Bartram trail - Sections 4-5

Hike Name: Bartram trail - Sections 4-5 Location: southwest NC Length: 19 Submitted by: Keith the FL flatlander Date Submitted: 11/19/08 Rating:	more North Carolina trail reviews North Carolina national parks North Carolina state parks
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Description
Leaving Franklin, NC starting at the Wallace Branch trail head you will hike up Trimont Ridge on your way to the trails highest point at Wayah Bald (elev 5342'). This part of the trail is TRULY strenuous as noted on the Bartram Trail website and follows the ridge line most of the way up in roller-coaster type fashion. There aren't a lot of switch-backs and the trail tends to just go straight up the sides of the knobs and balds on the ridge so be prepared and train for it as much as possible. Also, if you plan cooking freeze dried meals and want some coffee/tea with breakfast or whatever... carry enough water with you! Water sources are not so plentiful on the ridge. There's a water source just a mile or so in from the trail head and not another until about a mile before Wayah Bald. That's close to 10 miles of strenuous hiking with no water sources. The actual ridge and views are very nice culminating in the open views (semi blocked to the west by trees)of Wayah Bald. Though this hike is a physical test, it is worth it if you are prepared. It also goes through a bear sanctuary most of the way. We didn't see any black bear but saw scat a number of times. We backpacked this in early Nov and though the colors were spectacular, there were a lot of leaves on the ground and we made much noise just walking along. I'd advise late Oct to get the autumn colors without all the dead leaves. On the way down McDonald Ridge leaving Wayah Bald, it's mostly a downward hike. The last 2-3 miles is pretty steep and wouldn't recommend hiking this in the eastward direction. It was hard enough going down with all the dead leaves and very slippery roots covering the trail. The views of Nantahala Lake from up on the ridge are superb. You can see for miles to your left and right for most of the way down. A very challenging but satisfying backpacking trip it what we ended up having!

Directions to Hike
From the US441/US64 junction south of Franklin, drive west on US64 for 1.0 miles and turn right onto Sloan Rd. (SR1153). In 0.2 miles you will pass the Nantahala Ranger Station on the right and in 0.1 miles, come to an intersection. Cross this intersection to Pressley Rd. (SR1315) and go 1.7 miles to the end and a parking area for the Wallace Branch Trailhead. Parking capacity: around 6 vehicles though there is now true parking lot. The people that live next to the trail head over the stream are very friendly and will tease you about being eaten by a bear while on the hike. :)

Contact Information
http://ncbartramtrail.org/?page_id=35
http://ncbartramtrail.org/?page_id=36

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