The Cumberland Trail is billed as Tennessee's 53rd state park and its first linear state park, traversing the rugged and beautiful Cumberland Mountains of eastern Tennessee. Envisioned in the late1960s when work on the first sections began, the project was soon stopped. Then in 1997, the newly formed Cumberland Trail Conference resurrected the project. In 2002, the trail was already 110 miles in length, well on its way to the planned 303 total miles projected to be completed by 2008. Ultimately, it will run from Cumberland Gap National Park (KY) and travel through 11 Tennesee counties along the eastern escarpment of the Cumberland Plateau, ending in Signal Point National Historic Park and Prentice Cooper Wildlife Management Area near Chattanooga. With secondary and connector trails, a total of 370 miles of recreational trails will be available. Only foot traffic is allowed on the main trail segments.
"The Cumberland Trail Conference (CTC) is a non-profit organization, dedicated to the management, maintenance, building, and completion of the Cumberland Trail (CT), a Tennessee State Scenic Trail. The CTC was formed in early 1997 by dedicated members of Tennessee Trails Association. Our mission is:
"To preserve the historical and cultural heritage of Tennessee, conserve natural resources, and provide educational and recreational opportunities through the development and completion of the Cumberland Trail corridor, and to establish a foundation of support by interconnecting local communities within the trail corridor to acquire, maintain, and promote the Cumberland Trail.
"Our efforts are supported by a broad community network of individuals, clubs, and communities along the CT corridor and throughout Tennessee. The CTC organizes and provides activities that work towards the completion of the CT. This includes trail maintenance and building outings, trail-building training sessions, and periodic hikes on the CT. We also sponsor the spring CT BreakAway program, an alternative spring break program giving university students the opportunity to give back to their communities.
"The CTC publishes a quarterly newsletter, providing a much needed information outlet for CT news, notes, and activities, and about progress and needs on the trail. We also provide trail maps on open trail segments, a brochure on the CT, and general information." (Taken from the CTC website listed below.)
Hikers should be aware that this area has timber rattlers, copperheads, tics, and poison ivy.
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