Survival Trip to Cohutta 10/23 & 10/24

[jloneill17]

A couple of us got together this morning. Nice to put some faces with names. I appreciate everyonne that showed up to participate.
We have decided to take our trip to Cohutta during the weekend of October 23rd and 24th. We are going to acquire the services of Mark Warren for a half day on the 24th to show us about edible berries, plants, and such. We are going to do a 3-4 mile hike, crossing rivers and setting up camp, then a 3-4 mile hike back. If you are interested let me know, so we can get a good headcount. I know Mosby, BuckSlayer, Jsquared, Outlander and myself are in. I think this will be a great learning experience for me and I'm sure for all. Thanks

 

[Tonyf6188]

Got any details yet on where exactly everybody would like to go?

I have a really nice custom printed topo map if we go in the area of the Jacks River trail.

Unfortunately my father is having a stem cell transplant the week before. As long as he
does well with it, I am in.

I may have another guy that would like to come as well.

 

[jloneill17]

I believe BuckSlayer and Outlander had a more concise idea about where exactly in Cohutta. I've never been, so I differed to them b/c Buck has been there 1 or 2 times and Outlander has been there multiple. I'm sure one of them could give you a more exact spot we plan to hike and camp. My best friend might come with us also.

 

[Outlander]

Should have posted this last night. My apologies for being late. There are several hikes in the Cohutta Wilderness Area that we can choose from:

1. Gahuti Loop @ Fort Mountain - its a 8 mile loop located on the western edge of the Cohutta. It is an easy to moderate hike. there are several camp sites along the loop. I have hiked it in 4 hours.

2. Grassy Mountain Tower/Songbird Trail - 5 mile linear. Moderately physical. Actually just outside the Cohutta Wilderness Area but it has a campground with a lake (Conasauga Lake) that is stocked with trout. Never hiked but told it does not have a lot of visitors.

3. Wilds Rivers Route - 21 miles start to finish. Takes about 3 days and is a difficult hike.

4. Cascade Falls/Mountain Town Creek Trail - 7.2 miles there and back. Moderate to difficult hike. Hiked it last year. Almost no one on the trail. Takes a bout 5 hours round trip. Lots of creeks and streams loaded with trout for those who fish. I have caught a few trout here last year. (its on the edge of the CWA)

5. Panther Creek falls and Overlook - 8 miles there and back Takes about 4 to 5 hours round trip. I did this one in June. quite a few camp sites to choose from. Have to cross Panther creek twice.

6. Jacks River falls via Rice Ramp Trail might be nice as long as the water is not too high. Crossing can be difficult in very high waters. It is an 11 to 12 mile loop that takes about 6 hours round trip. You have to cross Jigger Creek in your car (2x) before you get to the start of the trail. If creek is high you will need a high clearance truck or SUV to make the fords.

There are others but the thing we want remember if anyone is coming late (ie - me....lol) we want them to get to the camp site before dark.

 

[fz1boxer]

sooooooooo
what gear are you guys NOT taking?
no bic lighters right.
read some of these hikers journals,lots of good info and insight.
http://www.trailjournals.com/index.cfm
i met this person on the trail
http://www.trailjournals.com/mssnglnkWinterBMT/
very petite woman by herself.
i offered some food and water,she only took the water because she didnt want the added weight of the food.
interesting reads.
you guys have fun,wear orange

 

[jloneill17]

Should have posted this last night. My apologies for being late. There are several hikes in the Cohutta Wilderness Area that we can choose from:

1. Gahuti Loop @ Fort Mountain - its a 8 mile loop located on the western edge of the Cohutta. It is an easy to moderate hike. there are several camp sites along the loop. I have hiked it in 4 hours.

2. Grassy Mountain Tower/Songbird Trail - 5 mile linear. Moderately physical. Actually just outside the Cohutta Wilderness Area but it has a campground with a lake (Conasauga Lake) that is stocked with trout. Never hiked but told it does not have a lot of visitors.

3. Wilds Rivers Route - 21 miles start to finish. Takes about 3 days and is a difficult hike.

4. Cascade Falls/Mountain Town Creek Trail - 7.2 miles there and back. Moderate to difficult hike. Hiked it last year. Almost no one on the trail. Takes a bout 5 hours round trip. Lots of creeks and streams loaded with trout for those who fish. I have caught a few trout here last year. (its on the edge of the CWA)

5. Panther Creek falls and Overlook - 8 miles there and back Takes about 4 to 5 hours round trip. I did this one in June. quite a few camp sites to choose from. Have to cross Panther creek twice.

