Today we hike – I’m thinking of heading to Brasstown Bald near Vogle State Park. Just a few hours – to enjoy the air, sights and family time. Here is an interesting site: Brasstown Bald Sherpa Guides – a sponsored site extracting the longstreet guide, book that I have -
Brasstown Bald is Georgia’s highest mountain. From its summit at 4,784 feet, there are breathtaking views of four states. On a clear day, it is possible to see as far south as Atlanta.
Peace..
Sandy Bottom Campground, Chattahoochee National Forest, Georgia
Stumbled on this one day searching – need to check this out.
Need to look more into this program – old-growth forest preservation and investigation:
Old Growth Mission…Chattahoochee National Forest in search of more old growth tracts
I crossed a distance of 25 miles S to N but with my initial loop, the side hikes and hikes to water and AT Shelters it was more like 32 (when you are up high you often have to go down a bit to get to a stream to pump/filter water).
I carried a pack weighing approx. 40 lbs fully loaded. But that was with food and water (I carried between 2-4 liters of water @ 2.2lbs per liter). Without food and water it was just under 30lbs.
Here is the breakdown.
Day 1: 11.5 miles – I was dropped at Blue Ridge gap and I walked the three miles to the NC border & Bly Gap and back starting again South from Blue Ridge. I stopped at Plumorchard Gap Shelter and hiked to water there as well. I camped at Little Bald Knob (there is a joke there somewhere). Only three “up’s” for a total of maybe 1200 feet.
Day 2: 11.5 miles – Hiked to Steeltrap Gap – did a side hike to Deep Gap Shelter and a small trail on Addis Gap. I killed a lot of time at Deep Gap talking to some other hikers and ended up arriving at Steeltrap in the dark (that’s when I met the snake). About 2000 feet of up’s
Day 3: 9 miles – Hiked from SteelTrap back to a spot on the Blue Ridge Swag I had wanted to see from the day before but couldn’t in the dark. Finished at Unicoi Gap where I was happy to see my truck still there. About 2000 feet of up’s – pretty steep.
My Journal and pictures to follow. Now I need to rest.
UPDATE Pictures
Plan is to start at Blue Ridge Gap in GA, hike north to the NC border and hike back south to Unicoi Gap. This will complete the GA AT for me.
In the official Appalachian Trail Guide to North Carolina-Georgia (Eleventh Edition) it is:
Bly Gap to Dicks Creek Gap (Section 11) 8.8 Miles
Dicks Creek Gap to Unicoi Gap(Section 12) 16.1 Miles
Its a pretty good hike, despite it only being 24 Miles. For example, Dicks Creek Gap is at just over 2500 feet but Tray Mtn is almost 4500. So there will be some good ups and downs.
I have made my reservation with Trail Shuttle operator Wess Wisson to get me there. I’ll be hiking Tuesday starting at 8:00AM and finishing Thursday afternoon or evening. If I need an extra day i’ll stay in the woods Thursday night.
Next week I will go for a walk in the woods. We missed our annual hike this spring so I have been longing for it. It won’t be the same. Not just because Andrew, Taylor or Tim won’t be there – it won’t be spring:
Nothing like the mist in the morning as you hike in the woods during spring time.
So I think I’ll go for a few days and try and work it out to finish the last 35 miles of Georgia’s section.
Got me thinking tonight at Synagogue. First the Rabbi started the service with an observation or reminder that being in Synagogue was a time for us to feel comfortable in who we are. To be Jews and not have to tip-toe around that fact that we do believe in God, one God and that we have a soul and customs and laws. Later, the Rabbi talked about what the world would be like if there were no Jews and what that means. It was the second Sabbath of the month so it was Q/A time. Initially the discussion turned to things missing like the contributions from famous Jews like Einstein and Salk or even two other major religions (Christianity and Islam) since the basis is Torah. (Stephanie pointed out that there would be no movie industry!) But then we talked about what Judaism has to contribute to the world going forward. My mind turned to a topic I have discussed here already – Tzedaka and how helping others and mankind is simply the right thing to do in our world. I thought of my feelings about the golden rule and how I tell the kids to look for good.
So it reminded me of the AT again. We talk a lot when walking (some more then others, myself included) and I had a discussion with one of my friends who was raised Catholic and now is a Baptist through marriage. He asked what it meant to me and why I was Jewish.
So back to the point earlier – most of the time these days my non-Jewish friends are curious and I’m ok with that, better then a hundred years ago when many were just plain ignorant and mean. So I explained a little bit about my background and choices. But then I realized why he asked, he was not sure if he believed all the Baptist customs and faith; or the Catholic for that matter. A very clear message came to me.
I told him that Judaism became so much more important to me after I became a father. Its back to mythology, stories, morals and laws. You can make up reasons, force your kids to listen, beg them to be good, etc. Or you can live a good, Jewish life and guess what – its all in there. The stories in Torah teach and do it in an interesting way. The laws on how to live together, be healthy, be happy are in there too. So why fight it? My kids are good kids, they enjoy the songs, the customs and they understand the reasons. They have faith and they have hope for the future.
I could go on about how so many of today’s religions were rooted in power struggles and control. So that is why the Jews are so stiff-necked about sticking to it and together. I’m sure a long time ago the Torah was used to control as well. Perhaps to bring order, perhaps to consolidate power. But today it is not, at least for me and there is a comfort to that.
So look for the good in others, that is Love.
That which is hurtful to you, don’t do to
others.
Be Nice.
I have often asked the question “when I fly to a backpacking trip how do I get fuel for the stove: WhiteBlaze.net – Canister stove/fuel FAQ
I just got a Jetboil from Stephanie for my big 40 birthday. It’s really cool; the whole package fits in the pot/bottle. The unit is the size of a 2 liter Nalgene bottle. In it is the stove, fuel (sold seperately) and stand (sold seperately). Its an aluminum “pot” that snaps on the stove that screws on the fuel. It boils water in two minutes.
I did a lot of research because I was skepticle at first about 1. fuel, 2. stabilitly and 3. cooking solids. So the stabliizer works great – comes with a pan stove top so you can use a frying pan too. The fuel is proprietery but you can use other propane fuel mixes that are avail in most places.
If I take a trip with a group I’d still expect to either bring my MSR Dragonfly or ask someone else to bring theirs. But for a solo trip this is fantastic.
Thanks Stephanie!
Some good reviews:
Backpack Gear Test
roanoke.com Outdoors in Southwest Virginia
We are trying to find a nice 45 mile stretch to hike. THis is a good starting point.
