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cjoshuav
06-06-2008, 11:12
I think my son (age 9) is ready for his first backcountry camping trip; but I don't want to start him on something too strenuous.

I was thinking that we could take the Slaughter Gap Trail and tie into the Jarrard Gap Trail. From looking at a trail map, it looks like there's a primitive site just below the top of Blood Mountain. So, I have a couple of questions:

How crowded would it be this weekend?

Is there water near the site?

Does anyone have other/better suggestions?

bloodmountainman
06-06-2008, 11:23
Those campsites will have people in them most every weekend..... popular spot for Scout troops. Water is on the trail before going up on Blood. Also good water source at Slaughter Gap.

Dances with Mice
06-06-2008, 11:30
Does anyone have other/better suggestions?Do it in reverse.

You're starting from Winnie Scott, right? Take the Jarrard Gap trail up to the AT - it's only a mile or so to the ridge and the AT. Then the AT sidehills around the next two mountains on the way to the Woods Hole Shelter side-trail and Bird Gap. It's an easy walk from there to the Slaughter Gap campsites where there are many tentsites scattered along the side of a shady cove and water nearby. Use that as a base and walk up Blood Mtn as a side-trip, either in the evening or go up early the next morning. The return trip on the Slaughter Creek trail is easy.

This would avoid hauling full packs up Blood, there is no water on Blood so that would have to be hauled too, and I'd much rather climb to the Trail using Jarrard than Slaughter Creek. The last thing he'll remember of the trip is the easy, long walk down Slaughter back to Winnie Scott.

cjoshuav
06-06-2008, 11:38
DwM,

Sounds like a plan...off to go look at a map :)

Dances with Mice
06-06-2008, 13:02
DwM, Sounds like a plan...off to go look at a map If you do it that way, here's some news you can use:

To find the Jarrard trailhead from the lake parking lot just cross over the dam and turn right, follow the trail that starts right below the dam. This is the Slaughter Creek trail. At the first paved road turn right (Slaughter Creek trail will cross the road). The road will quickly make a left hand turn, follow the road. The Jarrard trailhead will be at the next turn, the road turns right but trail goes straight ahead. It's marked by a big boulder beside the road.

max patch
06-06-2008, 13:08
One of my favorite hikes with my kids is to start at Lake Winifield Scott and do the loop. Do it as a dayhike or as an overnighter. No shuttle, and go swimming at the lake when you're done.

bigmac_in
06-06-2008, 13:39
I think DWM has the perfect plan there. I loved camping on those campsites, and it's an easy climb up to the top of Blood. The water is just a short hop away.

cjoshuav
06-08-2008, 21:34
Wow! It was the perfect trip, and our son had a blast. We camped at the site right off the trail, just before Blood (the site is right next to the trail leading back to water and the lean-to shelter.)

I made a wrong turn onto the old logging road just before Jarrard hits the AT, but other than that - no navigational difficulties.

Bears, on the other hand...

A couple of weekend hikers told us that the folks who camped at the Blood shelter Friday night had a bear climb a tree and steal all their food. We were planning on practicing good bear discipline anyway, but that was a healthy reminder.

So, I secured our food and cooking bags (which also had toothpaste, etc. in them) and hung them from a tree that was too small to climb and well away from our campsite. To be extra sure, I put our rucksacks on one end of the campsite, just in case the bear was so habituated to people and finding food that he would check them, regardless.

At 10 pm, we heard a loud thrashing coming toward our campsite. We shined a flashlight in its direction, and the eyes looking back at us seemed quite bear-like. We made a lot of noise and he slowly ambled off.

Then at 12:30 am my wife was awakened to something snuffling up against her side of the tent wall. He moved on to our camp stools, where I had left one of our hydration bladders. We listened (terrified and praying furiously) while he batted it around the campsite, got it open, and slurped up all the water.

Next he went over to our packs, which he sifted through with surprising delicacy (although my wife was indignant about the paw print on her hat - I pointed out that it was better there than on her head). When we heard him head toward our son's tent, my wife grabbed a flashlight to see if our visitor was a racoon or a bear. It was, in fact, a (too) friendly neighborhood black bear. He was totally unconcerned by the flashlight, and continued to sniff around the campsite. My wife (a veterinarian) guessed that he was a young, adult male and typically inquisitive for a bear of that age.

Eventually, he wandered off to see if he could get to our food - seemingly unworried by the sound of us shaking on our sleeping pads. He apparently wasn't able to get to the food, because it was still there the next morning.

He did cruise through the camp one more time, around 1:30am or so. We know this, because the adrenaline was just starting to leave our bodies and we were trying to go back to sleep.

In talking to the folks who camped at the lean-to shelter down the water trail, he also stomped around their camp a good bit before moving on. There are very nice food pulleys there.

So, that was my very first (and definitely closest) bear encounter. I have to say that all of my "bears don't want to bother people, blah, blah, blah" rhetoric went right out the window when there was a live freakin' bear inches away our tent. I found myself reviewing every scary moment I've ever had in my life, and this won out for me as the most scared I've ever been. I genuinely believe in prayer, and even more so after last night.

For those of you who are old hands at the AT, I'm sure that our fear and worry seems silly. Heck, the day after, it seems hard to remember why we were so terrified - until I remember the sound of the snuffling right next to my wife's head.

Nevertheless, we had a fantastic time. Our son carried his own pack like a champ, and I think he learned a lot. At the very least, he is fully persuaded of the value of keeping all food items out of the camp!

