The Panthertown Valley contains a network of hiking trails that travel to a variety of popular destinations within this 6700 acre tract of Forest Service land. At least 8 major waterfalls and countless smaller ones lie along the area's streams. Hikes above the flat-bottomed, high-elevation valleys take you to cliff-top views of the surrounding mountains. Sandy beaches on deep, clear pools make great places to hang out, have a picnic, and a swim during the summer. There is no lack of things to see and do on a hike in Panthertown!
Schoolhouse Falls is visible from the front and the side, and if you're careful not to step on anything green - from behind!
Greenland Creek and Panthertown Creek are the area's main waterways, which join to form the Tuckaseegee river, which flows out of the area through gorges with colorful names such as "Devil's Elbow" and "Bonas Defeat". The area (generally south of Flatrock Mountain and north of Hogback Mountain) is actually a smattering of finger-like valleys with nearly level bottoms, flanked on all sides by steep slopes and granite domes, in contrast with the typical "V" shaped valleys elsewhere in region. In the valleys, streams are slow and lazy, with some areas looking more like they belong in the coastal plain than at 3600' elevation in the mountains. And rare, high-altitude mountain bogs form in some areas as well, staining the water like tea as leaves and plant material steeps in it for days before the it finally trickles into the streams. Rare plants grow both in the bogs and on top of the granite domes - environmental extremes to say the least.
A confusing network of trails branches off from the area's main old logging road and railroad grades. Everything from wide, well-worn trails to faint, twisting, steep manways will be required to reach the main destinations such as the waterfalls. As the Forest Service has just now began improving the trails even though it has owned the property for decades, it is necessary to travel here as you would in the Wilderness: with a map, a compass, and enough provisions to survive. As yet, none of the trails are blazed or signed and not all of them are shown on any map. While most of the main trails are obvious and technically very easy, the network is so confusing that, until the Forest Service finishes with signage, all should be considered "difficult" and attempted by only experienced hikers.
Forests in the area are varied, and contain a high concentration of mountain laurel and rhododendron thickets near the water. This isn't really unusual for Western North Carolina but the "laurel hells" here can be exceptionally thick! The area is in what the Forest Service calls "Management Area 5", which means its emphasis is to provide "large blocks of backcountry where there is little evidence of other humans or human activities other than recreation use in a near primitive setting". What this means is that timber production is not allowed, so the area will be able to return to a natural state. (See History below for more about that). Some areas North of the main Panthertown valley are open to limited timber harvest, but they are not in the area where most people visit.
It has not been determined that any permanent settlement ever existed in the Valley, although human impact over the centuries has been tremendous. Native Americans hunted and fished this and almost every other valley in the mountains. Pioneers termed the valley "Paintertown" (local for "Panthertown") due to the wildness and (undoubtedly) the number of panthers, or Eastern Cougar, living in the area. The land in the area was sold from a private developer, R. G. Jennings, during the 1920's. The entire valley was logged heavily after that time, as much of the Southern Appalachians were. Many of the main roads and trail were originally built during that time, such as the gravel road that switches back down past Schoolhouse Falls. And like other areas including Graveyard Fields and the Smokies, fires started in the leftover logging debris and raged through the valley. This, combined with heavy, flooding rains, caused massive erosion and killed most leftover vegetation.
Forests recover, and they have done so fairly well since being destroyed nearly 100 years ago. During the 1960's a private deelopment company bought the land and intended to turn it into a private, upscale development, complete with a lake and golf course. Thankfully, that did not happen, but thickets of white pines indicate areas that were planted for Christmas trees in the 70's. These trees were never harvested and grew to become several white pine plantations we see today. In 1987 Duke Power (now Duke Energy) bought the valley in order to build a high-voltage transmission line down its East side. Conservation groups and area biologists fiercely opposed this, but it happened anyway; this is probably the most apparent sign of human intrusion left in the area. After it was built, the land outside the power line's right-of-way was sold to the Nature Conservancey, and then, finally, the Forest Service.
No developed campgrounds are in the immediate area; however, many exist in the nearby towns from Brevard to Cashiers and Highlands. Backcountry camping is allowed anywhere within the area, and standard National Forest camping rules apply. Using common sense, you can find some excellent sites in the flat valleys, close enough to the waterfalls to soothe you to sleep at night. Keep your gear in bear bags: this is a bear sanctuary and they are quite common!
From Asheville:
Take I-240 West to I-26 East to the Asheville Airport, exit 40. Turn right onto NC 280; follow this for 16 miles to Brevard. At the intersection with US 64/276, continue straight onto this dual highway. In downtown Breavard, US 276 heads right; stay straight on US 64. US 64 bears right after passing through brevard. Follow US 64 for about 15 miles (it becomes very curvy) to the intersection with NC 281; turn right. See below.
From Highlands:
Follow US 64 East to Cashiers. 13 miles past the stoplight in Cashiers, just past the Lake Toxaway dam, turn left on NC 281. See below.
Once you are on NC 281, go 0.8 miles and turn left on Cold Mountain Road (the fire station is on the right). Proceed just under 6 miles up Cold Mountain Road; the road turns to gravel. At a sharp left turn, a sign will indicate the Panthertown parking is just ahead. It is 0.1 mile from the sharp left turn to a gravel road on the right signed for the parking area; the road is about 0.1 mile long and the parking area is just a wide spot at the end of the road.
From Asheville:
See above directions to NC 281, except continue past 281 on US 64 for 8 miles. Turn right on Cedar Creek Road, go 2.3 miles, then turn right on Breedlove Road. The parking area is at the end of the road in just under 4 miles. On my last visit, there were major mud holes and rocks on the last part of this road and a high-clearance or four-wheel drive vehicle may be necessary.
From Highlands:
Take US 64 East to Cashiers. 2 miles past the stoplight, turn left on Cedar Creek Road. Go 2.3 miles and turn right on Breedlove Road. The parking area is at the end of the road in just under 4 miles. On my last visit, there were major mud holes and rocks on the last part of this road and a high-clearance or four-wheel drive vehicle may be necessary.
