Pine Mountain Trail

With the holiday weekend and a late call at church tomorrow, I decided I could handle a longer trip today, so I headed back down to Pine Mountain to do another section of the Pine Mountain Trail. Since I have already done all of the loops, this would be an in and out hike. Because of the popularity of this area, I almost changed my mind at the last minute over concerns that it would be too busy.

I decided to start at a parking lot at mile marker 18, and head South to the Boot Top Trail at mile marker 14, and take that trail back to the intersection with the PMT. On my way through the park, I noticed that none of the parking lots had any cars. So much for being too busy! When I got to my lot, there was one car. As it turns out, in 4 ½ hours of hiking, I would encounter only one family. That was surprising to me given that when I visited for my snow hike, it was quite busy.

I soon found out why business was so light. It was a warm day, and with rain yesterday afternoon, it was very muggy and unpleasant. Hiking in warmer weather is quite a paradigm shift. Gone are the days of half-full water containers, jeans to protect me from the poison ivy, and long hikes with no breaks. These will have to be replaced by shorts, full water containers, and shorter hikes. I am already looking forward to Fall!

I got to mile 14 and had a bit more energy, so I elected to continue for a bit. I would later regret this decision. I got as far as mile 12, and after standing briefly on Sunset Rock, I headed back. My water would run out before the trip was complete, as my energy almost did on a few occasions.

I finally hit the parking lot again some 11 miles and 4.5 hours later, having dropped at least 5 lbs in water weight. I headed straight for the Purple Cow, where I got a light lunch, a less light cup of ice cream (Moo Tracks and Chocolate-covered Cherry), and all the tea I could drink (which was a around a gallon). It was a nice if exhausting day.

Tallulah Gorge

Finally!! The first Saturday in 7 weeks without a chance of rain (not that I am complaining about the rain, Lord). I decided to take full advantage, although with everything going on Friday (one of the worst in recent memory), I did not know where I was going until 20 minutes before departure. I selected Tullulah Gorge. I remember driving by it when I was younger, and I have passed it a few times on business in that area, but this was my first chance to visit as a hiker.

I had intended to do the Rim Loop, which starts along the North rim, goes down 300 steps to the gorge, crosses a neat suspension bridge, and climbs 200 more steps. I was then planning to do section of the Bartram Trail (one of the many long trails in Georgia). At the last minute, I changed the agenda. After riding my bike for 20 miles last night, I did not think my knees could handle the stairs. As such, I switched to the Stoneplace Trail, a 10 mile round trip down to Lake Tugalo, the other shore of which is in South Carolina.

I did not realize on the trip in that I was going downhill the entire way, which led me to a surprise coming back – much climbing. That being said, it seems that my biking is good conditioning for hiking, as I had no trouble with it, doing the entire hike without a rest break.

The trail is wide because it supports hiking and biking. I did not encounter a single hiker (they all headed toward the gorge), but I did see a few bikers. There was a small wilderness camping area at the lake which was in use by a scout troop. I could only see a portion of the lake, but it was quite beautiful. On the return trip, I took the High Bluff Loop off of the main trial, which as you can guess runs along a high bluff. This trail is loaded with mountain laurel, much of which was in bloom.

I apparently made a wrong turn onto an unmarked trail at the end, as I serendipitously found myself at the best overlook along the North rim. Since they were doing a water release for kayakers, it was quite a show.

I really needed my combined 32 miles this weekend because of a bad week particularly Friday. For the first time in my life, I had someone accuse me of being a crook. By God’s grace, I have always been considered above reproach as to legal and ethical matters, so this was quite a trauma. Even through the person apologized quickly, the damage was done.

As I arrived at the lake, I was badly in need of a restroom break, and not looking forward to the shovel and hole method, if you know what I mean. I glanced off to the side, and discovered an “inviting” privy which was not on the map (I recognize the difficulty finding spiritual significance in finding a privy, but stay with me).

I got to thinking about what a good God we have to do something so simple for me as to place a privy in the right place. This caused me to recall a movie I had seen the night before – Facing the Giants (Covington and Covington rate it one thumb up, one thumb down). Actually the other Covington is more correct than me, as the acting is amateurish, and the plot a bit weak. The message is unmistakable and unambiguous however – when facing life’s giants, remember that we serve a big God. A God that puts a privy in the right place can certainly take care of the big stuff!

Silver Comet - Coot's Lake

I am a bit behind on my blogging, but not due to lack of adventures. I am finding that with the warmer weather and the uncooperative nature of my digestive system of late (I will leave you to fill in the blanks here), that longer bike rides and shorter hikes are working well. Today was my second long ride on the Silver Comet Trail. I began the ride at Coot’s Lake, a private lake and beach just East of Rockmart.

I began the ride eastbound back to mile marker 30, which is where I ended last time. There is no trailhead nearby, so the only way to cover that section was to backtrack. This was a pleasant section where large hills had been cut away to make room for the train tracks. This exposed a number of interesting rock formations. Just under a mile from Coot’s Lake is the Bushy Mountain tunnel, a 700 ft lighted tunnel under – you guessed it – Bushy Mountain. I made it to mile marker 30, and turned around.

The section between Coot’s Lake and Rockmart is similar in terrain to the East section The part of Rockmart that I could see from the trail was not very interesting, but the trail passes through a floodplain area, along an old cemetery, and through a sports park, making it an entertaining ride.

The nice thing about riding Silver Comet is the fact that it is built on an old rail bed. Since trains do not handle steep hills well, the resulting path has only gradual ascents and descents. The section after the sports part leaves the rail bed, and switches to trail specifically built for the Silver Comet. It was designed for the average cyclist, assuming you consider Lance Armstrong average! This is by far the hardest section of the trail. My knees hurt so bad at one point that I had to get off and walk. The first part of this section runs along US 278, and is loud and polluted. The trail suddenly makes an abrupt turn away from the highway, and runs through the prettiest section of the trail. It passes through some great ranches and pastures, and then through a nature preserve with a camping area. I got as far as an old church at mile marker 45, and turned around.

The return trip was uphill most of the way, so my knees were about to fall off by the time I got back to my car. That being said, I managed 32 miles without much trouble. I have now completed 45 miles of the 60 mile trail. One more ride to go.