Joshua

Bulldawg
06-08-2008, 21:43
My daughter and I made the section Saturday. We saw two bears just beyond Dockery Lake Trail Saturday. We heard about the others. We somehow missed you out there yesterday. Sounds like to me the bears in that section are getting quite the workout robbing food. Can the DNR not relocated a trouble bear?

Bulldawg
06-08-2008, 21:59
Sounds like we made a decent decision to not overnight on this section. I just let my wife read the trip report and she is so glad we choose to hike out last night. While I am not particularly scared of a bear as I know they want our food, not us; I still don't want a run in. I guess it is good for the bear that we hiked out, because I do not hike with my kids without a pistol and I would not have hesitated to shoot at a bear trying to get near us. Perhaps a warning shot before a shot first, but there would be gunfire involved if the bear didn't bolt from us as the two we did see yesterday did. Again, would the DNR not be interested in catching and relocating this troublesome bear? I am sure this bear has grown accustomed to humans and human food from hanging out around Blood Mountain which inundated with people on all sides, most especially the northern side of which Vogel sits. Seems they had a troublesome bear there last summer.

cjoshuav
06-08-2008, 22:01
Sorry we missed you. I was wondering if this guy counted as a "problem" bear. He's obviously not aggressive (yet?), but he is a bit too comfortable around people - and he obviously associates humans with food.

Bulldawg
06-08-2008, 22:03
Yeah, I think any bear that cruises campsites for food and is not scared by obvious human presence should in my opinion be at the very least relocated.

whitefoot_hp
06-10-2008, 14:05
i agree.

Bulldawg
06-10-2008, 21:16
And I can tell ya something else that is gonna piss some people off here. If I were in a shelter and the bear came in there with me like I heard the bear on Blood Mountain TRIED to, it would be suffering from a severe case of lead poisoning. Let me say now before all the people on here get ticked off, I would not shoot at a bear unless forced to, but if forced I would not hesitate.

Footslogger
06-10-2008, 21:23
My suggestion (having taken both my son and daughter on this hike) would be to park at the Byron Reese trail head and hike up to the AT crossing. Take a right and then a quick left on the Freeman Trail to Bird Gap. There are some GREAT tent spots there. Then in the morning ...get up and hike over Blood Mountain and back down to the intersection of the AT and Freeman Trail and then down to your car at the Byron Reese parking lot.

It's a great overnight nighter. And, if you still have energy when you get to Bird Gap you can continue on up to the summit of Blood Mountain and sleep up there. Just be certain to carry enough water because there is NONE on top of Blood.

'Slogger

Bulldawg
06-10-2008, 21:33
My suggestion (having taken both my son and daughter on this hike) would be to park at the Byron Reese trail head and hike up to the AT crossing. Take a right and then a quick left on the Freeman Trail to Bird Gap. There are some GREAT tent spots there. Then in the morning ...get up and hike over Blood Mountain and back down to the intersection of the AT and Freeman Trail and then down to your car at the Byron Reese parking lot.

It's a great overnight nighter. And, if you still have energy when you get to Bird Gap you can continue on up to the summit of Blood Mountain and sleep up there. Just be certain to carry enough water because there is NONE on top of Blood.

'Slogger

That would be a great hike Slogger.

BTW way Slogger, did you read my trip report complimenting the recipe I stole from you for supper on Blood Saturday evening?

Footslogger
06-10-2008, 21:35
That would be a great hike Slogger.

BTW way Slogger, did you read my trip report complimenting the recipe I stole from you for supper on Blood Saturday evening?
==========================

Unfortunately dawg I didn't ...YET !! Refresh my memory. Where can I go to read your report ??

'Slogger

Bulldawg
06-10-2008, 21:38
==========================

Unfortunately dawg I didn't ...YET !! Refresh my memory. Where can I go to read your report ??

'Slogger

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=37912

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=37912

Footslogger
06-10-2008, 21:41
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=37912

http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=37912

=====================================

Well ...now I can say I finally read your report. You are more than welcome for the recipe. I rarely head out for a multi-day hike without the fixins for at least one of those dinners.

'Slogger

rtober
06-11-2008, 12:41
we stayed at Slaughter Creek camp site on Tuesday night (6/3/08) and had no problems with bears but the Blood Mnt Shelter log on Weds. said they had a "bear scare" that night around the shelter.

Funny thing about our hike - we kept hearing reports of bears all along the trail but had zero encounters from Springer to Tesnatee Gap. Didn't even have a "bump in the night" at any of our campsites.

go figure.

Incahiker
06-12-2008, 14:41
Wow, that was quite the report on the bear encounter!! I'm glad you guys had a blast. If that same situation happened with my wife and kids, lets say that it would probably have been the last time that the kids and wife would have gone camping with me. Well, make that my wife and 6 yr. old son. He is scared to death of bears, coyotes, etc... yet my 7 yr. old daughter takes after me, she would probably try to go pet both of them if I wasn't there to tell her not too. She loves animals and is very intrigued by them. By the way, no I won't pet a bear, but when I was younger I very well could have.

Did you guys try to bang pots and pans or anything to scare it off? Did you actually get back to sleep that night??

The only time I climbed blood mountain I talked to an old man who climbed those hills every day. He said that if I wanted to see a bear, hike the section between woody and Neels gap. He said that he has seen WAYYY more bears in that area then any other area in Georgia.

Bulldawg
06-12-2008, 15:22
The only time I climbed blood mountain I talked to an old man who climbed those hills every day. He said that if I wanted to see a bear, hike the section between woody and Neels gap. He said that he has seen WAYYY more bears in that area then any other area in Georgia.

Sounds like the place to be when bear season opens!