Icehouse Bottom - Geographical Setting

Geographical Setting

The Little Tennessee River enters Monroe County from the east, where it slices a gap between the Great Smoky Mountains and the Unicoi Mountains, and winds its way westward for some 40 miles (64 km) before emptying into the Tennessee River near Lenoir City. Tellico Lake, created in 1979, covers the lower 33 miles (53 km) of the Little Tennessee and the lower 22 miles (35 km) of the Tellico River. Before the creation of the lake, Icehouse Bottom was situated along the south bank of the Little Tennessee, approximately 21 miles (34 km) above the mouth of the river and nearly 2 miles (3.2 km) above the river's confluence with the Tellico River. The site was located immediately downstream from the base of a steep hill known as Rockcrusher Bluff.

The McGhee-Carson Unit of the Tellico Lake Wildlife Management Area includes what was once the top of Rockcrusher Bluff, although the bluff became a peninsula when Tellico Lake flooded the area. The entrance to McGhee-Carson is located along Tennessee State Route 360 (Citico Road), a few miles south of the road's junction with U.S. Route 411. Carson Road traverses the unit, ending abruptly at the lakeshore above what was once Icehouse Bottom.