Great Smoky Mountains National Park · North Carolina, Tennessee

Rough Fork Trail

6.3 mi of trail, end to end · Hike to Steve Woody House: 2 mi round trip in the Service's write-up · about 2,300 ft of climbing · 2,828 ft–5,126 ft · native surface · trail class Developed

HistoryBackcountry campsGaps

4,049 ft 5,071 ft · 3.0 mi high 5,071 ft

Along the way #40 Big Hemlock Polls Gap Steve Woody House

Trailheads Hemphill Bald Trail Trailhead 5,127 ft Drive there · Rough Fork Trail Trailhead 5,128 ft Drive there · Rough Fork Trail Trailhead 2,827 ft Drive there

Hike to Steve Woody House 2 mi round trip · the Park Service's write-up

no dogs · entrance fee applies

A white historic home in a grassy field with forest behind it. A wooden sign labels the home.
Hike 2 miles (3.2 km) roundtrip from Rough Fork Trailhead at the end of Cataloochee Road. Photo: NPS Photo

Overview

Walk 2 miles (3.2 km) roundtrip through a hardwood forest on a wide, well-graded path following a mountain stream to reach the historic Steve Woody Place in Great Smoky Mountains National Park , which was once the center of a sprawling homestead with several outbuildings.

Today, visitors can see the house surrounded by the open fields of the Cataloochee Valley, but the homesite once included a house, barn, chicken house, tool house, canning house, spring house, and wood shed.

Length

2 miles (3.2 km) roundtrip

Parking & Trailhead

Park at Rough Fork Trailhead (follow Cataloochee Road to the dead end past the campground, ranger station, Messer Barn, and Palmer Chapel to the parking area). Don't forget your parking tag .

Nearest Restroom

Cataloochee Campground (closed seasonally)

Alternate Hikes

Kephart Prong Trail : 4 miles (6.4 km) roundtrip

Little River, Cucumber Gap, Jakes Creek Loop : 5.4 miles (8.7 km) roundtrip

Pets The Gatlinburg Trail and Oconaluftee River Trail are the only two park trails where pets are permitted. Pets are also allowed in picnic areas, in campgrounds, and on roads.

Accessibility Trail is mostly flat and wide with a couple of stream crossings on narrow log bridges.

This hike on nps.gov

On the parks map

Other trails from the same trailheads

All 244 trails in Great Smoky Mountains National ParkFind a trailOn the parks mapPark on nps.gov

About this trail's facts

The lines are the National Park Service's public trails layer, the trailheads and the waterfalls, views, peaks and historic places along them the Service's public points of interest, read 2026-10-16 and simplified for the map; the length is the line's, end to end. The write-ups are the Service's own "things to do" text, unedited. Heights come from USGS 3DEP through Terrain Tiles on AWS (Mapzen/Tilezen), read along each line and rounded; a short trail on steep ground can be off by a few tens of feet. Closures change: check the park's own site before you go.