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| Run/Jog | 11.64 Miles |
3,484 AEG |
| | Run/Jog | 11.64 Miles | 4 Hrs 6 Mns | | 2.86 mph |
| 3,484 ft AEG | 2 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | Business trip to Atlanta, so I decided to extend it a couple days to play around in the mountains. I've explored a lot of the trails to the west of here (Vogel State Park to Amicolola and Blue Ridge mostly), so kinda knew what to expect. Decided I may as well check off the state high point - there's a parking lot half a mile from the summit, and a shuttle if you don't want to hike up the paved path, so I figured I have to start at one of the other trailheads to make it more worthwhile. The options in that respect are Jack's Knob (~3 miles one way), Arkaquah Trail (5.5 miles one way), and Wagon Train (who knows), or possibly from the AT via Jack's Knob. I opted for Arkaquah since it seemed a good middle ground.
First 1.5 miles is steep uphill (1,500 feet in about 1.5 miles) to gain the ridge, then small (could hundred feet) ups and downs until the Brasstown parking lot. Most of this is what we call "green tunnel", with no view due to the thick canopy, but there are a couple of spots along the way where you can step into a clearing and actually see the surrounding area. One stretch (~3 miles in) gets a little chunky and overgrown, I greatly enjoyed this section.
Saw a hiker around Chimneytop Mountain who told me in the thickest Southern accent I've heard since the last time I was in Northern Georgia that he saw a couple of bears up ahead. They cleared off by the time I got there, but there was an area that looked like it had been heavily disturbed by something big.
Towards the eastern end of the trail the canopy got so thick that it actually seemed like it was getting dark out. Trail was nice and wide here presumably because it's too dark for anything to grow on the ground.
This is one of those odd trails where when you start to hear cars, you know you're getting close to the summit. Popped out into the parking lot (not too crowded), then hiked up the paved path to the visitor center at the summit. Nice views, a bit hazy but I could see a couple of mountains I'd been up earlier, including Coosa Bald to the west and Clingman's Dome to the north.
The way down was relatively slow since my achilles tendons were feeling a little rough. On the trail, only saw one other person besides the previously mentioned hiker. This is not a bad way to visit Brasstown if you want a little more of an adventure. |
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