Pisgah 400: Bradley Creek Trail – 7/5/21 – 12.2 miles
Jim’s had a pretty good July 4th weekend so far, biking three mornings in a row. Today he’s joining me for an outdoor adventure of a different sort – creek walking in Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina.
This hike plan is a 9-mile lollipop loop starting from the upper end of Bradley Creek Trail on Yellow Gap Road. I’m including a couple of out-and-back loose ends as I continue to chip away at the Pisgah 400 Challenge. There are many deep creek crossings so we’ll have wet feet the whole way. Lots of fun in the hot summertime – embrace the cool water soaking our socks!
That was the plan. Here’s what actually happened.
From the North Mills River Campground, we drove west on Yellow Gap Road (FR 1206). Designated roadside campsites are very popular there and it’s interesting to see the different approaches to car camping. Some are minimalist, a tent or tarp to claim the site, and some are more elaborate. As we approached a sprawling campsite with two white vans, we saw a locked gate across the road with a big ol’ sign.
This wasn’t a new closure. Did I look at the forest service website to confirm access? No, I have not yet learned my lesson. Nevertheless, this is the end of the road for us.
I walked over to the two-white-vans site to ask about the closure. [When I saw the pit bull (leashed) and the barking chihuahua and the kittens, I realized this wasn’t a camping weekend, that these folks were long timers and would know the scoop.] The friendly folks said that people park by the gate and hike in or bike in every day. Still, this was a significant distance from the Bradley Creek trailhead. How much mileage would we be adding to our hike? Should we go somewhere else? If we go somewhere else, it would take a while and it was already 9:30 am.
Jim suggested walking up the road, pointing out that it’s a nice day and nobody will be driving it, so we’re still walking in the woods. Sunshine and a decent temperature, surprising for July. Couldn’t be more than a mile, mile-and-a-half (famous hiker saying). We set off, noticing the wildflowers on both sides of the road.
In the first half a mile we passed a couple more roadside campsites where folks had carried in their gear, including one where an elderly white-haired man was sitting at the picnic table next to a two-wheeled cart. Surely someone else was with him?
So…we stubbornly clocked 4 miles to the Bradley Creek trailhead, where my original hike plan began. We didn’t have the time or the desire to knock out a 17-mile hike (9 plus the 8 miles out-and-back to where we had to park). We decided to try the first “leg” of my route, which was 1.9 miles on Bradley Creek Trail to its intersection with Laurel Creek Trail. At that point we’d make a decision of what to do next.
We couldn’t find a trail sign for Bradley Creek Trail from the road, but our GAIA app led us down to a campsite and picked up the trail from there.
As expected, the trail was very overgrown, dog hobble and rhododendron obscuring our feet. It was a surprisingly level bench high above the creek, not much effort, then a very gradual downhill all the way to Laurel Creek.
Our pace on the gravel road had been fast, but hiking the trail was significantly slower, navigating blowdowns and being careful not to lose the faint track. My guess is not many people have been passing through here since the road has been closed.
There were 10 wet crossings in 1.9 miles – that’s what we came for! All were between ankle and knee deep. We plunged through with shoes and socks on, no surprises, no slip-ups, just bubbling cool water.
A quarter of a mile from the dam we reached the junction with Laurel Creek Trail. We’d hiked about six miles from our car, so we decided to turn around, splash through the 10 creek crossings again, and call it a good day.
We backtracked to the dam and sat down to eat a late lunch. That’s when I noticed a moving freckle on Jim’s leg…and another one…and another one…ticks!!! The waist-high grass in that sweet little clearing was hosting a tick convention. Ugh! We both pulled off several of the little buggers.
No bears, no snakes, no deer, no fish, no salamander sightings today…just ticks.
The return hike was quick. We made the creek crossings with confidence since we had already scouted them. At the campsite near Yellow Gap Road I stopped to squeeze the excess water out of my socks, eat a little snack, and apply sunscreen for the sunny road walk.
About a quarter mile from the gate we passed a white-haired woman slowly pulling a two-wheeled cart up towards the roadside campsites we had passed earlier, and we guessed probably she was taking her gear to her car. While we were at our own car changing clothes and shoes, she appeared again near the gate pulling the cart. Jim said, “Oh my gosh - that elderly man we saw is in the cart.” I was stunned and began to turn around, but Jim went on to say, “Don’t look, don’t offer to help, it looks very private.”
I thought about this all the way home. Was this a normal activity that these folks were used to, figuring out a way to enjoy camping by the creek? Was it a situation of homelessness? Were they in harm’s way somehow? Was it any of my business (no)? Jim’s reaction was different than mine, but I came to appreciate the dignity of not assuming that a rescue (my interference) was needed. There were other people camping there who could help, if asked.
A successful 12-mile creek walking day in Pisgah. I'm glad that Jim joined me, otherwise I probably wouldn’t have tried to salvage the hike. We stopped at Burning Blush Brewery near Mills River on our way home.
”You can’t be unhappy in the middle of
a big, beautiful river.”
~Jim Harrison
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