Backpack Trail Guide

Trails / North Carolina / Nantahala National Forest

Bartram Trail to Cheoah Bald

Nantahala National Forest (Nantahala Gorge, Winding Stairs parking area on US 19)

The North Carolina Bartram Trail ends on top of Cheoah Bald, where it meets the Appalachian Trail high above the Nantahala Gorge. Its last section climbs out of the gorge along Ledbetter Creek, and with an overnight pack it makes a steep, short trip to a summit camp.

The Blue Ridge Bartram Trail Conservancy calls it a “strenuous five-mile section” and puts the climb at almost 3,000 feet.

The hike

The conservancy describes the Winding Stairs parking area on Highway 19, just past the Duke Energy hydroelectric plant and commercial boater parking. SummitPost’s route page calls it a small paved lot in the Nantahala Gorge and says the trail starts by crossing the railroad tracks. Stav of Stav Is Lost describes a staircase up to the crossing and then a broken bridge onto the yellow-blazed Bartram Trail.

The first climb is the steepest. Stav counted about 1,000 feet of switchbacks before the grade eases and the trail drops slightly on an old roadbed to Ledbetter Creek. From there, the route follows the creek through what the conservancy describes as numerous waterfalls, with several crossings. SummitPost says this stretch “can get pretty wet, especially in spring or after heavy rain.”

After about 4 miles, SummitPost says, the trail picks up an old Forest Service road, then climbs steeply to the main Cheoah ridge. The Bartram Trail joins the A.T. for the last quarter mile or so; turn right for the summit. The conservancy says water is abundant until the last mile and to fill up if you plan to spend the night on top. The Forest Service’s A.T. page agrees: “There is camping on top of Cheoah Bald, but no water.”

Cheoah means “otter place” in Cherokee, according to the conservancy, and the mountain is named for the Cherokee town of Cheoah, which lay a few miles east of Robbinsville before removal. Section hiker Scout, writing on the TrailGroove forum, found “a treeless grassy area at the top of the bald that provides spectacular views.”

Return the way you came, or arrange a shuttle and descend the A.T. The Forest Service puts the Nantahala River 8.4 miles away by the A.T., with a 3,300-foot climb in the other direction, and our NOC to Fontana Dam page covers that ridge. Joe Miller of GetGoing NC describes the whole North Carolina Bartram Trail as 79 miles long, well marked, and steep, with few places to recover.

Tips

Camping

The Forest Service says camping is allowed on top of Cheoah Bald but there’s no water. SummitPost notes “a number of impromptu camp sites” near the start, past the railroad tracks. On the A.T. portion, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy describes a Forest Service Southern Region food storage order: use a bear-resistant canister, provided storage, or a proper hang, and never store food in a tent or shelter. The ATC recommends canisters.

Inside Intel: Scout’s December section hike stopped at Sassafras Gap Shelter, but two of his group, a few hours behind, “decided to set up camp and to spend the night on the bald.” When he crossed the bald, he found it “quite windy and cold at the top.”

Trail facts

The Lowdown

Cooking with carried water on Cheoah Bald:

The last mile up to Cheoah Bald is dry, so a summit camp means filling up along Ledbetter Creek and cooking with what you hauled up. See the stoves testers trust.

See what testers chose →

Where this comes from

This page draws on the sources below, along with other guides and trip reports. Links go to the original pages.

Before you go: This page is based on published trail guides, trip reports, and reviews, along with official park and agency information where we could find it. It’s meant to help backpackers discover new trails, not to replace current, official information. Conditions, closures, permits, campsites, and water sources change, and some details here may be out of date or wrong. Confirm everything with the managing agency and check current conditions before you head out, and don’t rely on this page alone for safety or navigation. Backcountry travel involves risk.