The Benefits of Bushwhackin'

There are several rules you should always follow when you go hiking. Always tell someone else where you're going. Always bring more water than you think you need. Always pack extra socks and a hand towel so that when you've fallen in the creek for the third time you can dry yourself off and change socks instead of just muttering obscenities under your breath as you take every other step out of a gorge on a wet sponge that used to be your shoe.

But perhaps most importantly of all, always follow the sound of running water. A tranquil amble through the forest can become one of the best days of your year if you obey that simple rule.

Case in point, I followed my ears to a really nice waterfall recently. Didn't have time to explore more, so I went back again. Found myself here, atop what turned out to be a series of waterfalls and cascades:

https://i.postimg.cc/FsY7cxgT/IMG-20200612-112857.jpg

Here's the waterfall that was directly below me, first from the side then from the front for a miniature Last of the Mohicans scene in the middle of an expanse of rock:

https://i.postimg.cc/SKhsBb0P/IMG-20200612-113218.jpg

https://i.postimg.cc/wBQvH4gj/IMG-20200612-113905.jpg

Hard to tell the magnitude from this pic (and with the water being relatively low), but what opened up in front of me next was a large, rock cascade:

https://i.postimg.cc/m2KhSFmB/IMG-20200612-113928.jpg

It's got to be another 50 or 60 to the bottom. Here's a pic from the upper third of the middle of the thing looking up:

https://i.postimg.cc/RhNV7MfW/IMG-20200612-114712.jpg

The bottom is scattered with big boulders that form the edge of another creek at the bottom of the gorge. Here's the scene -- a little fish-eyed to catch a wider view -- on the other side of the rock pile:

https://i.postimg.cc/wvB6z6ww/PANO-20200612-115745.jpg

That giant rock on the right is the real find of the trip. Here's the view from behind and then from on top, which was about as good a PB&J spot as there is:

https://i.postimg.cc/VNgY2SWS/PANO-20200612-120804.jpg

https://i.postimg.cc/9FwQzQCS/IMG-20200619-115950.jpg

To my left was the side of the gorge. Again, the size was hard to capture in a picture. This was my best attempt:

https://i.postimg.cc/HxSk8JJG/IMG-20200612-120315.jpg

And then just a stone's throw downstream from here was another collection of massive rocks on the creek with a little waterfall action thrown in:

https://i.postimg.cc/rwWsZFHW/IMG-20200612-121747.jpg

Now, at that point, I was basically high on forest-powered uppers and got a little too gung ho. Instead of climbing back out the way I came, I decided to keep on rock hopping my way down stream. I knew where the thing was going and figured I could just get back on the trail at the bottom of the next gorge.

Yeah, that wasn't my best move of the day. There were cool spots along the way, but my next hour turned into soggy-shoe -- yes, I broke one of my rules -- trek through undergrowth, creek beds, and steep-sloped mountainsides. But eventually, I ended up where I wanted . . .

Which was here, at a 150'+ swinging bridge over a large creek:

https://i.postimg.cc/4xCNcR33/IMG-20200612-133619.jpg

https://i.postimg.cc/cH1JJ7LM/IMG-20200612-133513.jpg

https://i.postimg.cc/C5XMJWHm/IMG-20200612-133539.jpg

From there, I turned back up the gorge toward my car, which was only 1.5 miles away on the main trail.

Helluva hike. Not sure I'd do trip from the bottom of the cascade to the bridge again without a semi-legitimate trail to take. But the rest was gold.

I know I've said this to you before - but damn, this makes me miss living in North Georgia. I hate not having good places to hike. Yeah, walking on the beach is great, or kayaking in the Okefenokee. But, it's just not the same. Add to it that I've been a flat lander for 20 years now, I'd hate to think what a hike like that would do to me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BrunswickDawg

I know I've said this to you before - but damn, this makes me miss living in North Georgia. I hate not having good places to hike. Yeah, walking on the beach is great, or kayaking in the Okefenokee. But, it's just not the same. Add to it that I've been a flat lander for 20 years now, I'd hate to think what a hike like that would do to me.

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Brunswick. I just got back from Cherry Log, Ga. Took my wife, 2 daughters and son-law. We rafted the upper and middle Ocoee River which we have done a bunch of times. We hiked many trails with water falls all around Blue Ridge, Ga, such a peaceful beautiful area! If I knew how to show some pics on ED I would! We had the best guide ever on the Ocoee, we watched as the guides when showing up and my family were wishing or hoping who would be our guide. This one dude who was barefooted and had the "Mountain Look" walks up and I tell them I hope he is our guide. He was and he made life easy going thru class 3 & 4 rapids!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by basedog

Brunswick. I just got back from Cherry Log, Ga. Took my wife, 2 daughters and son-law. We rafted the upper and middle Ocoee River which we have done a bunch of times. We hiked many trails with water falls all around Blue Ridge, Ga, such a peaceful beautiful area! If I knew how to show some pics on ED I would! We had the best guide ever on the Ocoee, we watched as the guides when showing up and my family were wishing or hoping who would be our guide. This one dude who was barefooted and had the "Mountain Look" walks up and I tell them I hope he is our guide. He was and he made life easy going thru class 3 & 4 rapids!

