South Carolina trails · Jones Gap Trail
Jones Gap Trail
A 5.2-mile out-and-back in South Carolina, with 1,383 ft of climbing. Reaches Jones Gap.
Length
5.2 mi
Elevation gain
1,383 ft
Difficulty
Hard
Max grade
16%
Steepest mile
+362 ft
Tread at ≥10% grade
0.6 mi
Shape
out-and-back
Surface
Dirt
Bikes
no
Horses
no
Elevation profile
The climbing is spread fairly evenly along the route. It climbs almost continuously, with little descent to recover on.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Jones Gap (pass)
Heads up
Stream ford: expect at least one unbridged crossing.
Terrain graded T2 (SAC scale).
Daylight at the trailhead
On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:35 a.m., the sun rises at 7:01 a.m. and sets at 7:58 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 8:24 p.m. (EDT) — 12 h 57 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 10.3-mile round trip takes roughly 5 h 12 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 12:13 p.m. — 7 h 45 min before sunset.
Loop options
- Coldspring Branch Trail + Jones Gap Trail + Rim of the Gap Trail — 12.8 mi loop, 3,300 ft gain
- Coldspring Branch Trail + Jones Gap Trail + Rim of the Gap Trail — 17.3 mi loop, 4,635 ft gain
Across the border
- Continues into NC as Silver Steps Trail — view on the map
Nearby trails
- Pinnacle Pass Trail — 0.2 mi
- Mountain Bridge Passage Trail — 2.4 mi
- Rim of the Gap Trail — 2.7 mi
- Raven Cliff Falls Trail — 4.9 mi