Fort Mountain

I was blessed this week to be able to knock out another hike from my top 5 list - Fort Mountain State Park, between Chatsworth and Elijay. This park is literally at the top of a mountain, and incorporates a mysterious 855 foot stone wall, which was thought to have been built by Indians as a fortification.

My goal was to hike the Gahuti trail, an 8.8 mile loop which skirts the edge of the park. Depending on which guide book you reference, it is rated from moderate to strenuous, the latter being the appropriate rating based on my experience.

The hike begins near the aforementioned rock wall. I started in a counter-clockwise direction. It began innocently enough, with a gentle descent, following by a few moderate climbs. It was not long before I came to the first great view, overlooking the mountains to the West.

The trail then descents into a valley with a few streams, and a beautiful waterfall which I heard some time before I could actually see it. The footing in this area was quite difficult, because of yesterday's rain, and the fallen leaves covering small rocks.

The trail comes close to the campground, and I took advantage of the short detour to have a brief rest stop. I returned to the trail, which joined an old roadbed for a a steep climb. This was the first occassion on which I got a bit lost. This trail is blazed in orange, and when I hit the roadbed, the only blaze I could see was to the left. As I got close to the first blaze, it appeared to be red rather than orange (using red and orange for interesting trails is not a good idea). I followed it a short distance, and it dead-ended into the cabin road. I retraced my steps, and found the first orange blaze some distance beyond. This unplanned detour paid off, because I ran into a family looking for that very road, and I was able to give them accurate directions.

For the balance of the hike, the trail was a continuous series of steep climbs, followed by steep descents. Footing became even more difficult, causing me to have a non-serious fall at one point. No damage done.

I was planning to join my sister-in-law and the kids for a trip to the pumpkin patch, so I was hurring at this point to make it in time. Getting in a hurry when hiking however is never a good idea! Toward the end of the trail, it intersects with numerous other short trails in the area of the rock wall. I missed a turn, and found myself on the yellow trail, which follows the stone wall around the summit. I then mis-read the map, and ended taking the long way around the yellow trail. While this unplanned hike was very tiring, it was one of the most beautiful sections. The unplanned but enjoyed detour added 1.5 miles to the hike, which I finished in just under 5 hours.

I highly recommend this hike, but eat your Wheaties first!

Smith Creek Trail

Smith Creek trail in Helen has been on my short list for some time. With the beautiful fall weather, and a bunch if business decisions weighing heavily on my mind, this seemed like a good day to check it off.

The Smith Creek trail connects Anna Ruby Falls, one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Georgia, to Unicoi State Park. Since it is a pretty tough round trip hike, I decided to park at the Unicoi end, hike on the road to the falls, and take the trail back, a round trip of just under 9 miles.

To reach the trail from the falls, you must hike up to the falls on the paved walkway, and the start the trail from one of the viewing platforms. This is probably the most technically-demanding hike I have taken. The trail runs along the side of Smith Mountain somewhat down from the ridge. It is only two feet wide in most places, so there is only a few inches between you and the bottom. There are also some sections where the trail has washed out, making it a challenge to get from one side to the other. Finally, there are a number of trees down whose canopies cover the trail. In one instance I had to maneuver myself over and under various tight branches with my pack on., quite a challenge given that my body does not move around quite as easily as it did 10 years ago!

There are quite a variety of different micro-climates on this trail, including a dry ridge, wetlands, and an area with a canopy of rhododendrons so think that you think it is night time.

I began the hike with the prayer that God would guide me on some specific business issues, and not long into the hike, a great idea popped into my head. While I hesitate to read too much spiritual significance into that, the timing was certainly more than coincidental.

Overall this was a great hike, and one I look forward to repeating.

Fort Yargo State Park

Now that the weather is cooling down, I am back to focusing more on hiking and less on biking. My leg muscles are still making the adjustment however.

This week took me to Fort Yargo State Park in Winder. It is build around a reservoir lake on the site of a fort constructed in 1792 to provide protection against Indians.

This particular park has trails for use by both mountain bikers and hikers. There are two trail loops circling the lake; an inner loop and an outer loop. I began counter clockwise on the inner loop, which keeps the lake in site most of the time.

The trail is fairly flat, but still makes for an interesting hike, except when one has to dodge the mountain bikes. I made it around the a portion of the lake, passed through the wilderness camping area, and crossed over a fishing bridge to the other side of the lake. This is where the map provided by the park failed me. A portion of the lake is omitted from their map, so I found myself in a different spot that I thought. When I came to a sign announcing "thrill hill", I figured out I was on a section used mostly by bikers. I retraced my steps, and got back on track.

A mile after getting my bearings again, I crossed the long earthen dam that forms the lake out of a small creek. The lake itself did not appear to be low on water (I wish we could borrow some for Lanier). Following the dam, I came to a portion of the RV campground, where the map once again became nebulous. I managed to find my way through, and continued on the inner trail picking up from the edge of the campground.

Shortly after rejoining the trail, I came to a fork, and was not sure which way to go. One direction followed the lake closely, and had a foot bridge, leading me to believe it must the the proper way. I crossed the bridge, and hiked along looking well ahead for clues about whether I was on the right path. I suddenly stopped short, having come close to stepping on a 6 foot snake. I backed off, and threw a couple of items in his direction to encourage him to move. He seemed to think he had more right to the trail than I did, and I was not in the mood to argue the point, so I turned around and took the other path, which turned out to the the right one after all. Remind me to thank the snake!

The trail eventually intersected with a paved nature walk, which took me back the to trail head. Not my favorite hike to be sure, but a good way to spend a beautiful day.