View Full Version : Father/Son hike
Hey guys, looking to take my son on his first backpacking trip in the next few weeks or so. We have done a lot of car camping and hiking to get him use to it so i know he is up for a 4-5 mile trip. I was looking at starting from hwy64 at Thunder creek campground and hiking north towards Kimsey Hwy. Is this a pretty good and safe trail section? We were thinking of the Jacks River from the eastern end near Cisco, but i think with all the rain the past month those water crossings might be a bit challenging and cold.
Thanks
Torrey
SGT Rock
03-10-2013, 13:50
It is a safe section, but there aren't any good campsites in that section. Since you are doing a first backpacking camping trip there is a fairly easy section with a couple of good campsites if you start at the Forest Service Parking area in Reliance and go south on the BMT along Lost Creek. The walking is mostly very easy and there are lots of nice cascades for about a half mile section along Lost Creek. And we just did a maintenance trip down there last weekend so we know there aren't any washouts. There are three good campsites starting at about 1.9 miles from that parking area, with the last one at about 4 miles up. If that doesn't work for you let me know what sort of difficulty you are looking for and I'll try to help with some suggestions.
Thanks SGT Rock. Maybe we will try that end then. I have been up through there flyfishing so i kind of know the area. I sure have missed backpacking and really want him to enjoy his first trip so we can get out more. If we are just doing 4 maybe 5 miles would that give us Lost Creek Campground as an option?
SGT Rock
03-10-2013, 15:42
You could do lost creek campground if you want to, but before you leave Lost Creek on this section to go cross Lost Creek Road, there is a nice campsite on the BMT there which I would generally choose over the campground.
Tecolote
03-24-2013, 14:11
"Hey guys, looking to take my son on his first backpacking trip in the next few weeks or so. We have done a lot of car camping and hiking to get him use to it so i know he is up for a 4-5 mile trip. I was looking at starting from hwy64 at Thunder creek campground and hiking north towards Kimsey Hwy. Is this a pretty good and safe trail section? We were thinking of the Jacks River from the eastern end near Cisco, but i think with all the rain the past month those water crossings might be a bit challenging and cold.
Thanks
Torrey"
Hi Torrey, My son and I hiked the AT in 2010, when he was 8, and we are gearing up for the BMT this April.
I wrote, and my son illustrated, a book about the thru-hike, “A Child’s Walk in the Wilderness,” which you may find interesting.
We will be giving talks at REI in Atlanta on April 1, and Kennesaw, GA on April 2.
SGT Rock
03-24-2013, 15:17
That sounds cool Tecolote. Do you have a link for the book? I'd like to get one for my grandsons.