Standing Indian

[barefoot]

We are hiking the AT at Standing Indian this weekend. We are planning on parking at the campground and taking the Kimsey Creek trail to the AT, spend the night on the mountain or shelter and then loop back down on the Lower Ridge Trail. Question one: we won’t get up there until late Friday night. I know that the campground is closed for the season. Can we still hike in the campground and setup for the night or do we head up the trail a little and find a spot? Are there any spots along the creek trail? Second question: is there a way to extend the hike and still make it a loop? Doing it the way I’ve described it will only be a 10 mile.

[JTCruiser]

There are some great possibilities for a longer hike. This thread may help a little; also, do a search on "Standing Indian Loop" and you will find helpful maps and other info. Enjoy it--this is a beautiful hike.

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/show...ng+indian+loop

[Marta]

A good place to stay Friday night is Rock Gap Shelter. It's just a few hundred feet from a parking area. I wouldn't stay there if I were alone, but if you're with a group, you should be okay.

There are lots of possible loops. Do you have the National Geographic map of the area? It would make the options a lot clearer.

[Ox97GaMe]

The Lower Ridge Trail wasnt very well maintained and VERY steep when I hiked down it about 2 years ago. It is the shortest way off Standing Indian Mountain if you are limited to just 2 days out and dont want to commit to the 10-12 mile days to make the entire loop back to the campground.

[veteran]

[QUOTE= Second question: is there a way to extend the hike and still make it a loop? Doing it the way I’ve described it will only be a 10 mile.[/QUOTE]

Map of a loop using the Lower Ridge Trail, the AT and the Long Branch Trail. You could substitute the Lower Ridge with kimsey Creek.