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A section of the Appalachian Trail, closed since Helene, has reopened. Iron Mountain Gap, on the Tennessee-North Carolina line, was rerouted for over a year to remove dead trees felled during Hurricane Helene.
Helene downed millions of trees in North Carolina’s national forests, affecting 800,000 acres of trees and 187,000 acres on Forest Service lands.
The Forest Service ended the 5.5 mile trail closure after a period of salvage logging, a sometimes controversial process that involves using heavy machinery to haul out and sell fallen trees.
“Iron Mountain Gap took a hard hit from Hurricane Helene. Downed trees blocked much of the Appalachian Trail, making it dangerous for visitors and raising the risk of wildfire for nearby homes and communities,” said Jennifer Barnhart, district ranger on the Appalachian Ranger District of the Pisgah National Forest, in an emailed statement. “We’re grateful to welcome people back to this stretch of the A.T.”
According to representatives of the Forest Service, repair work is ongoing north of Iron Mountain Gap. For at least the next few weeks, hikers will still have to take a detour along a dirt road that closely parallels the A.T. from Iron Mountain Gap to Weedy Gap.
The area is still pretty overgrown after two years without foot traffic. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy, along with volunteer organizations like the Tennessee Eastman Hiking and Canoeing Club, have been coordinating restoration efforts. This includes managing invasive species, restoring walkable trail surface, killing weeds with weed-eaters and, overall, making sure the trail can return to a pleasant and safe state.
Franklin Tate, southern regional director for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, said trail volunteers are hard at work helping the trail feel like its former self again, but it will take time
“It's really pretty. I mean it really looks nice,” Tate said. “But in terms of the A.T. it doesn't look like a trail that 10,000 hikers have been walking. So, next season when the thru- hikers come through, we're excited to have them, kind of, get the trail packed back down, harden the tread.”
He added that the road crossing along Iron Mountain Gap is still tricky to navigate, and advised hikers to watch the road carefully.
“Be patient during these summer months if they can delay till fall and as the vegetation starts to die off, it's going to be a lot more passable,” Tate said.
Overall, he said, climate change has taken a toll on other parts of the trail too, with extreme rain causing erosion and storms knocking over trees more frequently. This type of damage can require extensive repairs and maintenance, especially along remote sections of trail.
