View Full Version : Water from Unicoi Gap to Woody Gap?
I'm about to do a "get out of the house" hike from Unicoi Gap to Woody Gap (yes "backwards") and I was curious about water availability? Any input would be appreciated. Looking to stop overnight at Low Gap, Hogpen, and third night at Blood Mountain Shelter area. How many liters do y'all think I should hold onto between shelters?
Thank you!
The water table is full. All published water sources are flowing strong and there are many seasonal seeps not published flowing. However, there is no water at Blood Mtn Shelter so you would need to fill at Neels Gap or go down the Byron Reece trail to fill up before the climb. Or descend Blood down to the tent pads near the Slaughter Creek trailhead. Spring is flowing strong there.
The water table is full. All published water sources are flowing strong and there are many seasonal seeps not published flowing. However, there is no water at Blood Mtn Shelter so you would need to fill at Neels Gap or go down the Byron Reece trail to fill up before the climb. Or descend Blood down to the tent pads near the Slaughter Creek trailhead. Spring is flowing strong there.
Awesome! That's good news. The last time I did the hike I was lacking water at Blood Mountain because Slaughter creek was pretty dry at the time. I also had no water at the time after Neels Gap until I made it to the Whitley Shelter... desperate for water. I also had no water from Whitley to Low Gap Shelter at the time.
Based upon your input I should be perfectly fine carrying only ~2 liters or less between sources! Does this sound right?
Everyone has different water needs but 2 liters would be the most that I would carry.
Enjoy your hike.
Sounds great. What do you think about camping at Cowrock Mountain? I'm not a huge fan of the 1.5 mile detour to Whitley Shelter at Hogpen and it would make my day 2 hike only 5 miles... So I'm playing with the idea of camping at Cowrock. Ideas?
daddytwosticks
03-02-2016, 17:20
Have a great hike. You are going to see a TON of thru-hikers going southbound this time of year. :)
Yikes. I was hoping to avoid the thru-hikers by going southbound instead of Northbound.
Slo-go'en
03-02-2016, 17:33
Yikes. I was hoping to avoid the thru-hikers by going southbound instead of Northbound.
Going South you will meet them all. Keep count :)
Is the bear canister rule in effect for the Blood Mountain area yet? Better check on that.
I recall a very nice campsite on top of Cowrock: flat area, with trees for a hammock, a fire circle, and views. It's just off the trail on the "east" side (to the left if you are southbound. You'll have to carry up your water, though.
I recall a very nice campsite on top of Cowrock: flat area, with trees for a hammock, a fire circle, and views. It's just off the trail on the "east" side (to the left if you are southbound. You'll have to carry up your water, though.
Sounds great and I think I know where I'll camp now. I'll look out for it. Hopefully it's not taken by the time I get there.
I checked the bear canister rules.... and it's required from March 1st to June 1st. (Bummer... looks like I'll need to buy a canister.) Thank you for the heads up!
Going South you will meet them all. Keep count :)
Is the bear canister rule in effect for the Blood Mountain area yet? Better check on that.
Would there be less hikers if I head North? Not really excited about the prospect of hiking shoulder to shoulder with a ton of people...
Slo-go'en
03-02-2016, 22:06
Would there be less hikers if I head North? Not really excited about the prospect of hiking shoulder to shoulder with a ton of people...
No, there will be the same number of hikers, you just will stay mostly with what ever group you start with instead of meeting a new group every night.
For what it's worth, I generally prefer to go against the flow, in your case southbound. That's because I'm relatively slow, and I'd rather meet people head-on than have them coming up behind me and passing. I also prefer to hike alone.
For what it's worth, I generally prefer to go against the flow, in your case southbound. That's because I'm relatively slow, and I'd rather meet people head-on than have them coming up behind me and passing. I also prefer to hike alone.
Thanks for the input tiptoe. I think this is the route I'm going to go. I don't hike slow, I've actually been told I'm a very fast hiker... but the sentiment is still the same. In regards to the bear canister ruling, I decided instead of clunking down ~$60 I don't have at the moment, I'm going to stay near the Hostel at Neels Gap that night. It'll length my final day's hike, but give me a good short day to rest between Hogpen/Cowrock and Neels. Plus I get to save $$ and get a hot shower at the same time!
Are there any water sources flowing between Hogpen/Whitley Gap and Neels Gap? Any water sources between Low Gap and Hogpen/Whitley? I'm look at my old notes and I wrote down "No Water" in regards to those stretches. Of course this was a time of year almost every published water source was also dried up.
Mockernut
03-05-2016, 00:12
You can avoid the requirement to carry a bear canister so long as you don't camp between Neels Gap and Jarrard Gap overnight. This is an easy enough section to walk through if you plan your days right.
A couple other campsite suggestions...just south of Hogpen Gap, when you get to the top of the first climb you meet the Whitley Gap Shelter trail. Maybe 1/2 mile at most, you can camp on top of Wildcat Mountain on the rock face. Lots of good spots but no water. I have spend several nights there and the last time I was "signaling" a group of folks across the mountain that were camped on Cowrock Mountain with a headlight. Big fun.
Past Cowrock, you will climb to Wolf Laurel Top. Grassy spot right on the ridgeline where you can see for miles. It's popular so get there early.
Most of the time I hike the Georgia sections southbound. I just like it better.
I remember that spot on the Whitley trail. I was thinking about it too. I'm not a big fan of that "journey" down to the Whitley shelter. I'm planning my first night at Low Gap Shelter, then to Cowrock/Hogpen area (depending on how I feel). I'll take the next day easy and settle down at Neels Gap right before the Hostel. The final day I'll finish up from Neels to Woody.
And that's my plan! Now hopefully it won't rain during the day.