenda
for the trip, and only at the last minute did our plans congeal and we set on Cosby
campground for the stay. Just 30 minutes East of Gatlinburg, on the Tennessee
side, his is one of my favorite campground in the smokies (the other being Deep
Creek on the NC side) and one of the few where one can hope to find some degree
peace and privacy on a busy fall weekend in this, America’s most visited
national park.
Cosby Campground.
Cosby is the jumping off point for the Mount Cammerer Fire
Tower Hike, which I had originally done back in 2008. Though it is one of the
best views in the park, I had not planned on doing it again. Sylvia, who had
gotten tired of hearing me rant about Gatlinburg, convinced me to do Cammerer again with her, instead
of another hike closer to town. And I am very glad that for the second time in
my life, I listened to her.
The Mount Cammerer Fire Tower sits perched atop a rock
outcropping at the top of a 4928 foot mountain of the same name. Cliffs drop
off impressively on two sides of the summit, giving unobstructed views to the
North and East, as well as good vantages of the adjacent higher ridge lines on
the south and west. In Fall, there is no better view in the Southern
Appalachians. We set out for the summit hoping for good weather.
Photo courtesy www.hikinginthesmokys.com |
The summit lies just a half mile off the Appalachian Trail,
which comes up from Davenport Gap on its way to the summits of Mounts Guyot,
Leconte and Clingman’s Dome. The AT itself is reachable from Cosby campground
via the badly misnomered Low Gap Trail. Folks, there is nothing low about this
gap…the hike up to it via a well graded horse trail is a steep, unrelenting
slog. There are no flat areas at all along this section of trail.
Sylvia and I walked directly out of our campground to the
trail. After crossing Cosby Creek the trail begins its aggressive climb. The
first few miles to Low Gap are quite steep, but the footing is good, being
intended for use by horses. At about three miles the intersection with the AT
is reached in a col full of wilted, late-season wildflowers, abuzz with bees
and flies. (in 2008 when I did this the first time it was positively swarming;
less so this time.) Past the gap, the AT climbs at a modest grade, and then
levels out entirely. Excepting a single blowdown patch there are no views on
this section trail. There is in fact only one view to be had on the hike, and
that is a great one, but it is still to come.
The Appalachian Trail
Two miles beyond Low Gap the Mt. Cammerer trail diverges
from the AT, and here we passed a large group apparently coming up from
Davenport Gap. Just past the junction is a horse hitching post – this being the
furthest point you can take a horse, if a horse you’ve got. The trail becomes a
bit more uneven, though still short of a rock scramble, then breaks out into
the clear where the first views of the tower is had. After this it is a short
walk over a few outcrops of rock to the foot of the tower.
The tower itself is quite different than the usual fire
towers that can be seen throughout the eastern US. Instead of being a tall,
steel framed structure, this thing looks almost like a garden gazebo. I know of
no other tower quite like it. It has an impressive stone foundation of quarried
granite atop which sits a wooden-decked one room octagon with windows. Originally
built by the CCC in 1930, the tower fell out of use in the 1960s, but has been
maintained since then by volunteers.
Add caption |
The Mount Cammerer fire tower is a 'western style' fire tower.
The volunteers had been at work recently. During my first
visit the deterioration of the tower was quite apparent, especially the
interior which was little more than a trash strewn abandoned building. This time
there was a marked change; not only had the roof and deck been repaired, but
the interior had been cleaned out and restored as well. Instead of garbage, rot
and gaping holes in the floor all was in good order. There was even a broom
leaning against the wall for sweeping...which of course my wife insisted on
doing. It appeared however that in some respects the workers had been perhaps
too enthusiastic, as of roofing material had been hurled off the side of the
tower down the cliff…much of which was caught in the surrounding shrubs in
plain view. I am not sure the National Park Service approved of that but, you
can’t fault the obviously fine job whoever it was did on the tower.
Here is an interesting website about the historical fire towers
of Tennessee, most of which are no longer in operation. Technically, the Mt.
Cammerer summit is right on the Tennessee-NC state line, but the tower was
maintained from the Tennessee side, probably because the best vantages are
west.
The deck of the fire tower.
The view from the tower and surrounding rocks speak for
themselves. Though it is a small summit, the long hike in acts as a crowd
control buffer. This is a place for serious hikers. There were three or four
other groups present at the same time we were there, many of whom simply
collapsed inside the tower from exhaustion and scarcely emerged. We had no
issue finding a spot to have to ourselves.
There is more to see at the summit of Mount Cammerer than just the fire tower.
The trip down was mostly as I remembered it, a knee-pounding
two-hour slog back to the campground. On the way Sylvia did do her best to
liven things up by attempting to fall into a stream, but emerged scarcely more
wet than when she entered.
We found the Mt. Cammerer Fire Tower Hike via the Low Gap,
Appalachian and Mt. Cammerer Trails to be a very challenging hike, just the
very thing for a pair of hikers trying to condition for the major ups and downs
of the Alps. The trail itself presents no serious challenges apart from its
length and, in the two miles before Low Gap, unwavering grade. Most hikers will
require a good six hours, at least, to make the out and back. It is a long and
exhausting day to get to one view, albeit a stunning one. If care is taken to
avoid the summit and the approaching ridge when thunderstorms threaten, this is
a trail that can be done in any weather without significant danger of exposure.
However, it is also a trail to save for good weather. It’s an awful long way,
so you want to make sure there’s a payoff at the end of it.
In our opinion the Mt. Cammerer Fire Tower Hike is suitable
for all fit hikers looking for a challenge. It is roughly comparable to Alum
Cave Trail/Mt. Leconte in terms of difficulty, but we liked Mount Cammerer
better. Alum Cave Trail is more publicized and does have more interesting
things to see on the way up, but is also FAR more crowded, and Sylvia and I
both think the view from Camerrer’s summit is superior. We recommend this hike
as the best we have done so far in the Smokies.
NEXT POST: More from the Smokies!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment