Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield - Full Loop (Cobb County, Georgia)

Almost exactly one year ago I hiked to the summit of Kennesaw Mountain as one of my first hikes in the area, after moving to Atlanta, GA. Little did I or any of us know what a tempestuous year 2020 would be. With that said, I decided to send it out with a bang in the hopes of better times in the coming new year. Also, I have a lot of big trips planned in the year (some were cancelled in 2020 and got pushed to 2021) and will be steadily increasing my trail mileage and difficulty leading up to those trips. With that said, today I will be leading the meetup group around the entire Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield.

As always happens, a number of people dropped off the event as the date approached. I think much of this was due to the predicted storms, but also, some may have had second thoughts about knocking out 17+ miles in a single hike. Either way, when I arrived at the trailhead near the park's visitor center, I met up with the five other brave souls that wanted to conquer this trail today.

We did a quick round of introductions and I explained the plan. With the possibility of thunderstorms approaching a bit later this morning or early afternoon, I wanted to get the summits out of the way first to minimize our risk of lightning strikes. I also explained that while this was a long trail, it should not be terribly difficult and the vast majority of the elevation gain will be right at the start as we climb to the summit of Kennesaw Mountain and then immediately afterwards the summit of Little Kennesaw Mountain. Give the holiday today and the proximity to metro-Atlanta, I did not post this as an advanced hike, but I did explain that a number of options were available to bail out if the mileage became too much for anyone. And with all of that, we hit the trail.

From the visitor's center, the trail begins the steep climb of approximately 650 feet to the summit almost immediately. As of right now, the weather is holding, but it's foggy and there's a lot of moisture in the air. Hopefully, we'll get luck and the rain will hold off for a few hours. Most of the group makes it to the summit with little or no issues, but one individual is a bit slower than the rest. While I often post in my descriptions that we will not hold up the group pace for those unable to keep up, this being something of a beginner's hike, I did not post any such warning and feel some obligation to wait for the last person. Additionally, I have hiked with her before and I know that it's really just the uphill sections that challenge her. While we wait, some of the group decides to push forward, but after only five or so minutes, we have all reached the top and continue towards the next small summit.

The trail is well maintained, being within a National Historic Park, and the mountainside is littered with large boulders and even some granite slicks. The occasional civil war-era cannon placed in their approximate historical positions adds character to the site and reminds of the terrible death and destruction that took place here a century-and-a-half ago. It's a somber reminder of tenuous our fragile union truly is.

After we descend from Little Kennesaw Mountain on a couple of long switchbacks, the trail flattens out with just the occasional rolling hill. The slower hiker suggests that she may take one of the bail-out trails and do less mileage. She encourages me to continue on and catch the faster group. I have already discussed the trail system with her and I know that this is not her first time doing this trail. I check to make sure she's comfortable with my leaving, but she re-confirms and we part ways. She says she'll check-in on the event site once she makes it back to the parking lot. I thank her and wish her well before picking up my pace substantially.

Just a short time later, I and the one other hiker that stayed behind catch up with the other three. It's kind of nice to have a larger group to converse with now and to be able to hike at a quicker pace. Everyone here is pretty comfortable maintaining 3-3.5 mph and so, we do.

As we we approach the southern-most point of the loop, it's nearly noon and most of us are beginning to get a little hungry. One gentleman wants to continue without the lunch break. He lives nearby and has hiked these trails many times. We wish him well as the rest of us find a couple of trees cut down by the park service that will service nicely as benches and stop for a few minutes to enjoy some snacks. With nine or so miles to go, we can use the refuel. I enjoy some portobello mushroom jerky flavored with balsamic vinegar and golden figs, which my wife put in my Christmas stocking. It's quite tasty and I share a sample with the others.

The return section of the loop is still pretty flat and does not require us to re-climb the two small peaks from the beginning. There is a slight drizzle, but nothing to dampen our spirits or slow our progress. We make pretty quick work of the last half of the hike. Along the way, we take notice of a pair of owls in trees on opposite sides of the trail. They sound as if they are communicating something to each other, but unfortunately, none of us speak owl. It's a nice diversion.

The final couple of miles go by quickly and we soon find ourselves back at the trailhead. My GPS track shows that we've completed 17.6 miles today.Two members of the group have just set new personal records for miles hiked on a single trail - congratulations! Before departing, I check the event site and see that both of the hikers that left the main group have posted their safe completion of the trail. I thank everyone for braving the weather and completing this monster mileage hike before getting in the jeep and heading home. What a great day!

Medlock Bridge (Gwinnett County, Georgia)

It's a chilly morning, but I talked my mother, who now lives with us, into taking a short hike this morning. The exercise does her good, but I have to be fairly selective with the trails I take her on. She's not able to do big mileage or strenuous climbs at her age. I've got a list of a few options and this morning, we decided to visit the Medlock Bridge Unit of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, which is only a few miles from home.

We arrived shortly after the park opened and easily found a parking spot. There was only one other car on the parking lot. After walking down the muddy boat ramp to see the river close up, we headed into the woods on the well marked and well worn trail. The first section follows the river closely. The light fog this morning, coupled with the rising sun, made for some interesting shots.

