Coontree Loop Trail

At A Glance

Moderate

3.7 mi one-way

Difficulty Rating: 3.7
Steepness: Climbs Moderately
Tread Condition: Some Obstacles
Blaze Color: Blue
Trail Number: 144

Description

Only the east half of the loop is open to bikes (and only seasonally). It's moderately steep and rocky; makes for either a fun downhill or a pretty serious climb, especially near the top. A few creek crossings/wet areas can be found near the bottom. The trail travels through pleasant woods in a nondescript cove.

Intersecting Trails

  • Bennett Gap
  • This trail is located in the Davidson River area. For a list of all the trails in that area, see the Davidson River trails list page.

    GPS Map

    Map Information

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    About the Map

    Copyright

    Base Layers

    Base layers provided by OpenStreetMap, the US Geological Survey, the US Forest Service, and NC OneMap. Base layer images are subject to the respective copyright policies of their owners. Base layers may not be available at all times due to system maintenance or outages.

    WNCOutdoors Base Layer

    The WNCOutdoors Base layer is provided by WNCOutdoors.info. It is licensed by Creative Commons Attribution 3.0.

    Trail and Marker Overlays

    Trail layers and downloadable data are all original works created by WNCOutdoors with guidance from a variety of sources, including ensembles of our own GPS tracks, user contributed GPS tracks, official maps and GIS data from government agencies, and field observations. WNCOutdoors data is made freely available under the Open Database License - you are free to copy and use it for any purpose under the terms of that license (summary).

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    Trail Segments

    Trails are often made up of several connecting paths which may have different characteristics, allowed uses, and seasons. This trail is divided into multiple segments as follows:

    West Half

    • Allowed Uses: Hiking
    • Length: 1.52 mi

    East Half

    • Allowed Uses: Hiking, Mountain Biking
    • Length: 0.95 mi

    Co-signed with Bennett Gap Tr.

    • Allowed Uses: Hiking, Mountain Biking
    • Length: 0.59 mi

    Extension to US 276/Picnic Area

    • Allowed Uses: Hiking, Mountain Biking
    • Length: 0.2 mi

    Total Calculated Length: 3.26 mi

    This value is derived from our underlying map data, and it may not match officially published information.

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    Ratings

    Average Rating: 4.0 (rated 5 times)

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    Comments

    Sharon K Stafford said: My sister and I hiked this lollypop loop during prime April wildflower season, seeing lots of foamflower, halberd-leaved violets, wood anemone, branch lettuce, jack-in-the-pulpit, and Shuttleworth's ginger (Hexastylis). Also saw both vernal dwarf iris and dwarf crested iris, along with showy orchis. The trail was dry this day, but I suspect the eastern arm of the loop would be very slick right after a rain, since it is bare clay surface on a steep grade in many places. Fairly strenuous in places, especially if you go counter-clockwise. A beautiful hike for a beautiful spring day, regardless.

    Wednesday, April 17 2019 1:53pm

    David and Donna Sharrits said: This was a very much enjoyable hike especially when reaching the top where it looks like you are walking underneath a canopy of laurels, rhododendrons. It was beautiful! It has become a little more difficult for us now and we will miss hiking it. We are enjoying the less difficult trails now. Great experience and memories! 💖

    Saturday, April 4 2015 2:45pm

    Matt Jabs said: My wife and I loved this hike. We came into the loop via Bennett Gap (Avery Creek Rd. entrance), around the loop, then back down the same portion of Bennett Gap. It was a great hike. We especially loved hiking uphill on the winding west side of the loop. One time we were startled by a flock of grouse flying out of a thicket a few feet from us!

    Sunday, November 13 2011 7:39pm
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