
The white AT blaze showed the way

The church at Old Forge. It’s covered in creosote or something similar. It’s a unique, but good looking building.
The Old Forge/Chimney Rocks hike we embarked upon today has a few different possible starting points. Originally, we intended to start at the Old Forge Picnic Area across from Camp Penn in Michaux State Forest; however, because of our lack of familiarity with the location of the Appalachian Trail, we opted to park where the AT crosses Rattlesnake Run Road. Due to the lingering snow in the woods, there was little danger of encountering a rattlesnake. Instead, slippery footing and 8″ deep snow on the “cold” side of the mountain caused sporadic problems during what was otherwise a great day of hiking.

A bit of humor in the privy at Tumbling Run Shelters

There isn’t any electricity in the outhouse, but because of the skylight you can choose between solar and lunar light
From our tiny parking area, we headed north on the AT, and in .4 miles we met up with Old Forge Road and crossed Tumbling Run before heading back into the woods. In a few more tenths of a mile, we came to the Tumbling Run Shelters. These are relatively typical Adirondack-style structures, but they make up the best overnight facility that we’ve seen on the trail to date.

Overnighters can sleep in the snoring shelter…

or the non-snoring shelter! I would have to use the snoring shelter.
A quick tour of the shelters gave us a handful of laughs. There is a light switch in the privy that is marked “solar” and “lunar.” Of course there isn’t any electricity in this remote outhouse, but it is equipped with a skylight that allows sunlight and moonlight to aid the user when nature calls. The fun didn’t stop there; the two shelters are labelled as “snoring” and “non-snoring,” so campers should know their sleep-type before picking a resting place.

Heading toward Chimney Rocks

Our first look at Chimney Rocks from the back side
Beyond the shelter, it’s just over a mile to the Chimney Rocks Overlook, and the Appalachian Trail ascends approximately 900′ along the way. In a few spots it’s fairly steep, and the last of the snow and ice on the sunny side of the mountain made for an interesting climb. Near the top, the Chimney Rocks Trail crosses the AT, and a .1 mile detour leads to a great view that includes the Waynesboro Reservoir. This set of rocks is easy to climb–unlike Sunset Rocks–and the view can be enjoyed by nearly everybody, even those of us with a fear of heights.

Looking toward the…ummm…northeast (I think) from Chimney Rocks

The Waynesboro Reservoir is in the distance
Beyond the rocks, our travel plans included another mile on the AT before reaching a pipeline. From here, we walked uphill roughly 100 yards and took a left onto a forest service road (Chimney Rocks Road) that started us back down the mountain. The road meets up with the other end of Chimney Rocks Trail, but we continued straight until our blue-blazed route took a left at a Y intersection and dropped sharply toward Tumbling Run. At about the five-mile mark, the trail hugs the bank of the stream all of the way back to the shelters, and from there we reconnected with the stretch of the AT that we started on in the morning. A half-mile later, we were back at our starting point.

Heading back down the mountain on the snow-covered forest service road

This is the other end of the Chimney Rocks Trail. Stay straight on the forest service road!
The final stats were a moderate 6.2 miles, with a combined elevation gain of 1100′, but this short trek has a little bit of everything: an overlook, a stream, a country road, and even a bit of human ingenuity. There really wasn’t anything not to like. So far, this is our best hiking experience in Michaux State Forest, and I would highly recommend it.

Tumbling Run. If you look closely, you can see a plank bridge that crosses the stream near a PATC cabin that’s available to rent for the night
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