Chestnut Branch Trail

Chestnut Branch is a roughly 2.1-mile, one-way climb from the Big Creek hiker lot to the Appalachian Trail. It gains about 1,300 feet, so allow around two hours for the ascent. This is a useful way onto the AT or toward Mount Cammerer, but the fire tower lies beyond this trail’s endpoint. Walk back down Chestnut Branch for about 4.1 miles total; it is not a loop.

Most of the route rises through forest. The first 1.2 miles climb steadily, then the grade sharpens for about a quarter mile, eases briefly, and reaches its steepest stretch in the final 0.2 mile before the AT. Near the start, a small bridge and cascade make a pleasant creekside pause. Higher up, switchbacks pass through a rhododendron tunnel. Choose this one for the climb and the trail connection, not for a big overlook.

Look for old fence posts and stone walls along the creek, remnants of a logging settlement from the 1890s. They are easy to miss among the trees, but they give this steep connector a little more story than a simple climb to the ridge.

Use the marked Chestnut Branch hiker parking lot by the Big Creek ranger station, just inside the park entrance off Mount Sterling Road. The trail sign is just around the lot; the park map says not to park along the road. Vehicles left longer than 15 minutes need a park parking tag. There is a restroom at the lot. Dogs are allowed on only two designated park trails, and Chestnut Branch is not one of them.