BMT>Duncan Ridge>AT loop... anybody here done this?

[thelowend]

Me and a friend are planning this trip for late august or somewhere within a few weeks of then and I was just curious to see if anybody here had done this loop or just the Duncan RIdge (I know it's lesser traveled so any tips are welcome). Any tips on full service resupply points would be helpful too.. any tips at all.. I like absorbing as much as I can. Thanks!

[jesse]

I think Dances with Mice is the resident expert on this. Its on my list to do.

[Bearpaw]

Sgt Rock did this loop a few months ago and it was fairly rough even in spring rains. From what I understand, don't expect water any where this time of year on the DRT. You may want to rethink this hike in August. It will be painfully hot even at altitude and probably pretty dry.

But it would likely be a great walk for spring break when water is flowing and there are plenty of no-leaf views.

[MisterSweetie]

I did this hike with a buddy back last October. We started in Vogel SP, and made our way toward the DRT. Day one absolutely destroyed my knees (an injury from which I am very slowly still [hopefully] recovering).

I had to call a shuttle after day 1. My buddy kept going, but a combination of things (lots and lots of rain, trail difficulty [and a little bit of keeping up with staying on the trail iirc], etc) caused us to meet up at a road crossing late on day 2 (me in car, him on foot) and we just camped out the weekend around the area. Still had a great time, but this loop (typically called "Georgia Loop" I think) really did kick my butt. I am not saying it was terribly hard or hard to follow, but it was terribly hard on me.

[MisterSweetie]

Actually this is the Georgia Loop we attempted, similar at least to what you are mentioning, I believe.
http://www.georgiahikes.com/forum/to...p?TOPIC_ID=672

And now that I'm actually thinking about it, I want to say I remember that we might have taken a turn that put us off what is technically the "Georgia Loop" so my remembered difficulty might be on a trail you aren't talking about.

We definitely took Coosa Backcountry trail out of Vogel. After that pretty much all I remember is my knees.

[thelowend]

Hmmm... no water.. lame. I might try to go out for a quick weekender on the DRT and get a feel.. try to hike 5-10 miles into it from the Coosa side.

[10-K]

If I were going to hike somewhere down in that area right now I think I'd check out the Foothills Trail. I don't think there are a lot of views anywhere right now so this would be about as good as any to hike. The trail is well maintained, not terribly difficult and there is plenty of water.

[thelowend]

Im not set on having to have spectacular views. I just like being in the woods and am trying to gain some experience with longer trips. i will check out the FOothills Trail.. how long is it?

[10-K]

Im not set on having to have spectacular views. I just like being in the woods and am trying to gain some experience with longer trips. i will check out the FOothills Trail.. how long is it?

It's around 75 miles. There are a few road crossings so you can shorten the hike if you need to. http://www.foothillstrail.org/

Great trail, I highly recommend it. It's fairly remote - moreso than the AT IMO.