Sequatchie County High Point Trip Report
Date: August 19, 2001
Author: Ken Oeser
We hiked the remaining two points to complete Sequatchie County on this day.
First, for BM Harvey at 2380 elevation, turn off Lewis Chapel Road onto Raven Cliff Road and drive 0.6 mile.
Bear right, continue another 0.6 mile and park at a dirt road on the right, just past Deer Haven Road
on the right. This is at elevation 2,110 ft. Follow the dirt road/ATV trail north along the ridge for about 0.8
mile (don't take any side trails) to its crest, then bushwhack through thick pine trees NNW about 300-400
feet to the summit and benchmark. We actually followed the ridge instead of the ATV trail because my
altimeter (not reset) showed only 40 feet of gain to the top from where we left the road. We really gained
about 140 feet to the summit, crossing the ATV road near the top. A compass is highly recommended if you
attempt this one. Mike Schwartz's trip report makes this seem pretty easy and straightforward, but maybe
the roads have changed, and there is no large puddle anymore. Round trip for this point is about 1.6 miles
and 270 foot gain.
It is my personal opinion that this spot doesn't need to be visited. The BM is at 2380, and nothing is even a
foot higher than the benchmark. The area behind the camp at the tri-county spot is also pretty flat. The
large contour 1.25 miles NNW of Henson Gap is about 600 feet diameter, and has pretty good gain within
this area, more than just a couple of feet. The highest area, not far from the ATV road, is fairly flat and
about 50 feet in diameter, but obviously loses some elevation to all sides.
Directions to large contour NNW of Henson Gap: From Lewis Chapel Road, follow Raven Cliff Road and
bear right at 0.6 mile. Then go straight at 1.9 miles, and follow the gravel road to a left bend at 2.7 miles
and park.
Hike up the dirt road about 200 yards to edge of the mountain. This is at the low gap 0.5 mile south of
Raven Cliffs at 2,190 ft elevation. Hike left (southwest) up the ATV road to the end of the clearing, enjoying
the views of the valley below from the rocks on the edge. Follow the unposted ATV trail into the woods
and hike the gradual trail about 0.5 mile farther, then gain about 100 feet elevation in about 0.2 mile.
The trail will then crest out and begin to go gradually downhill. The highest point of the contour is about 50 feet
or so to the right (west) of the trail, in a wooded spot.
Round trip for this hike is about 2 miles with 200 feet of gain. A local teenager on an ATV says most local
landowners don't mind people on their land. There were ATV and horse tracks on the ATV road along the
edge of the mountain. We noticed a very large rattlesnake in the road when we caught up with the ATV
stopped on the road, so I used the opportunity to find out the access situation. He uses an ATV trail at the
end of the gravel road about 200 yards SW of my parking area, but I had earlier noted that trail was posted
after about 100 feet. I would give anyone credit for the county for hitting only this large contour, but purists
might argue otherwise.