House Mountain State Natural Area
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Trail Overview
House Mountain is a two mile long spine north of Knoxville. Trail heads up to the 2,100' highpoint of Knox County for overlooks to the Cumberland Mountains and Smokies.
How to get there
From Kingsport, TN
- South on I-26.
- West on I-40 to Exit 392 for US 11W (Rutledge Pike).
- North along Rutledge Pike for about 10 miles.
- Just after the brown House Mountain information sign, turn left onto Idumea Road for 0.6 mile.
- Take another left onto Hogskin Road.
- Parking is on the right at new lot with covered picnic area and pit toilets.
Alternatively, take US 11W past Rogersville, Bean Station, and Rutledge to turn onto Idumea Road.
Route Description
Multiple trails. Typical loop hike would be to take Mountain Trail up to Crest Trail out to the NE overlook to see the Cumberland Mountains, back along Crest Trail to the SW overlook for the Smokies and parts of Knoxville, and finally down West Overlook (former Turkey) Trail to the parking lot. The reverse direction can also be taken.
Trail | Miles | Blaze | Difficulty | Usage |
---|---|---|---|---|
Left Sawmill Loop | 0.3 | Easy | ||
Right Sawmill Loop | 0.4 | Easy | ||
West Overlook Trail | 0.8 | Medium | ||
Mountain Trail | 1.0 | Medium | ||
Crest Trail | 1.5 | Easy |
Typical Conditions
The trails are reasonably maintained paths passing some large boulders. The overlooks have no railing, thus steep dropoffs.
Fees, Permits, etc.
No permit or fee. The nature area closes at dusk.
After the Hike
Misc. Information
A nice gallery of photographs from the Mountain Trail has been posted by Kris Light.
The official TN.gov House Mountain webpage including map.
Maps
<googlemap lat="36.12215" lon="-83.7565" type="terrain" zoom="15" height="600" scale="yes" icons="http://tehcc.org/clubwiki/kml/marker{label}.png"> http://tehcc.org/clubwiki/kml/Placeholder_trail.kml (A) 36.10475, -83.76275 Parking and Trailhead </googlemap>
Photos
- Placeholder.jpg