AT: The Southern Terminus, GA

A Pilgrimage

Hikers on the Appalachian Trail begin or end their thru-hikes in Georgia.  Referred to as the Southern Terminus, Springer Mountain is the starting point for North-bound hikers towards Mt. Katahdin at the northern Terminus, 2,100-odd miles away, in Maine.  Thousands of AT hikers set foot on the Southern Terminus, not to mention the millions who hike along the trails in the neighboring state forest.  We had the good fortune of being able to hike these hallowed grounds when we traveled to Atlanta over the Memorial Day weekend to celebrate the graduation of a very special family member.

Georgia has 78.1 miles of the AT going through its lush deciduous forest, and ancient rocks.  The Springer Mountain view point, bearing the terminus plaque (pictured above) affords spectacular views of North Georgia's rolling Blue Ridge mountains. It is but a short easy mile from the Springer Mountain parking lot.   The drive leading up to the parking lot through Forest Road 42 is  a rough, gravelly one.  We were grateful that our rental sedan made it up and down without any trouble.  

A half-dozen cars are already parked, and many overnight campers are packing up for their morning hike.  Greeting hello, we head out on the 1.25 mile walk to the Southern terminus marker.

North Georgia

The Springer Mountain parking lot is a two and a half hour drive from Atlanta, an hour of which is spent on that final approach road, ascending to 3,400 feet.  We play peek-a-boo with spectacular views of rolling Georgia hills as we go up.  At the end of May, the forests of deciduous trees is lush and green.  I imagine that the late fall and winter will offer more sweeping views. 

We leave the suburbs of Atlanta, studded with strip malls, and gated communities, heading north towards the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest.  Fortunately, there is no direct highway leading to these mountains, making it a little harder to access for all except the most intrepid hikers.  We weave through small towns and begin seeing views of green hills and the taller Blood Mountain as we approach Dawsonville and Dahlonega.  Boiled peanuts are for sale at intersections.  

Benton MacKaye: the Man and the Trail

We did not want to take the whole day away from family, who needed some r & r after the graduation party.  Thanks to a little guidance from atlantatrails.com, I chose a 5.7 mile loop that we would start on early enough so we are back to enjoy more family time.  The Springer Mountain-Benton MacKaye trail would give us a taste of the AT and loop us into, what I would learn is, this trail with history.

Benton MacKaye, a forester and planner, was the first to propose the idea of the Appalachian Trail in 1921. Among the first graduates of Harvard's Forestry program, he provided a vision for people to experience nature in its purest form.  His plans were in turn viewed as utopian and technical, brilliant and cockamamie, syncretic and specific, for calling on scientists to discover ways to live sustainably and harmoniously with nature.

Mile 1.15 into the trail are the diamond blazes leading to the Benton MacKaye Trail (BMT), named in his honor.  After enjoying Springer Mountains views at 1.25, we return to the diamond blazes of the BMT, and find a memorial to the man (picture of me paying respects to him here.  Note to Rajani and Ramesh: I would like some of my ashes scattered along the AT, please. Thank you). 

There are 285 miles of the BMT in the Blue Ridge mountains of Georgia developed by his protegee, Dave Sherman in 1975.  The entire section was completed in 2005, and is maintained by the BMT Association.   This first section of the BMT loop  - about 4 miles - is part of the original AT proposal by MacKaye. 

Benton MacKaye's original AT proposal, as described in Places Journal

The Diamond Blazes

The diamond blazed BMT takes us through lush forests where Mountain Laurel are in full bloom. Chunky caterpillars and beetle scurry about their busy day on the forest floor, while smaller inch worms zipline down on to us, hitchhiking their way along the trail.  At one view point, when I pulled off several hitchhikers from my shoes, a shake of the head brought down a dozen!  Plenty of bear scat on the trail, but no sight of bears. 

The trail descends along Ball Mountain, and gives us views at Owen's Point (pictured below) that tell why they are named Blue Ridge mountains.  Springer Mountain is not the tallest one in north Georgia. Blood and Rabun Bald Mountains supposedly offer sweeping and unparalleled views of Tennessee and North Carolina.  
I am quite in awe right here. 

Galax, also known as beetleweed or wand flower abound on the forest floor.  

The trail further crosses Forest Road 42  at mile 3.5, and we meet the shallow Davis Creek, which would have been a source of great enthusiasm for Tulsi, who was not on this trip with us.  The clear, cool, moving water over a gravel bed crosses the trail 3 more times before we ascended to join the AT back for its final stretch to the parking lot.  

The lot is full with more cars than at 9:30 AM.  Many are parked along the gravel road. We are grateful to have had our pilgrimage to the southern terminus of the AT, filled with Benton MacKaye's vision for the trail, hearts glad, and eager for the lunch that awaits us Shobhana's. 

We will be back, Georgia, to do the remaining 76.1 miles.  Real soon! 

"What is suggested, therefore, is a “long trail” over the full length of the Appalachian skyline, from the highest peak in the north to the highest peak in the south — from Mt. Washington to Mt. Mitchell." ~Benton MacKaye.  Appalachian Trail: A Project in Regional Planning. 1921.