by Julie Dodd
Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) and Friends of the Smokies (FOTS) celebrated the restoration of the Ramsey Cascades Trail with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the trailhead on Nov. 18.
The renovation of the four-mile trail, located in the Greenbrier section of the park, took three years to complete.
The FOTS-funded Trails Forever Crew was joined by youth crews from the American Conservation Experience and Southeast Conservation Corps. Friends of the Smokies also funded a trails volunteer supervisor for the rehabilitation, who worked with more than 100 volunteers.
“Through generous donors, including the Aslan Foundation and Richard Haiman National Parks Foundation, the Friends of the Smokies provided $1,070,000 to support critically needed rehabilitation of this spectacular trail that showcases giant trees and the park’s tallest waterfall,” said Dana Soehn, FOTS president and chief executive officer.
“We are honored to invest in this legacy work that is about so much more than creating a sustainable trail,” she said. “This work results in a lasting invitation for generations to come to experience the wonders of these woods along the Ramsey Prong just as we can today.”
Trails Forever Crew supervisor Josh Shapiro cut the ribbon reopening the trail for use seven days a week. (Bruce McCamish captured the moment in the photograph at the top of the page.) During the restoration work, the trail had been closed to hikers from Monday through Thursday.
Following the ribbon-cutting ceremony hikers joined Shapiro and other members of the Trails Forever Crew to hike the trail and learn more about the restoration work.
Logistics of the restoration
I asked Shapiro to discuss the restoration project.
FOTS: What improvements were made to the trail?
Josh Shapiro: Improvements to the trail will make it safer to hike and increase sustainability. Improvements include two new footlog bridges, new decking and handrails on 20-foot hiker bridge, 151 new trail drains, a 970-foot section of new trail, and new steps for hiker safety and erosion control.
We cut back encroaching rhododendron along the entire 4-mile trail corridor, regraded the trail surface to allow better drainage, and removed roots and rocks that were tripping hazards. The restoration also included 2.5 miles of trail surface repair.
FOTS: Restoration work stopped after flash floods in July 2022. How did the floods impact the trail?
Josh Shapiro: The floods washed out approximately 900 linear feet of trail about 2.5 miles up the Ramsey Cascades Trail. Both footlogs were washed out, and a section of Greenbrier Road was washed out as well. Since Greenbrier Road was damaged, the crew lost access to work on the trail from July to November 2022.
With the lost time working on the trail and the damage caused by the flooding, the project was extended by one season. The crew was able to build two new footlogs and constructed a new section of trail to bypass the washed-out section.
FOTS: What were the logistics of the trail restoration, such as the number of locust logs, crushed stone required and structures created?
Josh Shapiro: The restoration included:
151 new drains
61 locust ladders (585 steps)
185 stone steps (pavers, keystones included)
1 stone culvert
388 side rocks
1 stone step-over drain
54 cubic feet of rip rap – stones placed to protect against erosion
110 locust checks – a construction method to anchor staircases
33 locust box steps
977-foot reroute of trail section
2 footlogs
1 new deck and handrails on bridge
Approximately, 3,800 cubic feet of rock crush — about 760,000 pounds — was used as filler. The crew used approximately 1,200 locust logs for trail structures.
FOTS: How were mules and helicopter deliveries used to transport materials to the trail?
Josh Shapiro: The Park Mule Team was able to pack in locust logs, tools, and supplies to the lower two miles of the trail up to the lower footlog.
A helicopter delivered 70 loads to five drop sites along the trail above the lower footlog to the areas that the mule team couldn’t access. The loads included tools, supplies and 70 locust log bundles for building trail structures.
Trail crews and volunteers
FOTS: How many worked on the Trails Forever crew and how many others were on the American Conservation Experience (ACE) and Southeast Conservation Corps (SECC) crews?
Josh Shapiro: The Trails Forever Crew was comprised of eight highly skilled NPS Trails Staff. The crew directed all of the work on the trail and was able to build footlog bridges, dry stone masonry trail structures, a trail reroute, and locust trail structures to a very high standard. The crew is very dedicated and very skilled at their craft and are appreciated immensely for their leadership and skill with trail work.
ACE and SECC Crews were comprised of six members each. The crews were also very dedicated, hardworking and completed work to a high standard. They worked a variety of tasks including trail surface repair, installing new drainages, regrading trail sections, assisting the NPS Crew with structures, and building new trail as part of the rerouted trail section.
FOTS: What was the role of volunteers on the restoration?
Josh Shapiro: As with all of the trail rehabilitation projects the Trails Forever Crew has worked on, volunteers have a very important role, and all of their hard work is greatly appreciated. On this restoration, 110 volunteers were involved, working 1,848 total hours.
Volunteers assisted the crew with a variety of tasks, including clearing drains along the trail, removing roots and rocks that were tripping hazards, cutting back three miles worth of encroaching rhododendron along the trail, peeling locust logs, and regrading trail sections for better drainage.
FOTS: What is the next trail restoration project?
Josh Shapiro: Bullhead Trail is the next trail restoration project and will take place over the course of two seasons in 2025 and 2026.
Trails Forever restoration projects
Ramsey Cascades is the seventh trail restoration project completed by the Trails Forever Crew since the Trails Forever program was established in 2012.
The Trails Forever Crew has restored Alum Cave Trail, Rainbow Falls Trail, Trillium Gap Trail, Abrams Falls Trail, Chimney Tops Trail and Forney Ridge Trail.
You can support Trails Forever restoration projects by making a donation.