Soddy Creek Segment
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CUMBERLAND TRAIL
Soddy Creek Segment |
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Part of the Cumberland Trail's 35-plus miles of recently constructed contiguous hikeable trail near Chattanooga, the Soddy Creek Segment has 16 miles of the Cumberland Trail and associated side trails in the Little and Big Soddy Gorge Units. The Soddy Creek Segment is currently open for hiking but not considered complete until the trailheads are paved and marked, the Deep Creek and Soddy bridges are installed, and the "punch list" items revealed by weathering and use by hikers are completed.
Punch list work involves work like adding steps in areas where it was originally felt that rock or wood steps were not needed, but that weathering and trail use has shown otherwise. Areas of easily compacted soil often "berm" on the sides and require minor recutting to restore the trail outslope after some trail use and weathering. In other areas, too much outslope in anticipation of compacting that did not occur will be corrected. It may be determined that additional blazing is needed, or that drainage may need to be improved. It may even be determined that complete rerouting and rebuilding of problem sections of newly constructed trail is necessary. Punch list items do not normally detract significantly from the hiker's experience.
The Deep Creek and Soddy Bridges are scheduled to be installed in the future. The two creeks can be easily forded except after major rainstorms. The three trailheads are designed and are planned to be paved in the future.
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Use caution when hiking near rock mining areas. Stay on the trail and proceed rapidly through or below the strip mining area. Heavy mining equipment often dislodges boulders and trees which may tumble down the steep slopes and cause serious injury.
There is no obligation for rock miners to notify the State or CTC before starting mining operations that may endanger hikers, so please help us by notifying us of new strip mining operations on or near the trail. We will post warning signs as soon as possible. Call CTC at (931) 456-6259 to report rock mining. |
Mowbray Road Trailhead to Hotwater Road Trailhead Connector Trail to Heiss Mountain Road Trailhead
Contributed by Jim Schroeder, Soddy Gorge Section designer and steward
The mileage points shown in red are all from the Mowbray Road Trailhead.
16.0 Miles
Beginning at the Mowbray Road Trailhead Kiosk, one skirts the edge of the power line right-of-way until reaching a rock cliff (0.3) that gives a view of the old Town of Daisy Tennessee River Valley, with the cooling towers of the Sequoyah Nuclear Power Plant silhouetted against the skyline. Crossing atop the rock cliff and following the Mikel Branch stream, you pass through "Little Stone Door", which is a slit through the rock bluff. Reaching the exit of the "door", an old rock house is located to the left, which archeologists believe was once used by ancient Tennessee tribes. Looking back one can almost visualize an Indian brave standing atop of the little stone door gazing out into the valley below.
Following the brow of the bluff, one passes among a number of huge rocks (1.05) which seem to have come from no where and gets a chance to view the valley below from a couple of overlook points before descending to traverse the slope of the escarpment. Upon again ascending the slope a great valley view is available (2.40). Soon one is traveling on a mining ridge, which separates the valley from a large coal mining strip cut, and can now observe how nature is trying to heal the scars from this human infringement.
Crossing the mine cut and working around the upper reaches of Clemmons Point, a descent is made into the Little Soddy Creek Valley along an old mine cut road. Reaching the bottom, the main trail intersects the Little Soddy Trailhead connector (4.15), which is 0.4 miles from the Trailhead Kiosk on Hotwater Road. Crossing Little Soddy Creek on a pole bridge, one finds himself in the hub of the historic remains of the Soddy Coal Company. These include concrete abutments for the boiler house, cable wench, mule barn, etc. This was the site of the first tunnel mines in the state of Tennessee, having its beginnings in 1866, with seven shafts originating in this area.
Passing along the roadbed of the cable ore car track, which descended along a 7000-foot path to the coal washing station at the bottom of the valley, one can observe the stream cutting its way deep into the valley below. Leaving the ore car track path, one ascends and crosses Hotwater Road (4.85), a 1930's WPA project that replaced the old wagon path road ascent of Soddy Mountain.
Continuing up the bluff and rounding the upper reaches of Posey Point, one now is traversing the slopes of Big Soddy Creek, where a view of the white ribbon of HWY 111 can be seen descending into the town of Soddy Daisy (5.8). Then passing through a corner of an old Bowater Paper Company pine farm used for pulp making (6.3), a number of overlooks give views of the stream valley. Traversing a rhododendron field, which is a field of pink in the spring, one rounds the curve into the Deep Creek valley, passing in front of an old coalmine portal with the timbers still visible (7.25). Before descending a rocky slope to ford Deep Creek, a short side trail (7.65) leads up to an overlook to give a view of the rock walls on the far side of the stream. Fording the stream where a bridge will soon be built (7.85), the confluence point with Big Soddy is rounded where another view of the valley is afforded the hiker (8.2).
