Johnson Ferry - Morgan Falls Loop (Cobb County, Georgia)

 

I'm joining the Meetup group again today for a hike near the city. It's one I've done a number of times, but there are varying routes through this trail system in the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area and the scenery is pretty nice. That said, we had heavy rains yesterday morning and I'm sure there will be some muddy spots, but I have to stop letting the weather prevent me from getting my trail miles in.

I arrived at the trail head about twenty minutes before the designated start time and finished off some fast food in my car. It's fairly cold (mid-thirties) outside and I haven't had a chance to eat anything yet today. Soon, the other hikers begin showing up and we form a circle for a quick round of introductions. Today's leader explains what has happened to the Meetup group's owner, much as I did last week, and soon we're on the trail.

It partially follows the river, but traverses some wetlands. The trails through these wetlands are pretty muddy as I predicted, but what's a little mud to a group of hikers. We make our way through the wetlands and the woods with a couple of small creek crossings. These are some of my favorite spots in the area due to the way the rock has been eroded by the running waters. From there, we head out towards Morgan Falls Dam, which I find to be improperly named. There is no waterfall here, only a small hydro-electric dam. It's not overly scenic, but due to construction our route is somewhat limited and from here we turn back.

The return trip to the parking lot is uneventful, but pleasant and I enjoy the conversations with my fellow hikers. Soon we arrive back at our cars, having hiked about 5.9 miles today. It's a short one, but at least I got outside and didn't let the wet weather keep me from what I love.