I told Mom to keep an eye out for turtles on the floating logs, but I think its a bit cold for them this morning. After about half-a-mile, we turn back. I'm generally letting her lead to set her own pace, but when we get to muddy sections or areas with a lot of roots, I tend to move to the front to guide her over the rougher terrain. After returning to the parking lot, I see we've hiked about 1.5 miles total, which is pretty good for her. She comments about how much fun it was - mission accomplished!

Tribble Mill - Full Loop (Gwinnett County, Georgia)

After feasting with family and friends for the Christmas holiday, I felt the need to get some trail miles in today. The Meetup group that I hike with most frequently had planned to do seven to eight miles at the nearby Tribble Mill Park. Though I've hiked at this well maintained park in the past and rarely like to hike the same trail more than once, it was a convenient opportunity to work off a few of those holiday calories. 

Arriving at the parking lot a few minutes before the scheduled departure time, we did a quick round of introductions before hitting the trail. About twenty of us in all. Starting first on the paved trails, we make our way around the larger of the two lakes in the park. When we reached the far side, the track switched to dirt as we entered the woods tracking at a pretty good pace, but as often happens a few people started falling behind.

As we made our way up the hill on the far side of the lake, the trail becomes a series of long switchbacks and in order to help some of the slower hikers catch up, the organizer cuts a couple of switchbacks. Soon afterwards, we stop for a short snack break and discuss how we want to proceed. It's decided that some want a bit more mileage and I offer to lead the smaller group on some additional switchbacks, while the main group heads back towards the parking lot. 

As my group gets started, I ask if they are okay with a faster pace. With everyone's agreement, I bump up our pace to right around four miles an hour. At every trail junction, I choose to take the option leading away from the parking lot, but we still only add a short distance to the hike and actually arrive at the cars before the main group - likely do to our very quick pace. I check our distance and see that we've hiked nearly 7.7 miles. While the trail was easy, the quick pace on the last section allowed me to get a pretty good workout in and to feel as though some of those calories have been burnt away.

Pinnacle Knob via Bartram Trail (Rabun County, Georgia)

 

or a while now, the organizer of one the meetups that I frequently hike with has been talking to me about occasionally leading some more challenging hikes a bit further from Atlanta than the trails the group normally hikes. I appreciated his faith in me to lead hikes for his group and decided today would be the first outing. Not far from the Georgia-North Carolina border, Pinnacle Knob rises approximately 3,140 feet above sea level and towers over the nearby town of Clayton. We'll be hiking a section of the Bartram Trail to reach the summit.

Arriving well before the noon start time, I took the opportunity to scout out a report of a bridge wash out I had been made aware of. After hiking up the first section of the trail, I see what the report is talking about and while the creek is still crossable here, it will require jumping from and to some slipper rocks. Luckily, I see an alternative path that I'll talk to the group about when they arrive. 

Returning to the parking area of the trail head, my first two hikers have arrived. I introduce myself while we wait for the others to join us. In total, six of us show up for the hike. There may have been more, but I made it very clear in my description that we would be departing promptly at noon and after a very quick round of introductions, we do just that. Additionally, I had set pace and elevation expectations with the group and let them know that if they were unable to keep up, they should either turn around and come back the way we came or wait for us to summit and return. Everyone agreed and actually thanked me.

Leaving the parking area, the trail follows a muddy path alongside some concrete trout beds constructed by the Civilian Corps many decades ago. While they have been in use for a long time and are now covered with moss, it still adds some interesting history to the area. From here, the trail follows some short switchbacks as we climb back up to Warwoman Road. 

Crossing the road, we had up the trail on the right side of the creek, as opposed to the one on the left, which I had scouted previously. By going this way, we still get a great view of the first waterfall on the trail, but can avoid the somewhat sketchy crossing. From here, it's a long push up hill as the trail winds around the hillside. We gain and loose a little elevation as we go, but the predominate direction is up.

We drop down into another small hallow cut by Martin Creek and then cross a well constructed bridge just in time to see the second noteworthy waterfall. Both are flowing well today and we take a couple of minutes for pictures. Quickly though, we return to the trail. From here, it's mostly straight up.

The trail follows the curves of the hillside as we gain elevation, and while some short sections are pretty steep, it's really not bad overall. Finally reaching the home stretch, we follow a number of long switchbacks as we make our way up the side of the mountain. The trees here have all lost there leaves and we are granted a terrific view of the leaf-covered hill stretch out below us. Someone mentions how much fun it would be to slide down this giant hill on the leaves, until I remind them of how much fun it wouldn't be to hit one of the many tree trunks on the way down.

Arriving at the top, three of us summit a few minutes before the others. I've been keeping an eye on everyone's progress and I know they are just now on the long switchbacks and will join us soon. We take a few minutes to enjoy the views from the top and a quick snack. Our remaining hikers summit just a few minutes afterwards and we all enjoy a few moments together. It's a bit brisk up here and there is one small patch of ice on the rocks we are sitting on, but after putting my puff jacket on, I don't even notice the cool breeze.

