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Former Admin
09-29-2002, 22:33
Info, questions, comments, experiences (good or bad) regarding - Hawk Mountain Shelter

Past/Present hikers - what can future hikers expect here? Have any good stories or memories from here?

Future hikers - any questions?

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Hammock Hanger
09-30-2002, 08:47
Good Water source. Stayed here once all alone with the hubby, nice.:)
Then on day one of my 01 Thru-hike I slept out in my bivy. The shelter was packed and there were 25 tents around. Way too busy for me. The shelter was in good shape. Hammock Hanger

Squirrel
01-20-2003, 19:44
This was the first shelter I ever stayed in. We had a young doe come to visit us near the shelter. She came within 15 feet of us and stayed around for over an hour. I watched what she did for about 20 minutes and I saw her eating greenbrier. I tried some of it, and it is delicious! Good learning experience.

-Squirrel

Footslogger
01-20-2003, 20:42
Great shelter and generally the first "over-night" spot if you start at Springer. One word of caution though, if you are intent on staying inside the shelter ...plan to hit it on a weekday night. This is an extremely popular camp spot for local Boy Scouts who put in at 3 Forks. In 2001 we hit it on a Saturday night and there were so many people there that some of them had actually set up tents ON THE TRAIL. A lot of thru-hikers that year over-hiked the shelter to the next open spot. We ended up sleeping down close to the water source.

Jumpstart
01-21-2003, 20:58
Seems like this was the place to "ditch food" this year. We got there for a snack (having stayed at Stover Creek) and couldn't beleive the amount of food people had left...had to be at least a good 5 day supply of various food items..including cans of Spaghettios! :) Found a few shell-cashings and some cool green army-face paint on some of the logs near the clearning up above the shelter...

Aubrey
03-03-2003, 23:08
Both times I've stayed at this shelter we had "Shelter-Shakers". :banana

Still haven't slept in that shelter - must be REALLY nice in there, though...

Moose2001
03-04-2003, 08:06
Stayed here in 2001. Shelter was packed and I was up on the second floor. Had some loud snorers that night but the most "interesting" thing was the possum that visited in the middle of the night. The possum was sitting on a guys feet, he woke up, screamed, scared the possum, scared the ***** out of all of us, and made an interesting night. Think I'll tent this year.

Happy
03-04-2003, 09:32
I hiked this past weekend with the March 1st crowd and stayed at the Hawk Mountain shelter Saturday night. Nice shelter and was very clean. The shelter was full with 12 people and 2 more under the back of the shelter laying on a tarp (told me the next morning they only had 2 mice run over them). In addition there
were 21 tents, 2 tarps and 1 hammock set up. We cooked on the table in front of the shelter with five different shifts.
Great group of hikers and a lot of fun including "jan lite shoe",
"hot dog", "wench", "mickey one sock", "A-train" all with journals posted. Make sure to take a couple extra biners as the bear cables become full very fast this time of the year.

Presto
03-04-2003, 10:57
Military personnel often "raid" this shelter for training so don't be surprised if you see soldiers armed with heavy guns lurking in the woods around here.

Great shelter in 2002. Took a lunch here and got offered a 1-gallon bag full of powdered milk from some thru-hikers who brought WAY too much stuff with them. That would make about 4 gallons of milk. The next resupply was about 2-days away. Milk was their luxury item. But they also had the biggest can of peanut butter I had ever seen. The list goes on and on.

We stayed at Justis Creek campsite. The section between Hawk Mtn. and Justis were some of the toughest miles on me.

Happy
03-04-2003, 11:14
Presto, you are right, around 4pm 18-20 soldiers marched right through the camp and by the front of the shelter.

MedicineMan
03-04-2003, 23:12
30 folks when I was there last summer (July) 18 of them Boy Scouts, the rest folks from all over the country...busy place indeed.

stranger
03-05-2003, 00:55
Spent a amazing night there during a good snow in 96, pretty big shelter and good water.

