Georgia, Amicalola to Blood Mtn Questions

[Maddie Ahern]

Hey people!! This summer (June) my dad and I had planned to walk the AT from Amicalola Falls State Park to Blood Mtn. He had planed for us to walk these 28.3 miles, plus a 8.8 mile approach trail in 2 DAYS. This seems a bit crazy to me, that's 18.55 miles each day! So I took it upon myself to plan the trip. I have us walking an average of 12 miles a day, because we are not very experienced hikers. Does this seem like a good amount, assuming that we will only be on the trail for 3 days? I've heard that the terrain in Georgia is a lot of ups and downs, so I'm not sure exactly what to expect. Any advice for first time AT hikers? I've read some books like, "A Walk in the Woods," and "Walking with Spring" to get the general gist of things.

[max patch]

I would rather see you hike AFSP to Woody Gap or Springer Mtn to Neels Gap given that you don't know what your hiking pace is going to be.

[daddytwosticks]

That's alot of miles per day. That part of Georgia tends to humble even the fittest of hikers. Of couse, several hiker studs here on Whiteblaze will trash my opinion. This is a great section. Why don't you slow down a bit and smell the roses. Plenty of nice creeks to linger at. Nice views, plus you may get to se a bear or two for added adventure. Have a great hike with your dad.

[bigcranky]

12 mpd is a lot for a beginning hiker in Georgia. It doesn't sound like much, but it is. Now of course you may be able to hike that much or more each day - some people can - but in my experience hiking that section three times, once in June and twice in March, I've met a lot of hikers who could not.

Day 1: The Approach Trail. Camp at the summit of Springer.
Day 2: Springer to Hawk Mountain Shelter. Camp nearby. This is a fairly easy section, and you will be tempted to try for Justus Creek, but the end of the day is not the best time to be climbing Sassafras and Justus mountains.
Day 3: Hawk to Gooch Gap, past the shelter a little ways. There are some decent tentsites here.
Day 4: Gooch Gap to Neels Gap. This is a long day with a significant climb and you won't finish early. You can break it into two piece and finish in 4.5 days total.

You could shorten this by starting at Springer, rather than doing the Approach Trail. Or by hiking past Springer to Stover Creek on day 1, then to Justus Creek or even Gooch Mountain Shelter on Day 2. That's more miles, but not out of the realm of possibility.

Not knowing anything else about what kind of shape you are in, it definitely helps to spend some time walking with your pack before you head to Georgia.

And finally, it's a great section and a lot of fun. (That's why I keep going back.)

[Old Boots]

You could hike it in three days if you avoid the approach trail and take the Forest Service Road. Springer to Hawk day 1 - Hawk to Woody day 2 - Woody to Neels day 3. That is doable if you are reasonably fit. I did it when I was 69.

[Lyte-w8-hyker]

I did a similar trip last april, first night we spent at stover creek shelter. Second night we camped at the tent camping area 1.5miles north on the trail from gooch shelter. THird day we awoke at 430 am and night hiked. made it to woody gap by around 8 or 9 am and up and over blood mountain finishing at neels gap by about 3 or 4 pm. My legs were beat. I'm in pretty good shape work out 5 days a week in the Airforce but it was still a tough last day. If i culd go back I would have slowed down and enjoyed the scenery a little more.

[Lyte-w8-hyker]

I stated at the bottom of the approach trail btw

[attroll]

Moved this thread/topic to the General forums.

[nitewalker]

the 1st time i did this section it was a breeze and i was in good shape. the 2nd time i did that section it seemed alot harder than i remebered it being the 1st time. to top it off i thought i was in better shape the 2nd time around, i guess not. 1st trip it was 65 degrees during the day and the 2nd trip it only got to the mid 20s for a high. both trips were in march of different years....very nice section of the trail and im sure u can finish it up if u give it your all. good luck!!

[RED-DOG]

It takes most people one full day to do the Approach trail and then two days too Nels Gap, but on my 06 thru-hike i did this in two days, and then this year it took me three-half days, count on at least three days, from AFSP to Nels Gap. RED-DOG

[joshuasdad]

Welcome to White Blaze!

I saw a lot of first time AT hikers going up Blood Mountain in April (I was dayhiking southbound). Most were not doing 12 miles per day, let alone 18+ miles per day as your father has planned. I met some which had been hiking for a full week prior to reaching Blood Mountain...

