Big Rock Spring & Bluff Mountain Road Loop via Catpen Road
15.3 mi · ▲ 3,480 ft · 6 hr 50 min
Big Rock Spring & Bluff Mountain Road Loop via Catpen Road is a 15.3-mile loop near Ebbs Mill, NC. The route reaches Big Rock Spring. It climbs 3,480 ft, with sections as steep as 20% grade. It scores 89/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: genuinely wild.
Elevation
Getting there
Directions
Big Rock Spring & Bluff Mountain Road Loop via Catpen Road
15.3 mi · ▲ 3,480 ft · 6 hr 50 min
Elevation 2,885–4,686 ft
Loop
Trailhead: 35.82664, -82.92727
Weather Sep 4: Overcast, high 81°F / low 69° · precip 6% · wind 5 mph · sunrise 7:07 AM · sunset 7:57 PM
- Start at the trailhead, heading NE.
- 0.7 miTurn left onto Catpen Road, heading SW.
- 1.6 miTurn right onto Appalachian Trail, heading NE.
- 5.2 miTurn right, heading N.
- 100 ftReach Big Rock Spring, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 0.6 miBear right onto Bluff Mountain Road, heading E.
- 1.3 miSharp right onto Catpen Road, heading SE.
- 5.2 miSharp left, heading W.
- 0.6 miThe loop closes back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
Weather
Sunset
The best sunset spot on this hike is 2.5 mi in (~80 min). Leave by 6:17 PM for the 7:57 PM sunset. Back at your car by 9:19 PM, after dark — bring a headlamp.
More from this trailhead
- Lemon Gap via Catpen Road 4.7 mi · ▲ 666 ft
- Catpen Road 7 mi · ▲ 1,383 ft
- Walnut Mountain & Walnut Mountain Trail via Catpen Road 7.2 mi · ▲ 1,466 ft
- Catpen Road 11.9 mi · ▲ 2,193 ft
- Appalachian Trail 14.1 mi · ▲ 1,860 ft
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Hikes near Ebbs Mill, North Carolina