Foothills Trail: Sassafras Mountain, SC to Gum Gap, NC

Hike along the NC/SC State Line and the Blue Ridge Escarpment on this section of the Foothills Trail. Beginning at Sassafras Mountain, look for the trailhead pointing towards Caesar's Head State Park. Expect a roller coaster trek as you move from mountaintops to gaps on the edge of the Blue Ridge Escarpment. Along this forested hike, you'll experience outstanding vistas of the South Carolina Upstate from Sassafras Mountain, and the French Broad River Valley from an outcropping known to locals simply as "The Lookout." Headwaters State Forest consists of 6,730 forever-protected acres of mountain wonderland featuring beautiful waterfalls, pristine trout streams, and rare mountain bogs. Adjacent to more than 100,000 acres of protected land in North and South Carolina, Headwaters helps to provide an unbroken conservation corridor for both people and wildlife. The forest is open for hiking, hunting, and fishing, and it borders a nine-mile stretch of the Foothills Trail. It is home to numerous rare or endangered plants and animals, including native brook trout and hellbender salamanders. And its namesake headwaters of 50+ miles of crystal-clear streams flow into the French Broad River.