Because you are:

1) New to the AT
2) From MN, and likely not used to Georgia June heat (though it does get hot up there sometimes)
3) There are lots of ups and downs (the hilliest state is Georgia, in terms of elevation change per mile)

...you might want to be conservative with your mileage. 12 miles per day would be fine if you have reasonably sized packs, are in shape, meaning that your feet, ankles, knees, etc. are used to the pounding of lots of ups and downs. 18 per day, if not in shape, seems like a sure path to injury, especially coming down off of Blood Mountain at the end of a long day. And not a whole lot of fun.

So in short, go out there and have fun!

[chiefduffy]

5 to 8 miles per day would be more realistic. Why punish yourself?

[mgeiger]

Lots if good advice here. Also: There's a good bit of distance between Hawk Mtn Shelter an the next water source- Justus Creek. Take that into account when planning camping spots.

[Prime Time]

If I were you, I wouldn't force myself into 12 miles a day in the spring with a full pack. If I could, I would have a back up itinerary that I could implement in the 8 or 9 mile range if it became wise to do so.

[ChinMusic]

Any advice for first time AT hikers?

It will be harder than you think is my advice.

We have no idea of you abilities so we can only give general info. It would take an very fit individual to do the trip in 2 days. It would take a pretty fit individual to do the trip in 3 days. Given that you don't know what you are getting into adds to the mix.

I think the following itinerary makes a lot of sense to a newbee:
Day 1: A to Springer
Day 2: Springer to Hawk
Day 3: Hawk to Gooch
Day 4: Gooch to Lance Creek
Day 5: Short day to Neels

These are easily identified stops with usually good water. If you find this to be too easy.....great........just move on. If you find the shelter areas too crowded for you liking, just get water to take you through til the next morning and move on. There are plenty of sites a long the way suitable for tenting.

The above itinerary is my loose plan for the start of my thru in 2013.

[Spirit Bear]

It depends on how much weight you are carrying on your back, if you and your dad are runners cyclist or just in extreme good physical condition and you're carrying under 15lbs on your back then yes, i would say that's realistic. Most people, myself included over estimate, their ability and dis respect the trail and most of all the mountians you are walking up and down.

I would use the day plan that Chin Music laid out. You will be pretty sore even with that plan.

I hiked from Springer to Neel's gap in 3 days and 2 hours on the 4th day. I had 30 lbs on my back with food and water and it was some of the hardest hiking I had ever done.
Saturday Springer to Hawk mountain shelter (8 miles)
Sunday Hawk mountain to gooch Gap (8 miles) (not shelter a mile down by the service road, i camped there)
Monday gooch gap to blood mountain (12 miles)
Tuesday morning (Blood mountain to Neels gap) (2 miles)

Since then I have gotten my pack down to 20lbs.

I am still fairly new to the hiking community but take my advice, use Chin Music's plan...

[Spirit Bear]

Hey people!! This summer (June) my dad and I had planned to walk the AT from Amicalola Falls State Park to Blood Mtn. He had planed for us to walk these 28.3 miles, plus a 8.8 mile approach trail in 2 DAYS. This seems a bit crazy to me, that's 18.55 miles each day! So I took it upon myself to plan the trip. I have us walking an average of 12 miles a day, because we are not very experienced hikers. Does this seem like a good amount, assuming that we will only be on the trail for 3 days? I've heard that the terrain in Georgia is a lot of ups and downs, so I'm not sure exactly what to expect. Any advice for first time AT hikers? I've read some books like, "A Walk in the Woods," and "Walking with Spring" to get the general gist of things.

Also those miles your dad is proposing, the only people I have heard of to do from neels to amicalola in 2 days are thru hikers. The South bound thru hikers who have already put over 2,000 miles on their legs before getting to neels gap.

If you guys do attempt this, I will warn you, it will not be fun for either of you.

[pmushock]

I just finished a hike from Damascus, Va to Springer Mtn. and did Neels Gap to Springer in two days. That will be a difficult hike for someone just starting. I would take 4 to 5 days to do this hike and I would not do the Approach Trail. The itinerary Spirit Bear suggested would be a good goal, but I would stay near Wood's Hole Shelter at the end of day 3, plus there is no water source on top of Blood Mtn. Have fun and good luck.

[Carl Calson]

I would rather see you hike AFSP to Woody Gap or Springer Mtn to Neels Gap given that you don't know what your hiking pace is going to be.

cosign. i heard the approach trail was hell for newbies

[Carl Calson]

You could hike it in three days if you avoid the approach trail and take the Forest Service Road. Springer to Hawk day 1 - Hawk to Woody day 2 - Woody to Neels day 3. That is doable if you are reasonably fit. I did it when I was 69.

i meant to cosign this post.