Blood Mountain day hike followed by wine tasting

Join us for a fun hike of roughly 8 miles in mountainous terrain near Blood Mountain, followed by an optional wine tasting at the nearby Wolf Mountain vineyard.

The tasting room has beautiful vineyard and mountain views. The tasting costs $10 without tip. There is no dress code, but you'll feel more comfortable if you bring some spare clothes. Jeans and fleece are fine.

You should be in fairly good shape to do this hike as the elevation gain is over 1400 ft. If you are new to hiking in the mountains please e-mail the trip leader to make sure this is the right hike for you.

We will park at Lake Winfield Scott and hike a loop on the Jarrard Gap Trail (1.0 miles) to the Appalachian Trail (2 miles). We'll eat lunch at the top of Blood Mountain, returning via Slaughter Creek Trail (2.7 miles) for a total of around 8 miles. If the weather is hot, we might take a quick dip in Lake Winfield Scott. Be courteous to your driver, and bring a towel for drying off before the drive to the vineyard.

To Lake Winfield Scott Parking Lot
Google Map from 1701 Mansell Rd, Alpharetta, GA 30076 to Lake Winfield Scott, Suches, GA 30572

GO RIGHT from the Mansell Rd Park & Ride
LEFT onto GA-400 North to dead end for 37.3 miles
LEFT onto GA-60N/US-19N toward Dahlonega for 5.1 miles
RIGHT on GA-60N/GA-9N for 8.0 miles
You'll see some sharp curves that slow down traffic, and you'll suddenly see an Indian rock pile in the middle of the road
LEFT FORK onto GA-60N for 7.3 miles
You'll be heading uphill
You'll go over a mountain
When you see T.W.O. (Two Wheels Only) Motorcycle Resort on your left, get ready
SHARP RIGHT at the old gas station onto State Route 180/Wolf Pen Gap Rd for 4.4 miles
RIGHT onto Lake Winfield Scott Rd

From Lake Winfield Scott to Wolf Mountain
TBD.
Wolf Mountain phone: TBD

Click for a larger, printable map.

Will this event occur rain or shine? We will cancel the hike if it looks like there will be medium to heavy rains. I’ll e-mail everyone the day before the hike if the weather looks questionable.

We will group people together at the carpool according to their preference for attending the optional wine tasting. The wine tasting will involve only light consumption, due to the hard hike and the drive home.

The elevation gain for this hike is challenging. My advice to people who are new'ish to the AOC is to start out on hikes that are one level below what you *know* you can achieve. That way, you can enjoy the hike and make friends, rather than being the out-of-breath person who's barely making it up the hill.

If you have any doubts about your fitness, think about whether you can hike Stone Mountain up and down 3 times. That puts you at 7.6 miles, but the terrain is easier than Blood Mountain. If you feel ok with that, then definitely sign up for the event!