Conasauga River Trail #61

Conasauga River Trail #61 is a 3.0-mile river trail in the Cherokee National Forest (Tennessee), just north of the Georgia line. It runs from the FS221 / Sheeds Creek trailhead to its single river crossing, where it meets the Iron Mountain Trail coming up from Georgia.

 

This is not the same trail as Conasauga River Trail #11 in the Cohutta Wilderness. Trail #11 is the long, ford-heavy wilderness route that follows the upper Conasauga. Trail #61 is further downstream, after the Jacks River has already merged into the Conasauga, which gives this stretch a much bigger, wider, more powerful character.

 

The trail begins by crossing a small wooden bridge, then quickly settles onto an old roadbed along the river's right bank. For the full 3 miles, the hiking is mostly flat and easy, with the trail staying close to the water and opening into repeated views of the river. There are several excellent riverbank pull-offs and day-use campsites, including one with a small beach. In places the trail rises slightly above the river and gives broad views into the blue-green current below.

 

This section of the Conasauga is one of the prettiest river walks in the region. You get long smooth pools, boulder gardens, fast rapids, and deep swimming blue holes all in a short distance. Some stretches look calm and glassy, then a few bends later the river tightens up into churning whitewater over polished rock. There are also large riverside boulders and a rope swing in one area for those who know the spot.

 

At the end of the trail, #61 reaches its first and only ford, where the Iron Mountain Trail is directly across the river. This crossing can be dangerous after sustained rain. In normal conditions it may be around thigh deep, but it rises fast and becomes unsafe in high water.

 

A popular loop combines Iron Mountain Trail + Conasauga River Trail #61 for roughly 11.6 miles. Most hikers begin at Cottonwood Patch (Day Use parking) in Georgia, take Iron Mountain north into Tennessee, ford the Conasauga to pick up Trail #61, then follow FS221 and FS16 back to the campground.

 

For paddlers, this reach is also part of a well-known Conasauga run downstream from the Jacks River confluence toward US-411, with Class II–III water depending on flow.