Doughton Park map (click to enlarge)

Length: 1.5 miles round trip, including hike to Wildcat Rocks
Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: moderate with a few steep climbs

The Fodder Stack Trail is the only hike that is less than 2 miles long in the Doughton Park Recreation Area (other than hiking short segments of the longer trails). It begins at the parking area for the now closed Bluffs Lodge. The turnoff from the Blue Ridge Parkway is across the street from the Bluff Restaurant. Once you’ve made the turn, when the road forks, stay to the left, away from the Doughton Park Picnic Area. The trailhead is at the end of the road.

When at the trailhead, you will find yourself at the midway point of a paved sidewalk. The Fodder Stack trail proceeds downhill, while the uphill journey leads to Wildcat Rocks. For my hike I started on the Fodder Stack Trail, then walked to Wildcat Rocks on the way back.

Short path uphill to the Wildcat Rocks viewing platforms near the Bluffs Lodge on the Blue Ridge Parkway

The Blue Ridge Parkway’s Fodder Stack Trail starts off downhill on a paved path

The layout of the trail is like one big dip on a rollercoaster. It starts with a steep descent for the first .3 mile until leveling out for most of the remainder of the hike, then heads uphill at the very end when the trail forms a loop that sends you back the way you came. The trail follows a ridge and once provided great views into Basin Cove Valley along the entire path, but today the trail is overgrown and the only view you get is right at the start. If it’s a view you are after, just walk up to the Wildcat Rocks and forget the hike, for that’s where you will get the best view of all.

First and only view from the Fodder Stack Trail on the Blue Ridge Parkway

Once the trail levels out it becomes rocky and full of roots, as well as narrow and overgrown. You will be constantly brushing up against trees, rhododendrons, and other vegetation. In most cases, when a trail is overgrown it is because nobody is hiking on it. With the Bluffs Lodge being closed, there’s certainly not as much traffic to this area as there once was.

Narrow and slightly overgrown section of the Blue Ridge Parkway’s Fodder Stack Trail

At .6 miles into the hike is an unmarked fork in the trail. This is just the start of the loop at the end, and you can go either way. I suggest staying straight to avoid some extra uphill climbing. This will set you off hiking clockwise around the loop. This section of the trail is extremely rocky. I actually had to slide down some rocks due to very short segments of the trail being so steep.

Loop portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway’s Fodder Stack Trail is very rocky

As mentioned earlier, the years have not been kind to the Fodder Stack Trail, and it has lost most of its luster. The views are gone and it’s now just a hike in the woods. The modern trail map printed in the latest edition of the Blue Ridge Parkway Outdoor Guide has not been updated, and it still shows excellent views from the loop portion of the hike, but there are none to be found anywhere.

Once back at the parking lot, take the short walk up the paved path to the Wildcat Rocks viewing platforms (there are two). The view from here is similar to the one from below, but you can now see the entire valley. In addition, the Caudill Cabin is 1,500 feet below the platforms. A wayside exhibit tells of its history and speaks as if you can see it from where you are standing. Either I simply wasn’t looking for it or the view has been blocked by trees, but I did not see the cabin.

In 1916 there were roughly 35 families living in the valley community called Basin Cove. On July 5, 1916, a hurricane landed on the Mississippi coast and the storm began to move slowly towards the Appalachian Mountains, hitting the area on the 11th. Though the rain was heavy, no real damage was done. The ground, however, was left soaked. On July 14th, another hurricane hit Charleston, South Carolina, and within a day the storm had moved inland and was over western North Carolina. It rained for 24 hours, dumping up to 10 inches of water on the already saturated ground. At around 1 AM on the 16th, the slopes of Basin Cove gave way, sending a landslide of mud, trees, and flood waters crashing to the bottom. Three people died and nearly every structure was destroyed. Basin Cove never recovered, as most people moved away. The only cabin that remained unscathed was owned by Martin and Jane Caudill. Like the rest of the residents of Basin Cove, the Caudills moved away after the disaster.

The cabin still stands in the valley below and is now a tourist attraction. Many years ago there was a very steep trail—probably unofficial—that led to the cabin from Wildcat Rocks, but today the only way to get to it, short of bushwhacking your way to the bottom, is by hiking the Basin Creek Trail. This is a nearly 10-mile out-and-back hike that starts at the parking area on Longbottom Road.

When done taking in the views, you will see that the trail continues farther, but there is no need follow it. When done, walk back down the hill to the parking area. If you were to continue on the trail, you would just end up at the Bluffs Lodge and then you’d have to walk back across the parking lot to your car.

The Fodder Stack Trail is only 1.4 miles long, so when the Blue Ridge Parkway Outdoor Guide claims the hike is 2 miles, it must be including the walk to the Wildcat Rocks. Even then it’s stretching it a bit to get 2 miles out of the hike. According to my GPS, the distance is 1.5 miles for both the Fodder Stack Trail and the walk to and from Wildcat Rocks.

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