Tray Mountain Road

Excellent mountain trail with mild ruts. There is a very fun rutted section about 3/4 the way up. 4WD seems mostly optional unless there is snow or ice. Most of the trail is just wide enough for two vehicles, but there are a few narrow sections. Be careful of the ledges as it is a steep drop to the forest below. The two intersects with the Appalachian trail were an excellent addition and one of the reasons we chose this trail. For those camping, an excellent source for collecting water is at the first AT intersect right below the road. Chimney Mountain Rd at the top was closed when we went.

The road is in good condition. Very little rutting. Several of our group didnt bother to put their rigs in 4 wheel drive and had no issues. There were a couple of mud puddles to play in but nothing that offered a challenge. There were some nice views along the way.

Really fun trail. Beautiful mountain views throughout and it was cool to experience snow at the top today. Not super challenging, but it was icy for the last 1-2 miles towards the top. If you take it slow in those parts then you won’t have a problem. Loved it.

Had a great time on the trail a little difficult in a few spots but nothing major!!!

Great trail with beautiful views. Trail is wide enough to pass with no issues. All of the mud pits are passable without having to go through them. Although, if you do decide to go through them, there are plenty of places to winch out. Additionally, there are side trails with deep mud. Will definitely add this trail as a staple for North Georgia trail rides.

Popular fun trail up the mountain. Small rocks and rocky areas throughout that are easy with any ground clearance but the one big mudhole is worse than ever and can eat you up if you don't take the right line!

We did this trail to get to the AT trail head for a hike on Tray Mountain, we did it after the tropical storm went through. We did this trail multiple times and never even had to put the truck into 4x4. There were a lot of deep ruts and washed out areas but never had to use 4WD and no issues until a mud pit about a half mile south of the intersection of Indian Grave Gap Road (on the Helen side, not the one noted in the trail report). I have a 5" lift and oversized A/T tires on my Z71 and we sunk it to the frame in the mud ugh, had to dig out and get pulled out. Other than that the trail was easy to the AT trail head, we took Indian Grave Gap back to the main road and Helen, that road was perfect and only issues anyone would have with a low clearance vehicle is that the banks of the Hiawassee River are eroded and a little steeper after all the rain than they had been where you have to ford the river.

I've been looking forward to doing this trail for a while. Ran it West to East. There were a lot of ruts zig-zagging up the mountain, but had no trouble navigating those. The only concerning spot was the mud puddle on the easter half. We went through and the middle 'track' and felt the right side of the truck had a bit of a drop/hole 3/4 through that took us by surprise.

This is a nice FS road to ride for some mountain scenery and to access some hiking trails. There are a few wet sections and some ruts, but overall it is an easily managed trail in a high clearance 4x4.

Great Trail for a Sunday afternoon drive. There was only one mud hole that could have been an issue. Kept Jeep in 2 wheel drive the whole day. Some small ruts here and there. Road looked to be well taken care of. Would rate it a 1-2 on challenge level.

The trail was pretty decent, there are some deep ruts that you will need some clearance to get through! My truck is 2wd and made it without any issues, it was a blast even crossing through the deep water/mud pit that you can’t avoid if you just follow the regular the trail. I did it in both ways, there and back and was a blast, just drive slow in certain areas.

As most have said, you must have basic SUV clearance for the trail, some sections are well washed from the heavy rains we had this winter (see pic). Your AWD crossover may not be a good option. 4WD was not needed for the trail except one particular section, about a half mile before the Indian Grave Rd split noted at 6.1 miles. At this point, you must have 4WD or a rescue plan. Pictures are attached. The watering hole in the center was at least 30-36" deep, and we watched two Jeeps plow through, creating a wave of water that went over their hood briefly. Both looked lifted slightly above stock. However, my Jeep was not above stock height so I opted for the rutted path around the watering hole. The ruts were so deep I had to rock twice and power my way through in 4low, but made it in short time. Multiple paths around the water had been created so I chose a different path coming back and had less trouble. Until this particular section gets some maintenance, Jeeps and serious 4WD vehicles will have a blast, but all others should turn around. You can still use an alternate route to Tray Gap by taking Indian Grave Gap Rd off of Hwy 75 north of Unicoi Gap. Shortly after crossing Indian Grave Gap on this road you will switchback to the left and head up to Tray Gap on Tray Mountain Rd, having bypassed this area just discussed. I've never been that way, but we did detour to Indian Grave Gap from Tray Mountain Rd and noticed many non 4WD vehicles that had come that way with no problems.

Yep! I echo what a lot of folks have said. This a greasy starter trail that splits off into some more technical (but not too hard) trails also. It made for a fun day with the dogs riding along.

Super fun and scenic ride. Novice Jeepers with a 6-year old and 1-year old in tow. Snow almost the whole way up...only a small patch of “rough terrain”; ice from the top back down though for about 1.5 miles. Great time of year- you can see so many other mountains without all the leaves. Took about 1.5-1.75 hours to the top and back; we stopped and took lots of pics though and were super slow coming back down the first couple miles due to the ice.

This trail was awesome! My 3 year old wanted to see snow so bad and really didn’t think it was going to happen but right at the last stretch and at the top of the mountain there was a good bit. Had to you 4x4 a couple times mostly in the snow and ice.

