A historical house in the Cataloochee region of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
An old fence or horse tie at the historic Wood House in the Great Smoky Mountains. 
There are no furnishings inside the historic Woody House. 
The humble Steve Woody House in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina.
In the Cataloochee Region of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a number of historical buildings that have been preserved and are open to the public. One of these is the Woody House. Named after Jonathan Woody, the house began as a one room log cabin in the mid 1800’s and was expanded and renovated by one of Jonathans sons, Steve Woody, from 1901 to 1910. The Woody House is in exceptional condition and is a wonderful and accessible example of what life used to be like in a completely different era. The 1 mile hike down the Rough Fork Trail to reach the house is an easy walk through a beautiful section of the forest and should be accessible for most people.
The Woody House can be reached via the Rough Fork Trail and the trailhead is located at the end of Cataloochee Entrance Road which is the main road through this beautiful section of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The drive to the parking area will pass several additional historical buildings in the area that you can check out and we have episodes available on all of them. The parking area isn’t too large but should be adequate for most days. The Cataloochee Region is about 70 minutes from Asheville North Carolina. While there are no restrooms at the trailhead to the Woody House, there are public bathrooms at the Cataloochee Campground as you enter the region and at the Palmer House.
The easy 1 mile hike to the Woody House starts at the marked trail at end of Cataloochee Entrance Road. The trail is initially very wide and is very well maintained all the way to the house. It is relatively flat and parallels Rough Fork the entire hike. You do cross the creek a few times but they are all bridged and easy to traverse. The walk through the woods here is beautiful and very peaceful as you can continuously hear Rough Fork churning in the background. At about 3/4’s of a mile, the trail and Rough Fork turn left for the last short piece of trail to the house.
Like the other historical buildings in the area, the Woody House is unfurnished but the house and grounds are open to the public. It is in remarkable condition and is fascinating to explore and wonder what it must have been like to live in during the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.
The main house has two stories each with a number of rooms to check out. There is also a spring house just outside the house by the creek. This is where they used to store food that needed to be kept cool.
While all of the historical sites in this area are popular attractions, the hike to the Woody Home makes it a little less visited than the other sites. That being the case, you may end up enjoying a moment where you are the only one at the house where you can sit on the front porch and listen to the creek and the woods while you enjoy the peaceful surroundings of the Woody House.
This is an out an back hike so when you have finished enjoying your time at the Woody House, hike safely back to the parking area.