June 21st, 2008 - My original plans were to guide a hike for the Unicoi Mountain Expo up Rattlesnake Ridge today, but nobody signed up for it (I guess because of the long strenuous climb).  So, I decided to tag along on David Ramsey's guided hike in the Rocky Fork Tract, which turned out to be a real treat.  David is the primary advocate for the protection of Rocky Fork, so his knowledge of this area is excellent.  David's distant cousin Carl Ramsey, a long-time resident of Rocky Fork also joined us, giving us more history and education of this beautiful area.  For more information about Rocky Fork click here.           

Everyone Setting Out On Our Hike

David led us up the forest road to the convergence of Flint Creek and Rocky Fork where a historic battle between John Sevier's troops, and the Cherokee and Creek Indians took place in an adjacent field.  Many of these Native Indians lost their lives in this field and the surrounding areas giving this spot great historical importance. After David told us the story of this battle, we turned around and made our way on up the forest road to the higher elevations of Rocky Fork.     

David Tells Us of the Frontier Battle of John Sevier & the Native Indians... Very Near the Battle Site 

While making our way up the trail it was evident of the vast diversity of wildlife and plant life in this area.  We were fortunate enough to see fresh signs of Black Bear, Appalachian Brook Trout in the stream, and some members of our group witnessed a Wild Turkey on the trail.  I also took a bunch of photos of wildflowers (as this area is filled with numerous species), along with a couple of photos of butterflies and other insects.  

We continued on up the forest roads for a couple of miles and stopped for lunch alongside the stream.  David and Carl entertained us with more stories of this wonderful area and its past.  After making our way back to our vehicles, we stopped by Carl's rental cottage called "The Resting Place" where he gave us a tour of his cabin and property right next to South Indian Creek.  This was the end to a great hike and a great day in Rocky Fork.  I think we hiked about 5.0 miles.  I plan on returning very soon to explore some more remote trails in this area, and check out a few of the waterfalls, which are located on primitive trails.       

Unknown Wildflower... I Think Some Kind 

of White Bluet

Total Miles Hiked:  5.0  

Getting There:  

Driving - Take the Flag Pond exit off of I-26 (exit #50).  At the stop sign turn left onto Higgins Creek Road. Drive ½ mile until you reach Rt. 23.  Turn right and travel 2¼ mi. thru Flag Pond, then turn left on Rocky Fork Road. After ¾ mi. you will see a gravel pull-off to the left. Park here (out of the way of the gate) and follow the gravel lane into Rocky Fork on foot.    

Trails - There's no official trail maps yet for the Rocky Fork area, just a serious of forest roads and primitive trails.  My National Geographic topo maps do show numerous forest roads, but I'm unsure of the accuracy of the map.  When I return, I'll try to map some of these roads with my GPS and maybe come up with some better trail directions.