D-Con
03-05-2003, 22:25
I stayed here May 7 of 2001 during my first leg of my thru/section hike (depending on how you view it). Anyhow, shelter is in great shape. H20 source was good and the mice were active! Bring yer traps & have some fun!
D-con
GA-ME 01-02

Youngblood
06-22-2003, 11:00
http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=1056&papass=&sort=1

http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=1257

http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=204&papass=&sort=1

http://www.whiteblaze.net/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=1293&papass=&sort=1

ga>me>ak
06-22-2003, 12:03
Stayed here a few times, last year it was redone and was really nice. FYI-there is a trail shortly before the shelter that goes to the top of the mountain to a very old church cemetary(this is a very short walk). There is a large pavilion, tables, and a bathroom-not in great shape though. The church allows anyone to stay and most of the time there is a nice stack of firewood left to use. Great place to star gaze as the there is a huge open area. You can also take side road off fs-42 up to the top, pretty rough though.
Got woke up in the middle of the night by a bear cruiising thru. Of course, the sisters that were eating on the top bunk and dropping food/crumbs all other the place had nothing to do with it.

I love camping at 3 forks, there are some beautiful trees there

bretb
07-28-2003, 22:24
I hammocked close to the shelter day before yesterday. The shelter was quite crowded and only one hiker had his food bag attacked by vermin while it was bearbagged. I wish I had checked this thread earlier and checked out the cemetary.

Bret

Baldy
07-29-2003, 00:18
I stayed in the shelter during my section hike in July. It was when that hurricane hit the gulf coast, so it was raining. We got eight guys in there, my Scout group, and two dumbasses who didn't bring a bearbag, so they lef their food in their packs on the lower bunk. We had mice all over that night...

general
01-30-2006, 11:18
stayed near the shelter last thursday night. military action from about 8pm on. blackhawks everywhere. kind of entertaining since i was by myself. i picked up a handful of live blanks the next day and a couple of mre chocolate bar wrappers too.

Sly
01-30-2006, 13:33
Both times I've stayed at this shelter we had "Shelter-Shakers". :banana

Still haven't slept in that shelter - must be REALLY nice in there, though...

LOL... I cleared the shelter my 1st night. Well, all except for Jared ('97) who's kind of deaf. :p

River Runner
04-27-2006, 01:16
As of April 11, the shelter was in great shape. Enjoyable view from the privy, good water source (but a little bit of a walk to it). There are bear cables in place to hang food bags. No mice or other critters noted during our stay.

dtimko
06-05-2006, 13:13
Passed this shelter on Saturday. Stopped to get water and use the privy. Everything was in good condition. I agree with River Runner, there was definitely a nice walk to the water.

MrHappy
01-20-2007, 21:28
As mentioned, the military personnel from a nearby Ranger training camp do often raid the shelter -- they shot blanks at Zero for a few minutes the day I stayed there (1/15/07). Mice were few but bold. One ran right over my forehead. They got into one of my ziplocks for my spare rope.

JimSproul
01-21-2007, 12:37
We got hit by a pretty wild hail storm in the wee hours last April. If you tent, site selection behind the should be done with care. One guy with a tarp and no bivy ended up getting blasted pretty good while laying in a cold river! :eek:

One year I passed thru there in July and had the shelter to myself. In the middle of the night some cat sized animal rubbed up against my bag in the middle of the night. I did not see it. It could have been one of those black cats with the white stripe!

rafe
01-21-2007, 13:41
Seems like this was the place to "ditch food" this year.

Almost any year, I imagine. Left a donation there myself, many years ago.

soulshine26
07-08-2007, 11:28
Everything I read about this shelter (on WB and other places on the net) suggests that the mice activity is always hoppin'. I have never stayed *in* a shelter, instead we always just pitch a tent closeby.

I would assume it would be bad etiquette to pitch a tent inside the shelter, since it may take up too much room that could otherwise be used by other hikers. But if there were no other hikers around that were planning to sleep there it might be a means to keep the mice off...

Anyone have any other suggestions for keeping mice off? Is there some trick/product that can be used to deter them? That just freaks me out in a bad way. We are planning to do the Springer Mtn to Woody Gap section in August and I thought this shelter might be a good halfway point for the weekend long hike, and if it's raining we can stay dry in the shelter. However, I don't think I can deal with mice running over me.

