Lake Cherokee was a pleasant surprise I discovered while working at the site, located in far western North Carolina near the town of Murphy. Arriving a bit early for my shift I decided to go for a quick stroll around and found a wonderful variety of wildflowers as well as a pleasant lake side path which winds out to the dam which creates Lake Cherokee. The lake itself is small, formed from a small tributary which flows into neighboring Hiwassee Lake. The site has a nice picnic area and a large fishing pier which hints at the fact that this might e a fairly busy place in the summer months. As it was, I was able to enjoy a nice mile loop around the park taking time to 'smell the roses' as it were. This album is essentially a wildflower gallery with a few shots of Lake Cherokee thrown in for good measure. It was a great way to kick off a day of work...
Trailhead GPS Coordinates: 35.065171, -84.163650
Route Type: Double Out-and-back
Difficulty: EASY (Petzoldt Rating: 1.70 )
Hike Length: 1.5 miles Hike Duration: 0:45
Trailhead Temp: 65'F Trail Traffic: 1-5 people
Min. Elevation: 1,549' Max. Elevation: 1,580'
Total Vertical Gain: 100' Avg. Elevation Gain / Mile: 67'
kw
on July 2, 2013wowed by the vibrant early morning beauty and 'dew tipped' floral beauty!! Looks like a great place to visit!