Ran this trail today from the opposite direction and with snow/ice on the upper parts. The first descent from the top was a little concerning as it was nearly a solid sheet of ice. More of a controlled slide for a while. The mud pit was fun for sure in my lifted F-150 supercrew 4x4 on 35's.

Great trail for exploring the Smokey Mountains. You will know when you are at the end of the Tray Mountain trail, when you must turn left at an open triangular area on the north end. You will also see a hiker trail entrance for the Appalachian Trail and the white blaze on a tree. The top left corner of the image of the trail map is the end of the Tray Mountain portion of the trail. If you extend your travel by taking the trail to the left, at the end of the Tray Mountain trail, you will eventually come out on the paved road, a few miles north of where you started the trail. You can then head back toward the entrance and take the cut off on your left to go see High Shoals falls. Hike to the falls, which is well worth the 45 minute round trip trek. After visiting the falls, continue on the dirt road and you will rejoin the Tray Mountain trail and complete the round trip. Total time is about 4 to 4.5 hours, including your visit to the falls.

Ran this trail after a few days of rain during a thunderstorm. I’d not drive it in those conditions in a 2wd. Over all a very easy trail with a few rough spots, not a lot of traffic on this rainy day.

Trail in our opinion was not really moderate. There were maybe a few spots that might be for a beginner but it was mainly just gravel road. Nice scenery though and great place to go camping!

It was a dry day with a little standing water in puddle areas. I was able to do this and Corbin Creek Rd with an unmodified 06' Subaru Outback with all-season tires. Kids and I really enjoyed this as a starter trail. I wanted to get baseline before doing any modifications and this was a great trail for it.

Easy fun trail. Had zero issues in AWD adventure Rav4.

Easy trail overall, pay attention and you will be fine, passed a PT Cruiser one weekend coming down. No problems.

Trail was completely open, and recently graveled. This trail can be done nice and easy, but there's also enough turnouts and spurs you can take that you can get a little more action if you're so inclined. We did the trail with a 4WD pickup truck and a 4WD 4Runner. Probably passable with 2WD when dry, but we came in after some decent rain so the 4WD was likely necessary.

I rode this trail for the first time today. Coming from the southern entrance and rode all the way across and out the northern end. On the south end you could see the culverts in spots. There were a few deepish washouts. All in all it was a good ride. Headed down the northern side there was spots you could tell fresh gravel had been laid. A lot less ruts and such in the road. Not quite as much fun as going up, but after 2hrs I was ready to be out of there. Lol. I will definitely do this on again.

Road was in good shape and very easy going. Forest service must have come through and filled in ruts with gravel because it was not a bad ride at all. A few tricky spots, but overall a very easy and scenic route.

Wow, this road has gotten much worse with the heavy rains this season. There were some huge mudholes that a 2WD got stuck in. There are also some considerable ruts and much larger potholes and now multiple culverts exposed. Ground clearance mandatory and 4x4 strongly recommended.

Ran this road from the north down after coming off of Corbin Creek. If you take Tray mountain road past the Corbin Creek Rd intersection farther up the ridge the road is more knarled with exposed rock until you get to the Tray Mountain turn-around at the A.T. intersection. Taking Tray Mtn Rd south down the mountain there were several large and deep mud holes to run through. About 1/2 down the mountain there are a couple deep wash outs I was able to straddle. The road was a mix of decent and easy conditions with some surprisingly rough spots here & there. Nice long range winter views of the surrounding peaks with all the foliage down.

Very easy rocky trail. We started on the south side heading north meaning climbing up the mountain. Pretty much all gravel with small rocks... not really a challenge for a Land Rover Discovery. A few spots along the way had standing waters so that was fun to go through and splash in. Perfect easy trail for a beginner. 2WD should be fine all the way but it’s a lot more fun in a 4x4 for easy cruising... Important note: when you get to the end of the Tray Mountain trail, you’ll have to make a decision whether you want to go back down the way you came, or continue up to another trail. In other words, there’s no connection to a paved road. It took about an hour to climb up and about 50 minutes to come down. One noticeable remark - there is trash in spots of the trail and a beer can here and there along the trail. This is sad. Pick up after yourselves! Leave the trail clean or they will close it!

Easy ride up. Very popular with 4x4 vehicles, but I’ve seen minivans and compact cars navigate it with some creativity in the spots where ground clearance would be helpful.

Did the trail starting south outside of Helen and headed North. We did the trail in our Subaru Crosstrek. The trail was rain washed in spots but still easily passable. From bottom to top it took about 1 hour to complete. About half way up we veered left on the trail at the fork and followed the trail down the mountain. Very pretty and scenic area to take a slow drive up and back down the mountain.

The trail was soaked from rain all week with light rain day of. Not a problem on trey mountain road. some parts can get sketchy with slick mud but as long as you drive smart there won't be any problems. When you get to the top and there is a big opening with giant gravel you can continue left for the easy trail or go up and right to where I would recommend only 4x4. there should be makeshift signs on this trail saying "4x4 only!", I'd take the advice from the sign. good camping sights all along the trail once you've passed both home sight on the road. Remember to pick up your trash and make sure your fires are out and have a fun trip!

Took a ride up to the top of Tray today along this trail. Really no change since season. 2WD okay in dry conditions (muddy if wet) but ground clearance definitely needed.

Very easy trail from the beginning (bottom of the mountain) to about half way up the road. Top half is in a bit rougher shape, but passable by most 2wd vehicles with moderate ground clearance when dry. I ran this trail N to S.