Olde Rope Mill (Cherokee County, Georgia)

My second hike of the day departs the same trailhead as my earlier hike. Meeting with the hiking group, we do a quick round of introductions and then cross the bridge again and start exploring the mountain bike trails of Olde Rope Mill. The trails here are pretty well maintained and obviously get a lot of use, but much like many of the local parks, simply curl around on themselves to provide more distance for bikers than exploring anything truly interesting. 

Today though, our group leader has some other ideas in mind and before to long, we have left the trail and are bushwhacking our way through the woods. It seems that some of the older trails have overgrown and are now much harder to find. I actually enjoy path-finding and bushwhacking tough and so this is right up my alley. That said though, the occasional site of poison ivy gives me pause. Hopefully, that won't become a problem.

For part of the trail, we follow along the river and then under a seldom (if ever) used railroad trestle bridge. Eventually, we pop out of the woods and onto a crossroads, where make use of the paved bridge to cross the river and then re-enter the woods on the far side. A short time later, we return to the train trestle and after some discussion the majority of the group decides to explore the other side of the park. 

As it's approaching our scheduled end time and I have other plans this evening, I decide to head back towards the trail head. I wish the group well and then walk across the trestle. I didn't think this would be a big deal for me as I don't have a particular fear of heights, but as I make my way across this railroad bridge, which sits approximately a hundred feet above the river, I find myself being a little anxious. The ties which I'm walking on are spaced about six inches apart and while there is really no way I could fall between them, it's still a little bit unnerving. Eventually, I reach the far side and take a minute to compose myself and figure out the best path back to the parking lot. 

I'm forced to cut across several loops of the mountain bike trail, descending lower and lower towards the river with each cut, before ending up right alongside the river. I soon come to the ruins of what must have been the Old Rope Mill. A long canal has been constructed and is now an interesting path for kayakers. I would imagine this is the channel where the paddle-wheel sat to power the operation.

After only a short distance further, I end up back at the trail head and then walk back up to the parking lot where I left my jeep. It's been an interesting hike and while I'm sorry I didn't get to explore the rest of the park with the group, the railroad trestle was kind of fun, even if a little scary. To add to my earlier miles, my tracking app shows an additional 5.8 miles, which makes for a pretty good day.