Press release from Friends of the Smokies:
The rich and diverse natural and historical treasures of Great Smoky Mountains National Park will be highlights of the next Classic Hike of the Smokies at Caldwell Fork Trail. Join Friends of the Smokies Tuesday, May 9 to see late spring wildflowers and historic Cataloochee Valley on this moderately strenuous hike, which travels 9.4 miles round trip and ascends 1,650 feet. Former Deputy Superintendent Kevin Fitzgerald will lead the hike.
“A late spring hike is the perfect time to enjoy the Cataloochee area with the green-up well under way, a great variety of wildflowers blooming and moderate temperatures all making for a wonderful walk in the woods,” says Fitzgerald.
The hike will include a stop at the Woody House. While at the historic home, Fitzgerald will provide background about efforts to protect hemlock trees in the national park. Since 2003, Friends of the Smokies has had a leadership role in supporting the most ambitious program in the Southeast aimed at protection from the invasive and deadly hemlock woolly adelgid. To date, more than 280,000 individual hemlock trees have been hand-treated, and more than 5,000 acres of hemlock-dominated forest have been set aside as special conservation areas.
Meeting locations for the daylong excursion will be in Asheville, Waynesville, and at the trailhead. Visit FriendsoftheSmokies.org to register for any Classic Hike of the Smokies, sponsored by Mission Health.
Monthly guided day hikes in the Classic Hikes series are $20 for members. New and renewing members may join Friends of the Smokies and hike for $35. Donations benefit Friends of the Smokies’ Trails Forever program, which supports trail rehabilitation in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
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