Wagon Road Gap Trail Map

"The Once and Mighty Hemlock"

GPS Coordinates: 35.32827, -82.68884 (Turkeypen Gap Trail Junction)

GPS Coordinates: 35.33643, -82.69110 (South Mills River Trail Junction)

Album Direction-Of-Travel: Northbound

Highlights: Big Cove, Solitude

Length (one-way): 0.7 miles

Petzoldt Rating: 1.70

Difficulty: HARD

Total Elevation Gain: 500'

Elevation Gain/Mile: 714'/mile

Min. Elevation: 2,520'

Max. Elevation: 3,000'

Blaze Color: ORANGE

See Following Trip Reports for more info:

Turkeypen Area - Sharpy Mountain Loop

Connecting Trails:

South Mills River Trail (#133)

Turkeypen Gap Trail (#322)

Wagon Road Gap Trail (#134)

Wagon Road Gap Trail Map
Route map of the Wagon Road Gap Trail as tracked by the Gaia GPS app and depicted a la Google Earth...
Wagon Road Gap Trail Map
Route map of the Wagon Road Gap Trail as tracked by the Gaia GPS app...
Wagon Road Gap/Turkeypen Gap Trail Junction (Wagon Road Gap) -- 3,000'
This is the upper terminus of the Wagon Road Gap Trail, where it departs the Turkeypen Gap Trail north at, you guessed it, Wagon Road Gap...
Wagon Road Gap/Turkeypen Gap Trail Junction (Wagon Road Gap) -- 3,000'
The Wagon Road Gap Trail as it leaves Wagon Road Gap...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,950'
The trail immediately begins its descent off the north side of the ridge...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,900'
The descent from Wagon Road Gap is moderately steep, though hardly difficult...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,850'
Deadfall like this is common along this trail, which sees less usage than others in the area...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,800'
About halfway along its length, the Wagon Road Gap Trail eases up in its descent as it nears an area known as "Big Cove"...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,750'
Looking up the adjacent ridge, thickly covered in rhododendron...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,700'
There are a few wet areas to contend with along the lower half of the Wagon Road Gap Trail, but nothing that should dampen your feet...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,650'
Looking back up the valley...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,620'
The trail as it nears Big Cove from the south...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,600'
One of the handful of stream hops you'll make along this section of the trail...like I said, nothing too major...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,600'
Entering the Big Cove area...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,580'
At times the rhododendron pressed in tight alongside the trail...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,570'
Just before reaching its lower end the Wagon Road Gap Trail makes a quick crossing of this unnamed tributary...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,560'
...and then almost immediately doubles back to make another crossing of the same stream. During wet periods, I'm sure these twin crossings could be tricky...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,550'
Immediately before its lower junction with the South Mills River Trail, the Wagon Road Gap Trail enters a once-majestic grove of towering hemlocks. Sadly, these trees have succumbed to the hemlock woolly adelgid...as so many others in the area also have...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,550'
Looking up into the canopy of now-dead hemlocks...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,550'
The last few hundred feet of the trail, through the old hemlock grove, is a bit tricky to spot. To stay on track keep along the left edge of the grove to reach the South Mills River Trail...
Wagon Road Gap Trail -- 2,540'
The short stretch of trail as it looks along the left side of the hemlock grove...
Wagon Road Gap/South Mills River Trail Junction -- 2,520'
Arriving at the South Mills River Trail...the lower terminus of the Wagon Road Gap Trail...
Wagon Road Gap/South Mills River Trail Junction -- 2,520'
The Wagon Road Gap Trail as it arrives from the north, reaching its lower terminus at the South Mills River Trail.