Cohutta/New Gear/New Friends Report

“The Blue Sky Tavern is arguably the best blues club in ATL, and by far the best outside of Mid Town / Virginia Highlands...
It's in my little town in the southern exurbs. I was there on Friday night, and got into a conversation with a drummer and his wife. They live in Blue Ridge, GA - at the gateway to The Cohutta Wilderness. I had already planned to do a one niter in Cohutta, so I got directions to their house to maybe visit after coming out of the woods on Monday.

Saturday, I made a trip to REI and dropped $180.00 bucks on a medium fleece bag liner, a new stove, a 3/4 Thermarest, a 70 oz. Platypus, two 2 quart Nalgenes, and a new pair of Thorlos.

Sunday morning, I left home about 11:30 enroute to Cohutta.

I drove to Dally Gap trailhead, and hit the trail at 3 p.m. I did a counterclock loop of about 14 miles.

My destination was the Jacks River, but the route I selected brought me in the back door. From the trailhead, I headed north up a ridge. The first mile or so was uphill, but the trail flattened out, and eventually began a gradual descent toward Penitentiary Branch Trail. PB, too, was a gradual descent until reaching the Jacks. I camped beside the river under the thick canopy of hemlock, hardwoods, and laurel.

The numbers for Sunday was +- 6 miles in 2.5 hours.

The rain started around midnight, and did not let up until long after I returned home 24 hours later. I was awakened several times by thunder - it was a true lullaby... I was having fun.

I awakened at dawn on Monday morning, and had a light breakfast. Sarabelle made a mad dash to pee, and returned surprisingly dry. The steady downpour was entrancing, and Belle and I slept through until 11 a.m. It was GREAT to take a nice long rest.

I got everything packed and backpacks were donned by 1 p.m. Within 100 feet, we crossed the rain swollen river for the first of what turned out to be 20 river crossings. The Jacks River Trail follows the river upstream for several miles unti it veers up a smaller creek toward the Dally Gap trailhead - a return to where we started.

On several occasions, I stopped mid stream to soak in the views up and down the river - it is a beautiful place. I was wet on top by the rain, and wet up to my waist by the river crossings - yet I never once felt a chill. Temperature was prolly mid/high 60's.

Sarabelle did incredibly well (hmmm!). We did not make one single crossing that she was able to wade the entire distance. She must've swam a mile that day. She would always wait for me to step into the river, then she'd follow. Yet she ALWAYS finished the crossing before me. I was a little jealous to watch her leap from rock to rock when possible - her four-foot drive is to die for... Her pack makes for a decent PFD, too.

We arrived back at the truck around 5:15. Numbers for Monday were +- 8 miles in four hours. Not too bad considering all the river crossings.

I had left the directions to my friends house, but decided to hunt them on memory alone. One hour and 25 miles later I pulled into their driveway. They live in a really cool house way up a really cool mountain road. They were surprised to see me. Simon, a Londoner, makes an awesome cup of tea. Allison, a Miamian, is just plain awesome. We had beers, dinner, at al, until about 10:30, at which time I departed for the 140 mile drive home. Due to the high volume of water on the roads, I was only able to average 55 mph enroute home. It took FOREVER!

Goooooooooood times!”

“I love news, but man, I just don't have the attention span for these long posts.”

“I do. Happy to hear SaraB has some extra bouyancy (at last!)”

“That?s a great trail Gojo. I tried to fish the Jacks once, but I had the wrong equipment (too heavy ? 8.5 foot rod, #6 line) plus not enough skill and I ended up totally skunked. I finally gave up and just enjoyed the river. It is indeed a very wet trail. The only minus is an overabundance of fire rings.

I liked the Jacks so much that later I brought a special lady there whom I had been seeing that summer. She is now my wife and the mother of our son.

Thanks for the great report on a place that?s special to me.

I also have a good attention span and don?t mind the long posts if they?re good.”

“Sounds like you two had a blast! I love trip reports.”

“Did yall make it to Jacks River Falls? That's a beaufiful area. Awsome stream crossings. I gotta get back over there sometime!”

“ken -
where ya from?
I have yet to fish in Cohutta - N. GA trout don't do much for me since I've fished the Rockies...
I'll pack the tackle soon enough, tho.


dude -
No, we did not reach the falls. The Pentitentiary Branch Trail terminates at the Jacks River Trail about midway between the Jacks headwaters and it's termination at the Conasauga R. - so I reckon the falls are further downstream...

I've read and heard that the falls can be crowded as heck, so I may never do a hike up through there. But get this - even though it was Mem. Day weekend, we saw only one couple with two dogs. I suspect that the hiking hours we kept had alot to do with that. There was only one car remaining at the trailhead when we came out at 5 pm.”

“Gojo, I?m from dc and I live in west central Fla. That particular summer I was bumming in the heat and decided to go to the nearest mountains. I wandered around north Georgia for a while and fished many of the streams and rivers. They are challenging. One stream, rumored to harbor 16 inch rainbows, had such steeply cut banks and dense overhanging rhododendrons everyplace that I could hardly get a fly wet.

Most of the trout water up there is special regulation. No bait, catch and release only.”

“Well, I gess I should prolly do the report for my new geer that is a new bole.

I brung my new pakpakin' bole to the woods with us the nother day. It is the good bole. It goes in my pakpak when I am walkin, but I take it out at the tent and put my food in it and eat my food in it. When I ate all my food, my daddy hanged it in a tree with the nother stuff so bares and rats will not eat my supper crums.

It is better then eatin' supper on the dert, that is for shur.

Miss Pakpakin' Baybe is the nice lady for gettin' me my good bole. Mebbe she will get me the new pakpak to. BOL!
(o:3”

“Gojo
If you get a chance, The falls are deffinatly worth going to.”

“ah gear and friends. the most important things in life

~tear~”

“Crash -
I have long since decided that you get on my nerves - I never open a thread that is attributed to you. But alas, you have found one of my oldies that I have long since forgotten - thanky!

Now, get lost.”

“yea crash, do some work, or find a whore house over there...your f-ing up all the threads and moving active ones off the front page.”

“Yeah! You tell'im OPE!”