 North
Carolina - Picken's Nose
Location
 Picken's
Nose is located at the southern end of the Nantahala Mountains within
the Nantahala National Forest near the border of North Carolina
and Georgia. It lies between the towns of Dillard, Georgia and Franklin,
North Carolina and is most easily accessed off Highway 441/ 64.
It is closest to the town of Otto.
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Description
Picken's Nose and five or so other small rock outcroppings are
composed of granite and with quartz extrusions typical of the North
Carolina Blue Ridge. The layers of rock jut up at sharp angles with
several large roof and overhangs formed. The faces we climbed were
well featured with cracks and small eyebrows, and took protection
well. The cliff faces vary significantly. The top rope face on Picken's
Nose was a vertical wall with cracks. Nearby, we climbed a large
chimney. Roofs and overhangs abound.
 Short
distance along the trail at the base of the cliff will bring you
to the "Sport Wall" (I made that up, I don't know the
real names). It is a vertical wall about 50 feet, with two bolt
lines running up it. The bolts are close enough together to allow
aiding the routes. There are few cracks and holds, routes on this
wall should be difficult.
Beyond this is a large wall with a great overhanging roof. It looks
like two pitches to reach the top of this cliff via some pretty
bold lines. One traditional route is easy to spot from the ground.
The webbing anchors atop the first pitch are hard to miss. You'll
also note an old piton low on the route. I saw a few more routes
or potential routes as we explored further, but I didn't investigate
them closely.
My overall impression of this areas is that there is limited climbing
here for the average Joe climber. The top roping is good, but not
spectacular, most of it confined to one area. The traditional leading
has potential for a least a few good routes. The "sport wall"
looks like it might be fun, again, a limited area. This looks like
a good place to practice aid climbing.
Large view
of photo
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Directions
 Look
for the forest service sign for the Coweeta Hydrologic Laboratory
on 441/64 between Franklin, North Carolina and Dillard, Georgia
on the west side of the road. The small burg of Otto lies just north.
Turn onto Coweeta Lab Road and follow it about 3 miles coming to
a forest service sign for Ball Creek Road - FS 83. Climb for 5 miles
on unpaved FS-83 to reach the trailhead. The road forks once on
the way up, be sure to stay on FS-83 by bearing to the right and
uphill.
The road was in good repair the day I visited. The road sees a
lot of traffic as the Appalachian Trail crosses 0.7 miles further
up FS 83, and popular Standing Indian mountain, tallest in the area
lies a bit further. Picken's Nose lies within the Southern Nantahala
Wilderness, in the Nantahala National Forest.
Large view of
Coweeta sign photo
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Cliff Access
 The
trailhead is situated in a gap at 4,680-feet. The 0.7 mile trail
climbs gently heading south along the ridge top to emerge at 4,900
feet to Picken's Nose. Most of the trail leads through tangles of
rhododendron. The first significant side trail you encounter is
on the left nearing the end of the ridge crest It leads to a small
rocky ledge with views of the Coweeta Creek watershed and the Little
Tennessee Rivet Valley. Near the end of the trail you will start
to see short trails on the right that lead to rocky cliffs. Continue
towards the end of the the trail until you locate a 50 foot cliff
with three bolted top rope anchors on it. Scramble down the gully
just beyond it. Face the cliff below the bolt anchors, Picken's
Nose is the large overhang to your left.
Following trails along the base of the cliffs, you can work back
the way you came to reach the bottoms of the other cliffs.
Large view of photo
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 Guidebooks
I do not know of any guidebooks which mention Picken's Nose.
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Routes
I do not know the names of any routes here. We climbed only a handful.
Please send the information
if you are familiar with the climbs.
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Large view of Jackie
climbing
Facilities:
None. Wilderness. No fires. No camping. Nearest town, Otto. Nothing
there. Go north to Franklin, NC or south into Dillard or Clayton,Georgia
for food / supplies.
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 Land
Manager:
US Forest Service
Wayah Ranger District
Nantahala National Forest
90 Sloan Road
Franklin, NC 28734
828-524-6441
National Forests in North
Carolina http://www.cs.unca.edu/nfsnc/
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 Emergency
Information:
Wayah Ranger District, Franklin 828-524-6441
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 Gear:
Routes are short, 50 meter ropes adequate. Minimal gear needed
to rig top ropes. Light rack for trad routes, 6 or so quickdraws
for sport routes, aid climbing potential.
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 Seasons:
The cliffs face southwest. While this should make them ideal for
winter climbing, they are also at the summit of the ridge. It tends
to get pretty windy. Summer can be hot, better to come then on the
breezy days.
Large view of Wayne
in chimney
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Access Notes
Parking area at trailhead may get crowded.
Climbing areas limited.
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Miscellaneous
The Coweeta
Hydrologic Lab conducts research on forest ecology.
Picken's Nose was probably named for General Andrew Picken's of
South Carolina, a soldier in the Revolutionary War.
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 Links
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Picken's Nose trip Reports
Larger view of photo
of cliffs
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