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Trail notes: From the parking area, cross FR 92 and follow the yellow-blazed Little Stony Creek Trail upstream. There are a few good campsites on the right side for late arriving backpackers. Proceed up the mountain for 3.5 miles to Sugar Knob Cabin w/spring.

At 3.7 miles come to the intersection of the blue-blazed Tuscarora/Pond Run Trail (left and right) and the closed Peer trail straight ahead. Turn left onto the Tuscarora/Pond Run Trail passing an excellent campsite on the left.

Travel uphill for 0.54 miles and turn left onto the orange-blazed Mill Mountain Trail. (The hard part is behind you!!!) You'll find good camping on your left in another 0.25 miles (dry site) and at the dismantled beacon tower and on your right in a nice grassy clearing in 0.27 miles more. In 1.02 miles from the beacon tower area you will descend to Sandstone Spring where you can fit several tents. This is the last dependable water source on the circuit. Gradually climb back up to the ridge to a nice overlook over Trout Run Valley in 0.89 miles. Again, you can set up camp for a couple of tents here.

In 0.91 miles from the un-named vista arrive at the Big Schloss Cutoff Trail on the left. Continue south on the Mill Mountain Trail for another 0.87 miles and turn left onto the white blazed Big Schloss Spur Trail. Follow this trail to the top for the best view on the entire mountain.

Return to the Big Schloss Cut-off Trail and follow it down the mountain to FDR 92. At the road turn left and follow it back to your vehicle.

Printable/Downloadable Directions and Trail Notes

Critique this outing!

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Name: Faye Hike: Big Schloss
Date: 7/12 - 7/13 2008 Rating: 4.5

Critique: Overall a very good hike. We arrived around 11am. Steady incline. Rock hopping at times. 1st stream very low but still able to get water. Very buggie at times. We came across a very nice grassy campsite.. thinking about staying there but were pretty far away from water. We decided to go on and stay at one of the three campsites by the 2nd stream. It was a great place to soak your feet after a long hike. Came across 5 other hikers passing through. We arrived at the campsite around 4pm. Some bad flies there. Mt. drainage was low, caused some stagnant water around. Nice and open. There was a calming breeze at night very peaceful.

We did come across some bear droppings but didn't run into any bears or any wildlife for that matter.

Nice and easy hike once initial incline out of the way. Beautiful views from top of the mountain... be sure to go out its worth it.

Would do it again.

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Name: Peter Hike: Big Schloss
Date: 07/12/2008 Rating: 5

Critique: I got to the parking lot around 3pm Friday afternoon. There were only two cars in the lot. I was able to fast pack it to the first scenic view at about 7 miles, about a mile past the last water stop. There is enough space for a couple campsites and the view was magnificent. The bugs were terrible, and I didn't have bug spray, so I built a small fire in the rock fire ring. This really helped.

The next morning I took the trek up to Big Schloss, a little over 2 hike (out and back). The view was worth it.

This rates as one of the most beautiful hikes I've been on in the mid-Atlantic area. I'm going to do this hike next spring when the Rhododendrons are blooming.

Beware: I did see signs of Black Bear (large scat and diggings) while hiking the Mill Mountain Trail.

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Name: Jenna and Ben Hike: Big Schloss
Date: 06/07-08/2008 Rating: 4.5

Critique: This was a great hike! We got a late start, started the hike around 3 on Saturday, but found a great place to camp overnight right before the first cabin. There was a perfect stream and we didn't see another sole until the next day, after a few hours of hiking. The laurel was perfect and the trail was varied, which kept things interesting.

This time of year was hot, but the forest, especially during the first 3/4 of the hike kept us cool.

There is plenty of water. Remember bug spray. Don't miss the Big Schloss turnoff. It is definitely worth it.

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Name: Karen Hike: Big Schloss
Date: 1/12-13 2008 Rating: 4

Critique: Did this hike over the weekend and camped. Great hike, camp site we found was perfect, note that while it looks like there is a lot of dry wood lying around, its not after 2 days of rain!!

Along the orange trail heading towards Big Schloss Cutoff there is a trail off to the right(west) marked with white paint, this is very confusing if you are reading the map and think you have passed the cut-off trail. No where on the map do you see another white trail so needless to say we back tracked and then went back and decided it must be some error.

I would have to agree with Nicholas, the descent on Big Schloss is quite steep, you drop 1,000 feet in 1.71 miles and if we had been to this website BEFORE heading out we would have hiked up Big Schloss to the camp sites!!

No worries though, it was a great hike, great weekend and now we know for next time.

MRHyker Note: The white trail is only about 30 feet long. It leads to a vista that can be seen from the main trail. I had it marked with a camera. I added a white trail segment to it on the large map.

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Name: Nicholas Hike: Big Schloss
Date: 1/5-6/2008 Rating: 4.5

Critique: The description of the hike is perfect, except as to what the most difficult part was, in my opinion. The gain in the first four miles was significant, but not unreasonable. The difficult part of the hike was the descent from Big Schloss back to FDR 92. Losing a bit over 1000 feet in two miles, it felt like we were rolling downhill at times.

Regarding water, there was plenty of it in a number of places. To update the Sandstone Spring report from November, it seems to have recovered - we had no water worries while camping there for the night.

The camping near Sandstone Spring was a little difficult to find - having them marked on the map was necessary to know where to look, as they were not right near the trail.

For those with sore feet who might consider skipping the trip up Big Schloss - DON'T. The views were spectacular. It was a cool morning, a bit cloudy, and you could see for miles in every direction.

Thanks for the website - I just found it, and this was my first hike I found here, but it will definitely not be the last.

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Name: Peter Fleszar Hike: Big Schloss
Date: 11/18/07 Rating: 4

Critique: Water report from November of dry 2007. Sandstone Spring was not running, just a fist-size pool of water that some unthoughtful person had dumped orange peelings into. Spring by the PATC cabin was dry but stagnant pool 100 yd. downstream was good enough for the cabin weekenders.

For those interested, Mill Mountain Trail and the portion of Tuscarora Trail north of the junction on this loop are considered now also part of Great Eastern Trail, as of today on the GET's web site http://www.greateasterntrail.org a photo of Big Schloss is on the opening page.

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Name: Gary Hike: Big Schloss
Date: Various Rating: 5

Critique: I have hiked this circuit several times in the past, both as part of a weekend trip and as a day hike. It is an awesome day hike in the spring or fall. But if you are going in the winter, BEWARE! I spent a VERY cold night at the campsite by the small cave on the left of the Big Schloss connector trail with my brother. The winds were amazing. Big Schloss can be a very cold place in the winter, so pack accordingly. I also highly recommend you try it. Sandstone spring is a great spot to camp, stop for lunch and a quick foot soaking, or just a quick water refill while trying to reach Big Schloss before sunset. Overall this is a great hike, and of course you would have to travel a lot of miles to find a better view than what's had on top of Big Schloss.

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Name: Charles Caldwell Hike: Big Schloss

Date: 11/4 - 11/5 Rating: 4.5

Critique: Did this as described as a one night backpack, and had a fantastic time. The initial climb is enough to make you sweat and work, but won't discourage most hikers.

The campsites at Sandstone Spring are fantastic. Plenty of firewood and fire rings to keep warm. We really enjoyed the second day and the hike to Big Schloss. I would recommend this as a 2 day outing if you have the time to spare. You really get to enjoy the scenery more. Thanks for the great hike!

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