Descending into the Big Soddy Valley, one fords the stream (8.65), ascends the bluff and soon finds himself in the Board Camp Creek Valley. Crossing a natural pole bridge (9.05), the path leads to the base of a rock cliff and down across a narrow ledge just above the stream (10.75) before ascending a steep timber staircase. Crossing two more pole bridges (11.25), one soon is traveling along the gentle flowing stream (12.8). After crossing the Highway 111 fence line (14.05), one crosses Board Camp Creek on the highway embankment. Traversing the south side of this roadway for about 1.5 miles, mostly hidden in the tree line, and then crossing the Jones Gap Road Bridge onto Heiss Road for 0.5 miles, the Possum Creek Trailhead is reached. (16.0)
| Location | GPS Waypoint in WGS 84 format |
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| Heiss Mtn Rd Trailhead | N35 20.754 W85 10.501 |
| Stile | N35 20.366 W85 12.290 |
| Boardcamp Creek Bridge | N35 18.511 W85 11.067 |
| Hotwater Road Crossing | N35 17.311 W85 10.888 |
| Sluder Lane Trailhead | N35 16.897 W85 11.610 |
| Mowbray Pike Trailhead | N35 15.279 W85 12.174 |
Directions to trailheads:
Mowbray Road Trailhead: The Mowbray Road Trailhead is designed and scheduled for construction by the State in the future. At present, there is no nearby safe place to park along the side of the road, only a trail crossing identified by a sign.
The nearest safe parking is about 1000 feet east of the trail crossing at the intersection. See the following road map.
Hotwater Rd. Trailhead: From Chattanooga take U.S. Hwy 27 north to Hwy 319 Hixson Pike Exit. Exit and take a left back over the highway to the t-intersection at Dayton Pike. Turn right and continue 0.7 miles to Durham St., turn left (Soddy Lake on your right). Go 0.6 miles to a t-intersection at Back Valley Rd, turn right and travel one block to a four-way stop at Hotwater Rd., turn left. Follow Hotwater Rd. 2 miles through Little Soddy Gorge until you crest the hill and reach Sluder Lane on your left. Park on the gravel at the corner of Sluder and Hotwater Rd. The trailhead is 100 ft back down Hotwater Rd. on your right. The trailhead is planned to be constructed and paved by the State in the future.
Heiss Mountain Road Trailhead: From US-27 north of Soddy Daisy, ascend the Cumberland Plateau on TN-111 and proceed a total of 5 miles to the Jones Gap Road exit. (Jones Gap Road overpasses TN-111.) Immediately turn right onto (paved) Heiss Mountain Road, a dead-end road that parallels TN-111. Proceed approximately 0.5 mile from the service station at Jones Gap Road to the end of a guard rail on the left and the nearby trailhead. Plenty of parking is available along the side of the road. The road is sees very little traffic. The paved trailhead parking area is flagged and marked for construction by the State in the future.
Adopt-a-Trail:
Jim Schroeder of Murfreesboro, TN; Trail Steward Soddy Creek Segment
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by Jim Schroeder Trail Steward Soddy Creek Segment The walk starts at the old mining road (approximately 200 feet southbound past the second pole bridge as you descend into Little Soddy from the Hotwater Road Trailhead).
Local and other hikers who trek the Little Soddy Creek Unit of the Cumberland Trail State Park are truly walking into history. For as one descends the old mining road from Clemmons Point into the south side of the valley, the oldest mine in the state, the original Soddy Mine, which opened in 1866, is just "over yonder". Often water can be seen discharging from the now collapsed and hidden mine entrance.
Upstream from this old mine, near the end of the access trail, is located the old Fibrother mine under the Trailhead bluff. This mine was operated by the five Millsap brothers, who were local residents. It is here that Mr. Raymond Redden, an 82 year old resident residing at the intersection of Hotwater Road and Old Hotwater Road, cut and supplied ties for the ore cart tracks as a young man.
Upon return back to the main trail and after crossing the stream, you are in the former center of activity supporting the old No. 7 mine. Just upstream is Mr. Jeffery's mule barn where up to 48 mine mules were housed. He lived at the head of the gulf and had the only phone in the area supplied by the company. He was the mine mule tender, repaired the leather goods, and ran the commissary receiving shed as well.
And just down stream is the site of a variety of old mine support operations: the boiler house containing two steam boilers; the blacksmith shop; the machinery building containing the steam engine to drive the machinery to control the 7000 foot long incline cable car system down to the bottom of the gulf, and what ever else was needed to run the mine.
One can almost hear the clanking of machinery, the hissing of the steam engines, the clickety clack of ore cars, the braying of the mules, the clinking of miners lunch boxes, etc as Old No. 7 beckons all to the task at hand - extracting the precious black ore. And nearby sits Mr. Levi who controls each of the thirty unit parades of loaded ore cars that make the descent to the coal washing station at the bottom in but nine minutes.
Following the path of the old incline tracks takes the hiker high above the stream as it plunges rapidly in a series of cascades, soon almost 100 feet below. And near the bottom of the decline can be found one of the old boilers from the up stream power house, lodged in the stream bed near where the incline makes one of its seven stream crossings on its way down the valley. One may occasionally spot a relic of the past -- a section of track, an ore car wheel, a piece of cable, etc --as he makes his way along this historic route.
Skirting up and around the steep north bank brings one again near the stream and across from an old foundation on the south bank - this was a structure housing the potential bane of the mining industry - the blasting dynamite, fuse cord, primers, etc.
Climbing away from this one time beehive of activity where it is reported that 800+ people were gainfully employed, one can sometimes hear the whistle of a modern train. However it is easy to once again hear the clanking of heavily laden cars recently filled by the washer at the base of the mountain, all pulled by the chugging and puffing steam engines of the times.
Leaving the valley, the vision of what was once there is dimmed by time; but the history of activity once performed here is etched forever in the present day character of the community.
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Big Dig 2005 Volunteers build a rock staircase above one of the numerous swimming holes along Board Camp Creek.
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