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Cohutta Wilderness Area: Jacks River Trail End to End


The Basics:
Event Type:Backpacking
Event Location: Alaculsy Valley/Dally Gap   Backpacking: Cohutta Wilderness Area: Jacks River Trail End to End  National Weather Service Forecast
Date(s) & Time:Fri, Jun 10 2011  8:00 am >> Sun, Jun 12 2011 6:00 pm  (Carpool Departure: 8:15 am   *log in for location*)
Registration Opens: Mon, Apr 25 2011 9:00 pm
Registration Cut Off: Thu, Jun 9 2011 9:00 pm
Event Duration:2 Days 10 Hours
Difficulty Rating:D5: Difficult
Pace:Moderate
Trip Leader(s):
Grant Brown
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Member Cost:None

Participant Info:
Who's Invited: Members Only, 21 And Older Only
Maximum Group Size:12
Minimum Group Size:2
Number Registered So Far: 8 / 0 (To see who's signed up, log in to the Member Area)
Are Dogs Permitted: No

Itinerary:

Cohutta Wilderness Area:  Jacks River Trail End to End


   The Cohutta Wilderness is one of Georgia’s crown jewels.  It is the most remote hiking location in our area.  We will hike it’s most beautiful trail in it’s entirety.  This hike is very wet and involves a bit of shuttle driving.

We will only fill our cars half way so that we can drive to the Northwest trail-head in the Alaculsy Valley and drop one set of cars for shuttling back to Dally Gap.

Make sure to review safety rules at end.   

Links:
Here is the Trimble Trail Log for the Jacks River Trail [Thanks Mr. Scott Sanders!]
General info
Excellent trail description from Tim Homan

Friday, June 10:
Driving Directions:  Kennesaw/Chattsworth/Alaculsy/Copper Hill/Dally - 3 hours 30 mins - 146 mi
8:15 Leave Chastain Road
9:30 Arrive bathroom break Chattsworth
10:30 Arrive Alaculsy Valley to drop half of the vehicles
11:45 Arrive Copper Hill, TN.  Eat at local restaurant.  
1:45 Arrive Dally Gap and hit the trail.
6:00 6.5 mile hike.  Arrive first camp - Penitentiary Branch/Jacks River Trail intersection.  It’s a large nice site.

Saturday, June 11:
10:00 hit the trail for 2 mile hike
Noon Arrive Jacks River Falls for lunch, sunning, swimming, relaxing
3:00  hit the trail to hike 3 miles to a random area to look for a site a ways passed Rice Camp intersection
5:30 begin scouting for good place to camp

Sunday, June 12:
9:00 hit the trail for a 4 mile hike to the end
Noon arrive vehicles, eat snack, drive to Copper Hill for lunch
2:00 pick up vehicles at Dally
6:00 back at Chastain
Driving Directions:  Alaculsy/Copper Hill/Dally/Kennesaw - 3 hours 37 mins - 151 mi

Note:  The mileage listed here is about 1.5  miles shy of the average.  Most literature estimates the total miles between 15 and 16 or so.  I used google earth and it came up a bit short.  You should also take into account the altitude gains and losses listed on the Trimble page.  So, these are general estimates, but they don’t vary too much.

Safety Rules:
  1. Must use two hiking poles for sufficient balance and leverage for river crossings.
  2. May not cross rivers alone.
  3. Must wear proper shoes - substantial hiking sandal/water shoe with sufficient support for crossings.  No flip flops or open toed sandals.  Your toes often get squished in between rocks when acquiring your footing in the current.  Don’t expect to change shoes on the trail.  There are way too many crossings for that.


My Personal Plans:
  • lightest pack possible - around 20 lbs total
  • wear regular hiking boots at all times even though they will get wet
    • I appreciate good support and grip in the river
      • we will cross the river about 50 times
  • extra day of food due to possible rain delaying us from making crossings - one never knows


DOWNLOAD!
Grant’s Fun-time Campfire Songbook Now New and Improved w/clickable table of contents!  [download it to your smart-phone and sing along!]


Required Items to Bring:
  • two hiking poles
  • closed toed shoes for river crossings or just your regular boots boots
  • extra food in case of sustained rainfall and river becomes uncrossable
Recommended Items to Bring:
Use our Event Checklists to make sure you have everything you need.

How to Get There:
Event Directions:*See Google Map links in itenerary as well as directions in Tim Homan book pages links.
Carpool to Event Distance (round trip):300Mile(s)
Carpool Departure Time: 8:15 am
Carpool Location:   Log in for location
Carpool Directions:   Log in for directions
Carpool Cost: Estimated cost per vehicle for this event is $120.00 using a reimbursement rate guideline of $0.400 per mile. The total amount should be divided by the number of people in the vehicle, including the driver. This is a guideline, not a rule, for drivers but the cost should not be higher unless there are extenuating circumstances.

Notes:
* We encourage all members to follow our Etiquette Guidelines while participating in AOC events.


Cancellation/Partial Attendance:   Please review the AOC cancellation policy.