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The Blue Ridge area is awesome. I go there every autumn for a weekend of hiking, brisket, whiskey, and football and have yet to be disappointed. Amazing cabin scene, solid restaurants, apples orchards out the wazoo, and lots of good hiking and paddling. If anyone's ever thinking about a cabin trip to the Gatlinburg area that doesn't involve Dollywood or the Smoky Mountain National Park, I'd recommend Blue Ridge as an alternative 10 times out of 10.

We did a kayak trip down part of the Toccoa River a few years back. The water never approached anything beyond Class 1+/2-, but that was just enough for me to get some controlled chaos mixed in my relaxation. With the Sequatchie, Hiwassee, and Ocoee rivers so close, I really need to get more into paddling.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by BrunswickDawg

I know I've said this to you before - but damn, this makes me miss living in North Georgia. I hate not having good places to hike. Yeah, walking on the beach is great, or kayaking in the Okefenokee. But, it's just not the same. Add to it that I've been a flat lander for 20 years now, I'd hate to think what a hike like that would do to me.

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It would realign your soul. Seriously, my mood and general outlook on life is never better than after a successful hike. That's been true most places I've been, but southern Appalachia adds another layer of special. Something about the age of it all. These gorges are, by any definition of the word, ancient. Other than the clear cutting that this entire region suffered in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the forests are ancient, too. Walking on and around layers of rock exposed by thousands of years of water flow, shaded by hemlocks, rhododendron, and the rest of the most bio-diverse temperate forest in the world, it's hard not to have a near religious experience.

If nothing else, you can always laugh like a six-year-old at giant mushrooms:

https://i.postimg.cc/W1tmtXvN/IMG-20200619-123003.jpg

Found that near my PB&J perch. Good times.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by basedog

Brunswick. I just got back from Cherry Log, Ga. Took my wife, 2 daughters and son-law. We rafted the upper and middle Ocoee River which we have done a bunch of times. We hiked many trails with water falls all around Blue Ridge, Ga, such a peaceful beautiful area! If I knew how to show some pics on ED I would! We had the best guide ever on the Ocoee, we watched as the guides when showing up and my family were wishing or hoping who would be our guide. This one dude who was barefooted and had the "Mountain Look" walks up and I tell them I hope he is our guide. He was and he made life easy going thru class 3 & 4 rapids!

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Prediction? Pain.

The Blue Ridge area is awesome. I go there every autumn for a weekend of hiking, brisket, whiskey, and football and have yet to be disappointed. Amazing cabin scene, solid restaurants, apples orchards out the wazoo, and lots of good hiking and paddling. If anyone's ever thinking about a cabin trip to the Gatlinburg area that doesn't involve Dollywood or the Smoky Mountain National Park, I'd recommend Blue Ridge as an alternative 10 times out of 10.

We did a kayak trip down part of the Toccoa River a few years back. The water never approached anything beyond Class 1+/2-, but that was just enough for me to get some controlled chaos mixed in my relaxation. With the Sequatchie, Hiwassee, and Ocoee rivers so close, I really need to get more into paddling.

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All good stuff. Cherry Log isn't far from one of my regular places - an area up a holler called Bucktown near Amicalola Falls. I also used to spend weekends as a kid on a dairy farm near Cherry Log.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Prediction? Pain.

It would realign your soul. Seriously, my mood and general outlook on life is never better than after a successful hike. That's been true most places I've been, but southern Appalachia adds another layer of special. Something about the age of it all. These gorges are, by any definition of the word, ancient. Other than the clear cutting that this entire region suffered in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the forests are ancient, too. Walking on and around layers of rock exposed by thousands of years of water flow, shaded by hemlocks, rhododendron, and the rest of the most bio-diverse temperate forest in the world, it's hard not to have a near religious experience.

If nothing else, you can always laugh like a six-year-old at giant mushrooms:

https://i.postimg.cc/W1tmtXvN/IMG-20200619-123003.jpg

Found that near my PB&J perch. Good times.

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All my family were originally mountain folk, and all settled all over from Ball Ground, Suches, Rock Creek, and Blairsville, then over into North Carolina. Mountains are in my blood, and the older I get the more they seem to be calling me home. And what you are saying is spot on - there just is nothing else like it. I haven't been in almost two years - and I can feel it.

Mountains > Beaches

I have nothing bad to say about the beaches. Just saying.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Prediction? Pain.

The Blue Ridge area is awesome. I go there every autumn for a weekend of hiking, brisket, whiskey, and football and have yet to be disappointed. Amazing cabin scene, solid restaurants, apples orchards out the wazoo, and lots of good hiking and paddling. If anyone's ever thinking about a cabin trip to the Gatlinburg area that doesn't involve Dollywood or the Smoky Mountain National Park, I'd recommend Blue Ridge as an alternative 10 times out of 10.

We did a kayak trip down part of the Toccoa River a few years back. The water never approached anything beyond Class 1+/2-, but that was just enough for me to get some controlled chaos mixed in my relaxation. With the Sequatchie, Hiwassee, and Ocoee rivers so close, I really need to get more into paddling.

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I’m so jealous. Thank you for the recommendation. I’m definitely going.

Simply awesome. Add me to the jealous list of your proximity to beautiful hiking like that.

If any of y'all go to North Georgia to hike and spend some time - make time for Tallulah Gorge. It's one of the most beautiful places in the state