Greenville County High Point Trip Report
Coldbranch Mtn (3357 ft)
Date: July 3, 1999
Author: Edward Earl
I approached Coldbranch Mtn via the Raven Cliff Falls trail from the east.
I was already familiar with part of the hike, which begins on US-276 about 2 miles S
of the NC border. A sign at the trailhead said the lowest elevation of the trail was 2440',
which was at the very end of the trail at the wooden overlook platform for the falls.
However, not all of the trail was needed for the approach to Coldbranch Mtn.
I continued on the Gum Gap Trail toward Coldbranch Mtn itself. After a while my altimeter
showed I was within 250' of the summit elevation, so I figured I must be getting close and
I whipped out the map to check my location. But my compass was nowhere to be found and the
weather was cloudy, and I blundered up an overgrown jeep trail trying to figure out where I was.
Eventually, though, the sun came out and I was able to use it for bearings, and with the
help of that and my altimeter I finally was able to find a place on the map whose features
were consistent with my observations. As I continued on to new territory, the map and the
field continued to agree. It turned out that I was still about a mile north of Coldbranch Mtn,
so I continued on the Gum Gap Trail to a fork at which a sign said the left fork went to a bridge
near the top of Raven Cliff Falls. I took the right fork which descended to a ford across the
stream that feeds Raven Cliff Falls. After a few more minutes, the trail made a left turn at
the base of a fern-filled gully on the right. I climbed this gully to the crest of the skewed
hogback-like ridge just north of Coldbranch Mtn. After a few more minutes of climbing through
open forest I gained the summit.
The entire hike took nearly twice as long as I had planned, due in part to my difficulty finding
the mountain (if the sun had not come out I probably would not have succeeded).
After factoring this out, I recommend that a person planning to climb Coldbranch Mtn via this
approach plan to take about 4 hours. A side trip to Raven Cliff Falls is a very worthwhile
hike in its own right, and I recommend that anyone do it. If you take the time to enjoy
the view of the falls, add another half hour.