I did this hike in the Smoky Mountains' Cataloochee Valley area on August 20th, 2022 with my parents and my girlfriend, following a quick hike down Pretty Hollow Gap Trail.

During the short, 1-mile drive from Pretty Hollow Gap Trail to the Rough Fork Trailhead, we passed a small family of black bears foraging for roots just past the one-way bridge over Palmer Creek. We also got a great view of some wildflowers.

After hiking about a mile and a few stream crossings, we reached the Woody House, a historic building nestled deep in the woods. It started as a log cabin back in the mid-1800s, when the Woodys first migrated to the area, but from 1901-1910, Steve Woody, son of the original owner, Jonathan Woody, expanded and renovated it into the more modern structure we see today. A man and his son who were fishing warned us that there were probably bats in the house, and they were right.

After visiting the Woody House, we drove back up the gravel road a little ways to the Caldwell House and the Palmer Chapel, which we passed on the drive back out. The Caldwell House had a few rooms insulated with newspapers which dated to 1908-1933 from the dates that I could find. The chapel was built in 1903 and remodeled in 1929.

Caldwell Place Barn:

Caldwell Place

Palmer Chapel

To see a map of the trail, click here.