Jacks River Trail (Trip 5)
Chickamauga Battlefield
Civil War historian Shelby Foote wrote that among Civil War battles, Chickamauga was “not only the greatest battle of the West, but would also be, for the numbers engaged, the bloodiest of the war.” The wounded and killed included an estimated 16,170 Union soldiers and 18,454 Confederate soldiers. Despite their losses, the Rebels prevailed, though this would be their final major victory in the war.
Union Army headquarters site at Chickamauga Battlefield (Trip 9)
This battle was part of the Union offensive in southern Tennessee and northwest Georgia to capture Chattanooga. As a railroad hub and important manufacturing center, Chattanooga was seen as a vital objective for the Federal forces.
In September 1863, the Union army of the Cumberland, led by Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans, moved toward Chattanooga, while the Confederate army of Tennessee, led by Gen. Braxton Bragg, set up on the bank of Chickamauga Creek and prepared to block the Union advance.
The battle began on September 19 and raged into the next day, with the Confederates and Union soldiers launching a series of attacks and counterattacks in dense forest that was occasionally broken by farm fields. It was a chaotic scene as the tangled woods limited the visibility of the fighting men, causing great confusion.
The Confederates made several unsuccessful attempts to break the Union lines. Then, on September 20, Rosecrans inadvertently created a gap in his line of men, and forces under Confederate Gen. James Longstreet took advantage by plowing through the hole and driving a large portion of the Union army out of the area. That evening, the entire Union army withdrew to positions near Chattanooga.
Benton MacKaye Trail
Named for the man who first proposed the construction of the Appalachian Trail (AT), the Benton MacKaye Trail (BMT) stretches 300 miles from the top of Springer Mountain in Georgia to Davenport Gap on the northern fringe of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. MacKaye not only envisioned what is now the AT, but he also hoped that a series of side trails would link the AT to other green spaces along the route, including a path along the Blue Ridge in the southern Appalachian Mountains. The surge in backpacking in the 1970s increased traffic on the AT, and the U.S. Forest Service worked with trail clubs to construct a series of alternate trails that would be less developed and have no established campsites or shelters. Employees of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources pushed the idea forward, working with the U.S. Forest Service and trail clubs. Formed in 1980, the Benton MacKaye Trail Association began plotting the course for this new trail system, and by 1989 the 80 miles of the BMT that run through Georgia were completed. Work continued to construct the BMT’s northern course, and on July 16, 2005, the plan was completed and the entire trail was officially opened.
Hiking the Benton MacKaye Trail between Dyer and Watson Gaps (Trip 6)
For the purposes of this book, I have included selected hikes on the Georgia portion of the Benton MacKaye Trail. If you wish to explore it further, I encourage you to visit the Benton MacKaye Trail Association website at bmta.org. The association does an excellent job maintaining the trail through the work of volunteers, and it is a prime resource for detailed information. Another great resource is Tim Homan’s Hiking the Benton MacKaye Trail.
1 COHUTTA WILDERNESS: East Cowpen, Hickory Ridge, and Rough Ridge Loop
Distance 15.6 miles, loop
Hiking Time 16 hours
Difficulty Strenuous
Elevation +3,480'/–3,475'
Trail Use Backpacking and horseback riding
Best Times Year-round
Agency Chattahoochee National Forest, Conasauga Ranger District
Recommended Map National Geographic Trails Illustrated Springer and Cohutta Mountains Chattahoochee National Forest
HIGHLIGHTS The East Cowpen, Hickory Ridge, and Rough Ridge trails form a loop that passes through the heart of the Cohutta Wilderness. Because this is a long trek with some steep climbs, it works best as an overnight trip for experienced backpackers. The best part is that it travels through two distinct types of terrain found in the Cohutta. The trip begins in hardwoods on high ridges that form the western wall of a deep gorge that drops 1,500 feet to Rough Creek. If you’re backpacking, your first day will likely end with a descent to the banks of Jacks River, which rushes through heath forest of hemlocks and rhododendrons. There is room on the riverbank for camping, and on clear nights you can gaze at a starry sky undisturbed by city lights. On the second day, you climb high again to Rough Ridge, where you can look across the gorge and get a real sense of its depth and breadth.
DIRECTIONS From Atlanta, travel north on I-75 to I-575. Take I-575 north to GA 5/515 and take that highway to East Ellijay. Turn left onto US 76/GA 2 and continue on GA 2 to Ellijay. From the Ellijay town square, go west on GA 52 for 9.5 miles to Forest Service Road 18 and a sign for LAKE CONASAUGA RECREATION AREA. Turn right and go 1.3 miles to where the pavement ends and there is a fork. Bear left at the fork and cross the bridge. Go 2.2 miles and take a sharp right onto Forest Service Road 68. Go 2.5 miles to the three-way junction with Forest Service Road 64. Turn right onto FSR 64 and go 4.4 miles to the Three Forks parking area.
FACILITIES/TRAILHEAD There are no facilities at trailheads within the Cohutta Wilderness. Camping is allowed anywhere in the wilderness, and primitives campsites (usually with nothing more than a fire ring) are right along the trail. Be sure to carry plenty of water because the hiking can be strenuous, and treat all water that you get from streams. Bears and other critters roam the wilderness, so plan to hang your food at night. As an added precaution, give your itinerary to a friend or ranger, especially if you hike solo.
The hike begins at the northwest end of the Three Forks parking lot (Waypoint 1). From here take the East Cowpen Trail, and ascend gradually through mature hardwoods. At 0.4 mile you’ll reach the intersection with the Rough Ridge Trail (Waypoint 2). Continue straight (northwest) to cross over Cohutta Mountain. The trail climbs higher than 4,000 feet of elevation before descending gradually with hemlocks to your right and seasonal views of distant mountain folds to the left.
At 2.2 miles, on a ridgetop, the Panther Creek Trail intersects on the left, and to the right a large campsite sits among large oaks and hemlocks. Continue straight to the northwest to continue on the flat path as it crosses the spine of the ridge. Now, to your left and right, hazy blue bands of faraway mountains stretch across the horizon.
Circle around Buckeye Mountain, and, at 3.2 miles, the East Cowpen and Hickory Ridge trails intersect at a lofty open space (Waypoint 3). Continue northeast to join the Hickory Ridge Trail (the East Cowpen turns sharply to the southwest) and ascend to a campsite at 3.4 miles. If you’re looking for good ridgetop camping in winter, this spot has nice views to each side of this high ground. Just a bit farther, a lone American holly tree (one of the few you’ll see on this trail) stands nearly 15 feet high.
Camping along Jacks River
At 4 miles the forest puts on a dramatic show as the leafy path drops, while a high forested peak fills the sky to the northeast. The trail rolls along, generally descending as the forest grows thick with mountain laurel,