The Trimble Mountain loop is an easy to moderate loop situated just opposite the Todd Lake Recreation Area on FDR95. There are several views of Big Bald Knob and Little Bald Knob on the western section of the loop. At the end of the circuit, the short climb up to the Lake Todd dam embankment offers a beautiful lunch spot, and view of the lake.
The Trimble Mountain Hike is just one of many hikes that are located in the Todd Lake area. A great weekend plan is to come in on a Saturday and hike Trimble Mountain, take a dip in Todd Lake, camp at the Todd Lake campground, then hike the North River Gorge circuit early Sunday before leaving.
The Todd Lake Campground has clean shower and restroom facilities, as well as a sandy beach and picnic area at the lake. The campsites are $16 per/night, and are on a first come first served basis. Reservations are not accepted. If the campsite is full, there are numerous free camping spots available along the North River off FDR95. Todd Lake Recreation Area is open from Memorial Day through Labor Day.
From the parking area on the turnout, cross FDR95 and start up the yellow blazed Trimble Mountain Trail. In 400ft the Trimble Mountain Trail will split at a clearing. We recommend going to the left, or counter clockwise, as it's less steep on the ascent, and the best views are on the westerly descent of the mountain.
After turning left, the trail will gradually climb Trimble Mountain becoming steeper before arriving at the ridge in 1.2 miles. The trail will follow the ridge climbing the northern summit, before passing through a saddle and climbing over the southerly summit.
As the trail begins to descend the westerly section of Trimble Mountain, there are two good vistas of Big Bald and Little Bald Mountains to the west. The trail will then descend more steeply before arriving back at the clearing, and beginning of the loop 1.0 miles from the last vista. Stay left returning to the parking area in another 400ft.
Lake View Out/Back: After returning to the parking area make sure to continue following the yellow blazed trail up to the crest of the dam for a beautiful view of Todd Lake and lunch spot.
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Reviews For The Trimble Mountain Hike (5 Most Recent)
6/13/09 - The description of this hike is 100% accurate. We're still novice to this hiking thing and decided to try Trimble Mt. because it was short and rated a lvl 3 in difficulty. We figured a great way to start the day. To start - Google forgot some roads when getting close to the park (coming from Richmond). But the park was easy enough to find. Once you're heading up FDR95, you'll see camp areas on your right. Just keep going until you see the turn about on your right and that's where you park.
We arrived at 7am and the only person there was someone camping (never saw one person on the trail). Heading out on the trail and began the climb up. Found the ascent to be nice and gradual. Nothing too steep. The trees and undergrowth surrounding the trail is nice. The trail isn't bad in most places, but not sure how often this trail is hiked. We climbed over 6 decent sized trees laying across the path. We came across an abundance of bright orange Gecko's with black/silver spots crawling across the trail. We had to be very careful to not step on them. There was at least 1 every 20 feet or so. Didn't see any on the ridge. They were more on the lower half of the hike. Also walked up on a Turkey (a hen). Knowing how keen Turkey's are - we were very surprised in how close we she allowed us to get (20 yards tops). That was an exciting part of the hike. The trail is coated with leaves at some points, kinda rocky in others and on the ridge its like mulch or pine needles. Very nice to walk on. The descent isn't bad - just have to be careful in some spots due to roots.
Finished the hike in 2.5 hours and can't say anything bad about it. The views we not good for us due to fog and haze. All in all I'd recommend if you're in the area and looking for a quick, get the blood going hike, Trimble Mt is where it's at. Great for people like us who are just starting out and getting to know the trails, gear and experience. If you come in from Highway 81 - be sure to stop at the Tasty Freeze on your way out (intersection of Scenic Hwy) for their one of a kind Milkshake. You won't be disappointed.
Thanks again Hiking Upward! Your information is priceless.
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