Lookout and Braziel Creek Loop

Bankhead National Forest, AL Southern Cumberland Plateau + Northern Alabama

Trip stats

Distance
11.8 mi
Net Gain
1,600 ft
Time
5-7 hrs
YDS Rating
Class 1
Route
Loop

Ratings out of 10

Effort
3.4/10
Personality
3/10
Beauty
4/10
Solitude
5.1/10
What do these mean? →

Route map + Trailhead

Trailhead Coordinates

34.324553, -87.369533

The directions link below drops a pin on the trailhead coordinates and lets Google Maps pick the route. If the drive has rough roads or access issues that GPS nav might get wrong, I cover that in my trip report.

Get directions (opens Google Maps in a new tab)

Trip report

Aug 3, 2017 — This loop starts on Trail 203 (Lookout Trail) from the Flannagin Trailhead, which isn't much of a trailhead that I could find. I did this loop clockwise. The forest walking is a bit boring for a while, but there are some nice creek crossings along the way. The hike continues to Trail 207 (Braziel Creek Trail), which took me a second to find due to a bunch of annoying animal trails. This section follows Braziel Creek for a while before ending at the Gum Pond Trailhead. I followed a manicured forest road a couple of miles back to the Flannigan Trailhead to complete the loop.

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Photos

25 photos

  1. The trailhead doesn't seem to have much of a parking lot, so I parked on the side of the road and looked for the somewhat elusive Lookout Trail (203) trailhead.
  2. Pretty boring forest walk that skirts the edge of many short hills.
  3. A couple of easy creek crossings along the way.
  6. A few spots with some short bluffs, but nothing special.
  8. Soon the trail joins Braziel Creek (207) just before reaching the Borden Trailhead.
  9. A sign points across a creek to join the Braziel Creek Trail (207). It's not obvious where the true trail goes because there are fake trails all over following this creek crossing, which is NOT Braziel Creek, so do not follow it.
  10. I finally found the trail, which followed Braziel Creek.
  12. Some pretty spots along Braziel Creek (207), but otherwise pretty uneventful.
  19. Eventually, the trail takes you away from Braziel Creek and becomes pretty overgrown.
  22. The trail leads to an overgrown dirt road, which you ascend for a short time.
  23. And then you end up at the Gum Pond Trailhead. Follow the road back for a few miles to complete the loop.

Photo 1 of 1

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Hire or refer me as a web developer, or send me a few bucks if you find my site useful. I'm not sponsored, so it's funded by yours truly. It also takes a ton of work to edit photos and write these reports. I really appreciate it!

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