JimSproul
07-08-2007, 11:58
I have stayed in this shelter in the spring and summer. The mice were not too active in the spring. In the summer (july), I had the shelter to myself and had no problem with mice at all.

Critters are just one of the joys of trail life. There are bear cables right next to the shelter. Hang your food and you won't have a problem from big rodents either.

RockStar
07-08-2007, 12:22
I stayed in the loft March 14 of '06. No mice problems up there.

soulshine26
07-08-2007, 12:22
I have stayed in this shelter in the spring and summer. The mice were not too active in the spring. In the summer (july), I had the shelter to myself and had no problem with mice at all.

Critters are just one of the joys of trail life. There are bear cables right next to the shelter. Hang your food and you won't have a problem from big rodents either.

Oh I *always* hang my food, no matter the season or the locale. I'm just too paranoid not to. Thanks for the info!

Monkeyboy
07-10-2007, 21:58
Stayed there 6-29-07. Lots of bugs in the day. Someone left a lot of trash, which we hiked out. No mice. Heard a pack of coyotes in the morning, sounded like they just made a kill (yipping and yapping like crazy).

Good water source. Nice big privy.

buckowens
07-11-2007, 22:35
Stopped in there in mid June to rest and eat something. Water source was great, and the location was nice. Seemed to be pretty heavily used.

Flinx
08-22-2008, 03:26
Stayed there Halloween day in '07.....nice shelter...little water that time of year...but enough....met some great people that evening.

cavscout
08-22-2008, 09:44
The times we camped at Hawk Mountain back in the 80's we always made the walk to the top of the mountain. Got to see two Apachee helo's come in one morning and lots of Rangers patrolling everywhere between 3 forks and the mountain. One even stopped in our camp and showed us a bunch of his gear. Very cool to a bunch of teenage boy scouts. At some point during the night the Plywood "Russian Tank" was liberated to a "US Tank" and we didn't hear a thing. The huge clearing on top is great for star watching and football. Usually, we had the top to ourselves except for one trip when several hunters drug a generator out and ran it all night . Great place to camp all things considered.

hperry
11-04-2008, 20:03
just a warning here, but if you walk up to the shelter hastily, look for the water sign, it appears as if the water trail is the trail to the privy. the water trail actually begins back behind the shelter and is not the trail immediately to the left of the water sign (which points left)

a friend and i hiked a mile down this abandoned trail past the privy til we decided to turn around.

Dances with Mice
11-04-2008, 20:09
just a warning here, but if you walk up to the shelter hastily, look for the water sign, it appears as if the water trail is the trail to the privy. the water trail actually begins back behind the shelter and is not the trail immediately to the left of the water sign (which points left)

a friend and i hiked a mile down this abandoned trail past the privy til we decided to turn around.Moral of the story is that if you have to walk past the privy to get water, don't.

Roots
11-04-2008, 20:10
.......................

daddytwosticks
11-04-2008, 20:21
Ha!...hperry, I'm glad I wasn't the only one to do this my first stay at this shelter! I too walked a looong time before I realised my mistake.

hperry
11-04-2008, 20:39
Ha!...hperry, I'm glad I wasn't the only one to do this my first stay at this shelter! I too walked a looong time before I realised my mistake.
the trail was so worn, we got the feeling we weren't the only ones! i think that trail must be an old section that was relo-ed around. it sure does keep going!

Gladiator
11-04-2008, 20:57
the trail was so worn, we got the feeling we weren't the only ones! i think that trail must be an old section that was relo-ed around. it sure does keep going!

I stayed at Hawk Mountain one night last month. There are some good campsites on that trail. Maybe it's an overflow area, or maybe it was worn from all the Ranger activity that is reported in the area.

Did you take the trail on up the mountain to the church and cemetery?

sticks&stones
11-04-2008, 21:01
Info, questions, comments, experiences (good or bad) regarding - Hawk Mountain Shelter

Past/Present hikers - what can future hikers expect here? Have any good stories or memories from here?

Future hikers - any questions?

Related Links: ?

Stats: ?

