Do not follow where the path may lead.  Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail. –Ralph Waldo Emerson

The Friday Hoofer hikes are the longest, have more climb, and are consistently the most strenuous of the five groups.   Please consult with one of the hike leaders before hiking with this group.  We normally ask potential Friday Hoofers to first hike with the Wednesday Striders.

Here is a Friday Hoofer Video that describes some of the fun we experience during our hikes.

Time:  Unless noted in the hike description the regular start time is 9:00 am.  Please arrive 10 minutes early for a prompt departure.

Updates:  Updates are posted on the Updates page every Thursday morning before the Friday hike, and sometimes at other times.  Because of the uncertain weather in Western North Carolina an update may be posted the morning of the hike changing or cancelling the hike.  Hikers are encouraged to check for updates before heading to the meeting place.  If you would like to receive updates sent directly to your email, press the “+Follow” button at the lower right hand corner of any web page and provide your email address.  Hkers can Unsubcribe by clicking that button on the top of the Update email they receive.

Note: Do NOT reply to the Update emails. Only use the RSVP link to reply.

Assembly:  Four different Assembly Area locations are generally used depending upon the location of the hike.  The schedule specifies a starting location for each hike, which differs from hike to hike.  The four starting locations are the Pisgah Ranger Station/Visitor Center, Walmart parking lot in Pisgah Forest, Catheys Creek Road at US64 and the Cedar Mountain Community Center parking lot.  Details for each location are given in the Assembly Areas tab. Note: the assembly area may be different from these three areas so always check the Update for the hike.

Photos: Pictures taken during some of the hikes can be found here.

Friday Hoofer Hike Leaders :
David Yeager–yeagerd@hanover.edu
Vic Zona–victor.zona@sbcglobal.net

Friday Hoofers Fall 2025 Schedule

Our start time for the Fall Quarter hikes will be 9:00 AM.
Hikes with longer drive times will meet earlier and noted in the weekly update.

October 10 Black Balsam/Tennant/Grassy Cove Top (P400, SB6K)
9 mi, 1,545’cl, R9
Meet at Ranger Station
From the MST/Loeb Crossing on FS816 we take the Art Loeb trail up and over three 6,000’ peaks. After the hike to the top of Grassy Cove Top we hike down to Ivestor Gap then climb back over Tennent and Black Balsam before returning to our cars.

October 17 Green River Game Lands
10 mi, 1,754’cl, R10
Meet at Walmart or Ingles on Upward Road in Hendersonville. From the parking area on Big Hungry Road we hike the loop along the Green River.

October 24 Panthertown Valley, Blackrock, Little and Big Green Mountains loop
9.5 mi, 1,965’cl, R10
Meet at Cathey’s Creek Road
From the Cold Mountain parking area we hike to Schoolhouse falls, Tranquility Point and Green Mountain. We complete the loop hiking over Blackrock Mountain,
Purdy Point and back to our cars.

October 31 Laurel Valley to Sassafras Mountain
9.5 mi, 2,218’cl, R10
Meet at Cathey’s Creek Road or the Laurel Valley parking
Beginning at Laurel Valley parking area we will hike to the Sassafras Mt. viewing platform and back.

November 7 Cedar Rock via Kagle Mt. Road (P400)
10.2 mi, 2100’cl, R10+
Meet at Cathey’s Creek Road
At the intersection of Kagle Mt. Road and Catheys Creek Road we will hike Kagle Mt. Road to Cedar Rock Creek trail. From there we will take the Art Loeb to Butter Gap shelter where we will pick up a user trail back to Kagle Mt. Road after lunch on Cedar Rock Mountain.

November 14 Hilliard Falls
10.7 mi, 2,500’cl, R10+
Meet at Cathey’s Creek Road
This hike is a variation of a past hoofer hike. Beginning at the Bad Creek parking area, we will hike the Foothills Trail to Hilliard Falls as an out-and-back.

November 21 Bear Branch, Double Head, Pine Mtn, Bad Fork loop (P400)
11.5 mi, 2,500’cl, R10+
Meet at Walmart or the Mills River Ingles
From the North Mills River area, we hike up Bear Branch to Double Head, then over Pine Mtn and up to Ferrin Knob. After lunch it is down hill taking Bad Fork back to our cars.

November 28 Laurel Valley to Virginia Hawkins Falls
10.6 mi, 2,480’cl, R10+
Meet at Cathey’s Creek Road
Beginning at the Laurel Valley parking area we hike an out-and-back to Hawkins Falls.

December 5 Cataloochee Divide
12 mi, 2,000’cl, R10
Meet at Walmart or the Mills River Ingles
We follow the Cataloochee Divide Trail out to the Swag Resort and back.
NOTE: A parking pass for each vehicle is required in the GSMNP. For more information: https://www.nps.gov/grsm/ planyourvisit/fees.htm

December 12 Sassafras Palmetto Emory Gap Foothills loop
9.9 mi, 1,982’cl, R10
Meet at Sassafras Mountain parking lot
Beginning at the Sassafras Mountain parking we hike the Palmetto Trail, Popular Hollow Road, Emory Gap Toll Road to the Foothills Trail back to our cars.

December 19 Straus Park-Art Loeb-Stoney Knob Lollipop (P400)
10 mi, 1,800’cl, R10
Meet at Straus Park
We take Hawk Trail from Straus Park over Pine Mt. to Joel Branch Road. There we catch a connector to the Art Loeb and take it to the Stony Knob trail. Stony Knob takes us back to our lollipop stick at Joel Branch.

December 26 Dupont Ramble
11.5 mi, 1,300’cl, R10
Meet at the Imaging Lake parking lot
Starting at Imaging Lake parking lot we will hike a variety of trails in Dupont.