Cramming 20 miles of trails into a 600-acre peninsula on the Clinch River, Haw Ridge Park is one of the more popular trail systems in the Knoxville area. Despite its popularity, the variety of ride options within the park keep it from ever feeling crowded. This 8-mile loop keeps the contour crossing to a minimum; there are some significant ups and downs, but it's fairly flat in general and appropriate for everyone but complete novices.
From the trailhead, the route crosses the entry bridge and begins a clockwise loop on the outer ring of trails, essentially following the shoreline of Melton Hill Lake. Hopping from one shoreline trail to another throughout the ride (keep your eyes open for various junctions), the route winds along rocky and rooty, bench-cut singletrack, offering only brief hill challenges. Along the way, keep an eye out for owls, deer, foxes, and even the occasional coyote.
-Mapped by Randy Conner, Appalachian Mountain Bike Club
TO TRAILHEAD: Take I-40 W to exit 376 and head north on TN 62/Pellissippi Pkwy. In 6.5 miles, bear left to continue on TN 62/Oak Ridge Hwy. Go 1.3 miles and take the exit for Edgemoor Rd./TN 170. Continue 0.9 mile to trailhead parking on right.
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Haw Ridge
| Dist: 8.12 mi |
Points: 569 |
Calories: none |
| Time: none |
Speed: 0.0 mph |
Pace: 0:00 / mi |
HAW001
Location: 36.000091°, -84.185352°
Begin riding from the east end of the parking area.
HAW002
Location: 36.000742°, -84.184606°
Cross the bridge and stay right as the trail hooks south.
HAW003
Location: 35.999570°, -84.184198°
Make a right turn onto Lake Trail.
HAW004
Location: 35.998815°, -84.184928°
Turn right onto West Shore; watch for roots and a couple of rocky sections ahead.
HAW005
Location: 35.998598°, -84.184628°
Stay right, as the next section of bench-cut singletrack parallels the lake. Keep an eye out for the plank bridge ahead: you might get wet if you miss it.
HAW006
Location: 35.996625°, -84.181637°
Turn right back onto the Lake Trail.
HAW007
Location: 35.998081°, -84.175067°
Turn right turn onto Twister, and then stay right just ahead.
HAW008
Location: 35.996523°, -84.174607°
Turn left here to avoid a dead end trail.
HAW009
Location: 35.996029°, -84.172693°
Turn right onto Lake Trail, then continue about 50 feet and turn right onto Red Shore.
HAW010
Location: 35.994075°, -84.168405°
Stay right here and continue paralleling the lake shore. Ahead, stay right at every opportunity until you reach the junction for the South Shore Trail at Waypoint 11 (where you'll turn right again).
HAW011
Location: 35.993295°, -84.162067°
Turn right onto South Shore Trail.
HAW012
Location: 35.994771°, -84.158636°
Make a left to head to Jump Trail, and then make a right onto Jump Trail.
HAW013
Location: 35.996070°, -84.162671°
Turn right on old jeep double track.
HAW014
Location: 35.998641°, -84.159466°
After crossing the small bridge, turn left up the steep crack or continue another 100 feet for a more gradual climb up the Silo Trail. Just ahead, you'll ride by the silo, a well known landmark that serves as proof of the park's previous life as a dairy farm.
HAW015
Location: 35.999995°, -84.160198°
Heading back down toward the lake, the trail picks up some significant speed here. Stay straight just ahead to follow the trail back toward shoreline.
HAW016
Location: 36.002525°, -84.162959°
At this popular meeting spot, turn right down the very steep Rainbow Trail. If it's too steep for your liking, you can continue straight and then stay right to end at the same spot.
HAW017
Location: 36.003146°, -84.163599°
Go straight to continue across on Rainbow; one of the biggest climbs of the ride starts here.
HAW018
Location: 36.004994°, -84.164584°
Turn right to head downhill toward the shoreline. About halfway down, stay straight as Skinny turns left and heads uphill. If you want more climbing, keep going up the hill to the top of the Hill of Truth.
HAW019
Location: 36.005463°, -84.160884°
Stay left to continue downhill. Try to keep your speed up here as there's a hill coming up.
HAW020
Location: 36.006299°, -84.160529°
Turn right onto East Shore. If you chose to climb Skinny D, this is where you'd most likely return to the track.
HAW021
Location: 36.011741°, -84.163523°
Hit the paved Old Edgemoor Road and turn left. The road is closed to traffic at this point.
HAW022
Location: 36.011118°, -84.165259°
Turn right for a short singletrack detour. Turn right again on Old Edgmoor just a few hundred yards ahead.
HAW023
Location: 36.010017°, -84.169377°
Look for the singletrack turnoff on the left side of Old Edgemoor in the middle of an S-curve.
HAW024
Location: 36.008541°, -84.173119°
Turn left onto old double track and start climbing.
HAW025
Location: 36.007458°, -84.173572°
Turn right downhill. Just ahead, turn left onto Soccer (which climbs again up the ridge). About halfway up the hill, make the first of three right turns that will lead you back toward the bridge at the beginning of the route.
East Shore
Location: 36.006357°, -84.160187°
East Shore is a nice bench-cut trail that follows the shore. This trail comes out on Old Edgemoor Road. © Randy Conner
Lake Trail Junction
Location: 35.996658°, -84.181624°
© Randy Conner
Heading onto Twister
Location: 35.998016°, -84.174854°
© Randy Conner
Entry Bridge
Location: 36.000855°, -84.184413°
© Randy Conner
Red Shore Junction
Location: 35.996015°, -84.172614°
© Randy Conner
Sweet Singletrack
Location: 35.995783°, -84.170530°
Red Shore has great flow through hardwood forest. © Randy Conner
Powerline Singletrack
Location: 35.995160°, -84.161732°
Powerline singletrack on the Jump Trail. © Randy Conner
Top of Rainbow Trail
Location: 36.002590°, -84.162923°
The top of a short, super steep section on the Rainbow Trail. Watch out for roots and the plank bridge at the bottom. © Randy Conner
A Gradual Route
Location: 36.003163°, -84.163545°
This section of Rainbow offers a little more gradual route to the top of the Hill of Truth. © Randy Conner
Rooty Climb Ahead
Location: 36.005706°, -84.160767°
East Shore to East Edge Trail: Keep your speed up here as there is a rooty climb on the other side of this drainage. © Randy Conner
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