Watch for this guy, he's a shelter grubber
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWtysHJMz68

KG4FAM
11-04-2008, 21:08
just a warning here, but if you walk up to the shelter hastily, look for the water sign, it appears as if the water trail is the trail to the privy. the water trail actually begins back behind the shelter and is not the trail immediately to the left of the water sign (which points left)

a friend and i hiked a mile down this abandoned trail past the privy til we decided to turn around.I miss the old privy, the view was great without a door.

hperry
11-04-2008, 21:18
I stayed at Hawk Mountain one night last month. There are some good campsites on that trail. Maybe it's an overflow area, or maybe it was worn from all the Ranger activity that is reported in the area.

Did you take the trail on up the mountain to the church and cemetery?
no we didn't, but its on my list next time in the area. never realized it was there...

Hikerhead
11-04-2008, 22:56
In 2003 I believe, Kerosene, Bluefish, Raven and I were hiking all of GA and stopped by there. Bluefish went off on that trail mentioneded for water and was gone for about an hour. He said it just kept on going. Since then I've read where the Rangers come up from the bottom on that trail.

And if the church and cemetery that was mentioned is the one at Hickory Flats, the church has been long gone.

CBSSTony
11-05-2008, 08:57
The Rangers use that trail past the privy, and the privy itself. Had to wait in line behind about 40 of them one day. They all didn't use it, but kinda was expecting a little more privacy. They were lined up on that same trail taking a break, and waiting to link up with another unit.

hperry
11-05-2008, 09:33
yep, i think a small sign a few yards after the privy,"this is not the water trail" would go a long way.

BobTheBuilder
11-05-2008, 10:24
Sunrise from the privy!!!

jbone
11-06-2008, 12:08
I am considering hiking into Hawk mtn shelter from Hightower Gap to watch the Lenoid Showers from the nearby clearing.

Question is: Does this shelter get a lot of quasi car campers due to its proximity to a road crossing? If it will likely be busy I may just suck it up and head up to the Art Loeb trail and look at camping near Black Balasm bald.

Anyone interested in heading up either way let me know.

-J :sun

Roots
11-06-2008, 15:12
Art Loeb definitely!

Mortician
01-13-2009, 13:15
just a warning here, but if you walk up to the shelter hastily, look for the water sign, it appears as if the water trail is the trail to the privy. the water trail actually begins back behind the shelter and is not the trail immediately to the left of the water sign (which points left)

a friend and i hiked a mile down this abandoned trail past the privy til we decided to turn around.

This is still a problem; a couple of local guys made the long walk you described looking for water on election day eve November 2008.

B.B.
07-21-2010, 20:24
Stayed here 7-11-2010. Water was good, shelter clean. Few mice. Overall good experience.

Kembo
07-21-2010, 20:56
I stayed there Sunday, May 21, 1972. I had the shelter to myself. Didn't see another hiker that day.

Hoop
07-21-2010, 23:23
My granddaughter (14) and I camped near the shelter 7-15-10. Cooked & ate at the picnic table. Only one other person there that night. Shelter was very clean, water flowing through PVC pipe. Racoon nosed around the tents during the night & an owl gave a shout very close by before dawn. We hiked from AFSP base of the falls to Woody Gap Thurs & Fri.

Kelleelynn
07-22-2010, 00:42
Just out of curiosity does anyone know if the previously mentioned church and cemetery still exist? I did see a post that someone thought it was gone. Just wondering, thought it might be a neat side trip if it is still there!

Egads
07-22-2010, 06:58
still there, about .2 north of the trail

Dances with Mice
07-22-2010, 08:44
Just out of curiosity does anyone know if the previously mentioned church and cemetery still exist? I did see a post that someone thought it was gone. Just wondering, thought it might be a neat side trip if it is still there!There is the cemetary, a very large picnic shelter and a cinder block privy but no church.

Spogatz
07-23-2010, 10:30
There is sometimes an old timer that is at the cemetary. His family is from that area back when there were homesteads there. He has some nice stories to tell about being there as a kid.

Also there are still people that come to the shed for church services. Kind of a home coming.

Graywolf
07-23-2010, 20:24
There is the cemetary, a very large picnic shelter and a cinder block privy but no church.

The guide book mentions only the foundation of the church remains..I passed through this area last year, but didnt stop.