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From the trail intersection near the cache, you can hike for
days by using the maze of trails that crisscrosses this section of
the Pisgah National Forest and Shining Rock Wilderness Area.
The trail that runs straight west from here is a connector to
the Ivestor Gap Trail, a historic logging railroad route that is
open for horse travel. Or you can hike east (and later north) along
the Art Loeb Trail, traversing the Shining Rock Wilderness and
emerging days later at the Daniel Boone Boy Scout Camp off Highway
215. A southeastward turn off the Art Loeb Trail at Ivestor Gap
will take you to Graveyard Fields.
A westward and southward hike from the cache location on the Art
Loeb Trail will take you along the west flank of Black Balsam Knob
to Forest Road 816. The Art Loeb Trail then continues for many
miles southward.
Other unmarked trails also intersect at and near this trail
junction. If you're feeling adventurous, and you're knowledgeable
and properly equipped with map and compass and other wilderness
travel equipment, try some of them. Just make sure you have
The Ten Essentials with you.
During winter months, be sure to check whether the Blue Ridge
Parkway is open. Call 828-298-0398; press 1, then 3. The Forest
Service access road to Black Balsam Knob intersects the Parkway
between Milepost 412 (U.S. 276, Wagon Road Gap) and Milepost 423
(NC 215, Beech Gap).
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