A couple of the slower hikers decide to depart earlier to get a head start on the rest of us. We tell them we'll catch up shortly. After finishing my clif bar, taking another swig of water, and seeing to a thirsty tree away from the other hikers, we get underway. Obviously, going downhill is normally faster, but we quickly hit a really comfortable pace of just about four miles per hour and we are able to maintain it for the remainder of the hike back. We do eventually catch other other hikers and even pass them on the way down, but once we reach the trail head, I tell those that were with me that I'm going to wait for everyone to make it back before heading out myself.

A short time later, the remaining two hikers find their way to the finish line and I congratulate them on their accomplishment. We hiked about 9.2 miles and with a net elevation gain of just under 1,700 feet. Discounting our break a the top, we were able to just barely exceed 2.5 mile per hour pace I had set as the expectation. The weather holding as it did for us and the marvelous waterfalls and view from the top, it turned out to be a great day. Everyone thanks me for organizing before we go our separate ways. I look forward to leading the next one.

Cherokee Bluffs (Hall County, Georgia)

 

Since it's still early in the day, I decided to get a few more miles in at a nearby park that I've been meaning to explore. Cherokee Bluffs Park is named for the rock formations at the top of a ridge on which the parks sits. A few miles of trails weave through the park and around the formations. After finding a parking spot in the large parking lot, I head out on the trail along the top of the bluffs. 

The line of boulders create a small cliff approximately twelve feet high that runs about thirty yards. I imagine it's a lot of fun for children to explore and climb around on the formation. After exploring this area, I head off into the woods along the loop trail. There are quite a few people out enjoying the outdoors today and this park is a fine place to do it.

Completing the loop, I pass through a large field at the entrance to the park before returning to my jeep. It's been a pleasant stroll and I was able to get in an additional 2.3 miles for the day. Now it's time to head home and complete more of those pre-Christmas chores.

Bowmans Island Trail (Forsythe County, Georgia)

 

The Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area is composed of a number of disconnected land units along the shoreline of the river as it passes through the greater Atlanta area. Since living in Georgia, I've hiked through many of the sections, but one I had not yet visited was the Bowmans Island unit. It's a beautiful late autumn day out, which seems like the perfect time to add this one to my list.

The trailhead is at the end of a short drive just after passing over the Buford Dam, which holds back the waters of the winding river to create Lake Lanier. I quickly find a parking spot and hit the trails. The early part of the trail follows very close to the shoreline and offers views of some of the waterfowl that visit the river, including blue heron and Canadian geese. It rained a bit a couple of days ago and the trail is muddy in places, but still very passable. The views of the river are pretty nice, but the shallow nature of the waters is evident here as a number of rocks and fallen trees can be seen in the waters. 

The trail eventually forks and heads uphill and away from the river, leading into an area behind a residential neighborhood. The hillsides of this section are gently sloping and covered with the fallen leaves of the season making for a pleasant hike. Completing the small loop, the trail then returns to the section by the river and I had return the way I came. Though it was a bit brisk, this was a great way to start a Saturday morning. I was able to get in just about 4.4 miles along this trail.

Mount Tabor Park (Paulding County, Georgia)

I've been busy the last couple of weeks with the Thanksgiving holiday and then a recertification class that I'm required to take every couple of years, but it's time to get out on the trails again. I decided to join one of the Meetup groups to explore a newer park on the western side of Atlanta, Mount Tabor Park. None of us, including the group's organizer, has ever been to the park and so it should be something of an adventure.

After meeting at the trailhead, we quickly make our way into the woods along the well groomed blue trail. I snapped a picture of the map at the trail head to help us with navigation. According to that map, there are three interconnected loops trails, blue, green, and yellow. As we make our way down the trail, we head off on side trail and quickly hit a private property sign. After turning around and we get back to the trail we started on. There are numbered markers along the way that presumably correlate to numbers on the map. I attempt to plan our route.

Continuing further on, we find ourselves on the green trail, but I never saw the marked junction. I'm beginning to think the maps and markers are inaccurate. Though some of us at the front of the pack have been maintaining a pretty good pace, several new members are falling way behind and we are forced to wait for them occasionally at the many junctions we encounter. Like many parks in region, these trails were designed for mountain bikers and simply twist and turn back on themselves to provide more distance. I can't say I enjoy this type of trail very much. I prefer trails that actually lead somewhere and are not just cut randomly through the woods for the sake of making a trail. That said though, the trails and area are very pretty and it's nice to be outside.

I finally decide to give up on the map, as I conclude it must have been made by a drunken cartographer exploring the Amazon, rather than this park. The markers have zero correlation to the map and landmarks, such as bridges, that are marked on the map are no where to be found in the real world. Regardless, we finally make our way back to the trailhead and several people decide to call it a day. 

Having only hiked about 7 miles though, a few of us decide to re-enter the maze of trails to add a bit more distance. While we fair no better than the first foray, we do manage to add another 2.5 miles or so. When we arrive the trailhead the second time, we've managed to hike a total of about 9.7 miles, which is not a bad day. We say our goodbyes and head home.