6. Jacks River falls via Rice Ramp Trail might be nice as long as the water is not too high. Crossing can be difficult in very high waters. It is an 11 to 12 mile loop that takes about 6 hours round trip. You have to cross Jigger Creek in your car (2x) before you get to the start of the trail. If creek is high you will need a high clearance truck or SUV to make the fords.

There are others but the thing we want remember if anyone is coming late (ie - me....lol) we want them to get to the camp site before dark.

You would know better than I would. Just by your description, I was thinking either #1,2,4,or 5 on your list. I particularly don't want to do a 21 mile hike or try and wade through 3-4 feet of water. But, if that's what the group wants to do, I will go along. #2 and 4 sounds cool, with the fishing. Eating some fresh trout the fist night would be really awesome. I know that some of us wanted to build lean too's or there own shelter, and I would like to gain as much knowledge as I can from the actual camping aspect. I'd like to see you get to the sight before dark also.

WHAT TIME ON FRIDAY 10/23 DO WE WANT TO LEAVE TO HEAD UP THERE?

 

[Tonyf6188]

As far as any of the trails go, I am game for any of them. I would prefer not to stay
in the lake campground. It is a very nice campground but what we are going for you don't
want a crowd.

The Mountaintown Creek Trail sounds good. I will check into it a bit more.
What do the rest of you think?

As far as gear goes. I am taking my BOB.

 

[Mosby]

I agree that the Mountain Creek Trail looks the most appealing from the description. I am taking
my full BOB just to see how it feels with all the weight. My BOB weighs about 18 pounds more than
my normal hiking pack with all the ammo, mre's, and things I'm sure that I don't need, so It would be nice
to do a light hike with it loaded down. I don't plan on taking much water since I use filters when backpacking.
I just got an Emmrod Packer that fits like a glove inside my BOB, and have been waiting to try it out, so
one of the trails that offers fishing would be top on my list, but I'm up for whatever.

 

[jsquared]

Real excited about this! Should be a lot of fun. I would vote for the Gahuti Loop (#1), combining the trail to the top of the the Fort into it at the end of day two so we can finish off with some scenery! There is an old stone tower, some overlooks, the famous stone wall and some other stuff at the top of Fort Mountain that I would like to check out, and I dont think tacking it on to the 8.2 miler would be too bad. We could do 6-7 miles on day 1 (depending on how everyone is feeling haha), then do the rest on Sunday. I guess we could split up on day two after the training also if anyone just wanted to finish out the main loop and head back down.

Here is a basic map of the area so everyone can get an idea of what Im talking about. Main loop around the park is the Gahuti trail, yellow loop to the north is the trail around the top of Fort Mountain (West Overlook and North Stone Tower combined).

http://www.gastateparks.org/content/Georgia/parks/trail_maps/FortMountain_map.pdf

The top trail would be excellent for some map reading/orienteering training too if anyone is interested. Could go over some basic Army stuff, i.e. finding yourself on a map, navigating over land, terrain features, getting coordinates for a specific point on a map, etc. Let me know and I would love to throw something together for whoever is interested.

As far as gear goes, I will probably be bringing my GHB and possibly my ultralight 1-man tent if it looks like it may rain.

sooooooooo
what gear are you guys NOT taking?
no bic lighters right.
read some of these hikers journals,lots of good info and insight.
http://www.trailjournals.com/index.cfm
i met this person on the trail
http://www.trailjournals.com/mssnglnkWinterBMT/
very petite woman by herself.
i offered some food and water,she only took the water because she didnt want the added weight of the food.
interesting reads.
you guys have fun,wear orange

No lighters? But I smoke, I always have a lighter on me

 

[jloneill17]

I will be bringing my BOB, kinda modified. I have two BOB's, one I carry, and one my fiance would carry. So for this trip i will have to incorporate some of the stuff in her bag into mine. I'm trying to decide on my tent or buy a hammock. I think i'm leaning toward the mountain creek trail. Plus, I'm a chunky kid, I'm not trying to have a heart attack on my first hiking experience.