Bugging Out Lessons from AT hiking

[protective measures]

I am looking for some spots in N Ga to hike this spring and not really sure where a good spot is I usually hike in Alabama but I want to try somthing different this year

There are some great places in the Cohutta Wilderness Area or the Chattahoochee National Forest near Chatsworth, Ga.
We've been hiking in those mountains for years.
Beautiful mtns., plenty of water, easy to hard trails, etc.

 

[TacticalDonkey69]

Thanks I will check that out where we hiked in Alabama last year there was not a lot of water so the water is a big plus thanks

 

[Marlinfan]

I am looking for some spots in N Ga to hike this spring and not really sure where a good spot is I usually hike in Alabama but I want to try somthing different this year

This is a real nice section of the Pinhoti trail in Walker co.
http://www.georgiapinhoti.org/TrailGuide/JohnsMountain.htm

 

[TacticalDonkey69]

This is a real nice section of the Pinhoti trail in Walker co.
http://www.georgiapinhoti.org/TrailGuide/JohnsMountain.htm

Thanks for the help guys

 

[protective measures]

There are some great places in the Cohutta Wilderness Area or the Chattahoochee National Forest near Chatsworth, Ga.
We've been hiking in those mountains for years.
Beautiful mtns., plenty of water, easy to hard trails, etc.

And if you get your vehicle stuck... "CCW" lives "somewhere near there" and is famous for helping those who get stuck off the mountain.
Seriously though there are a bunch of members up here in this region.

 

[jcountry]

As an Eagle Scout, and veteran of about 100 hikes (always seemed to be in bad weather,) I have an important tip for the mountains:

Carry a good trash bag and a rope. Always put all your food in the bag and run it up a tree at night. Bears are always sniffing around for a delicious snack. When you sleep with your food on the ground, you will be far more likely to have a bear encounter. You don't want to be on his snack list.

(Also, the bear population in Ga is getting pretty high these days-at least compared to back in the day when I was in bear country.)

 

[Anthony Welsh]

great link to web site love making and cooking outdoors with alcohol stoves thanks alot.

I threw together a SuperCat Alcohol Stove last minute. It was thrown together last minute and pretty rough. But it worked well with my 2 quart backpacking pot and doesn't require a pot stand.

It takes more fuel that a regular stove but takes up less room and if it breaks a new one is $0.99 worth of potted meat or tuna. Just don't go and burn it in your tent or inhale the isopropyl alcohol fumes, they are not good for you.

http://jwbasecamp.com/Articles/SuperCat/index.html

 

[Lorentzoe45]

I did a 3-day, 32 mile hike last weekend on the AT. Some things of note:

-My pack was 52 pounds (I packed heavy on purpose). Humping it wasn't an issue until it came to negotiating down hill rocky paths especially at night. It was a lot slower than I expected going down the mountain with the extra weight while trying to not to roll an ankle on the rocks. I have done this same section with a 30 pound pack much faster in the past.

-At least one guy seemed uncomfortable when he noticed my large alice ruck sitting on the rocks near the Blood Mountain shelter. There was a green Infidel hat and fixed blade knife strapped to my ruck.

-Practicing noise and light discipline is always invaluable, but other hikers/campers are very spooked when you pass quietly by with no lights on.

-Filtering water with a hand pump backpacking filter at water locations took longer than I liked. I am going to revert back to purification tablets so I can quickly fill, drop a couple tabs and head out.

-Mountain House meals make great sleeping bag warmers when waiting the 8 to 10 minutes after pouring in boiling water.

-Land nav in the foothills or flat ground is entirely different than the mountains. Not harder, just a different skill set. Dead reckoning is near worthless and terrain association is invaluable.

-Switching to an homemade alcohol stove and 91% alcohol was better when trying to keep light discipline at night. Not any major improvement but better than the faint blue flame my commercial stove puts out.

-Woodland bivy sack with no shelter are pretty low profile even when very close to people. I had 3 people set up camp within 15 yards from me, shining lights all over and walking past my camp to the privy. The next morning they were surprised I had spent the night there and said they had no idea.

Man this sounds cool as hell!!!! I’ve done the Georgia portion of the AT. But nothing to these standards. I’d love to find a way to get a group to go! I need to take some notes…clearly. You took it to another level

 

[Leveraction44]

Bugging out? You better have a designated place of your own. At a time of short supply, you will be seen as an outsider, another mouth to feed, and a liability. Running for the hills thinking it is the garden of plenty will soon turn into just another nightmare.