(WBIR - CAMPBELL COUNTY) One of the biggest projects for the state parks organization over the past four decades is making big strides.
Tennessee State Parks is working on opening every part of the Cumberland Trail that stretches 300 miles. It goes halfway across the state, south to north, from Chattanooga to the Cumberland Gap.
Park Manager Bobby Fulcher has been working on the project more than 30 years. Last week, he led a hikers group called Fit Friday Hikers along an unopened trail on McCloud Mountain. The group of hikers helped monitor and clean out the newly constructed path.
Related: Groups rehab the Cumberland Trail
"On this mountain we had a group build for 98 days this summer out of 100. A couple tornadoes chased them off for a couple nights," Fulcher said.
The Cumberland Trail Project has been in the works since the 1960s. In the early 1990s, it faced a short hiatus but came back later that decade.
Over the past few years, Fulcher said the state parks organization has made a bigger push for building and opening more trails.
"We have ambitious goals for finishing the trail. We would love to finish it in the next four years. And we have a plan to do so. We need a little more funding and some more volunteers and some more organizations to help us. And we have to maintain and care for it," Fulcher said.
He said the Cumberland Trail offers a different kind of beauty than people would get in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
"Both are beautiful treasures and wonderful, but there is a different nature here. This is a land of rock and of steep rock faces," said Fulcher.
It's a different experience that could bring in a crowd to a more remote mountain area.
"You think of this area, you know, as a little bit more remote. You have LaFollette, Jacksboro, Cumberland Gap. They are really excited for this as a tourism event, too," said Fit Friday Hiker Leader Missy Kane.
Kane said new trails like this one help promote getting out and hiking for exercise.
"When you come to a place like this, you're just like, Why don't I do this more often?" Kane said.
Fulcher expects this portion of the trail to be available to the public within the next year.
Visit the Friends of the Cumberland Trail website to find any information on volunteering.
