CAMPNPOST

Nearest Town: Leesburg, Al

Directions: From Fort Payne take Al 35- Take AL 176 South to Cr 275 for about 11 miles. Canyon Mouth Park is on your left.

From Leesburg-Take Al 273 North to CR 275 on left, Canyon Mouth Park is on your left

Fee: $4 per vehicle

Trail Length: 1.8 miles in and out

Difficulty: Easy/Moderate

This trailhead is located in Canyon Mouth Park at the far end of the parking lot and is the only place in the canyon that requires a fee. The park itself  is a large area along the river with picnic tables and fire rings and a restroom.

The trail starts out as an old paved service road and changes to a sandy single track. It crosses over a large seawall and shortly thereafter becomes a wooded dirt trail. It’ offers easy to walk slightly varied terrain for 9/10 of a mile along the river before you get to the dead end. Like the other canyon trails it offers some great views and is short enough to enjoy it and still be able to fit in the other attraction along the canyon. The park wasn’t crowded when we were there so it looks like a nice place to make a day of it, but I’d imagine it gets pretty crowded in the warmer months.

Tags: Canyon Mouth Park, Canyon Mouth Trail, Hikes in Alabama, Little River Canyon Hike

Nearest Town: Fort Payne, Al

Directions: From Al 35- Take AL 176 South past Grace’s High Falls lookout. Parking is on the left at the 176/275 junction.

From Leesburg-Take Al 273 North to CR 275 on left. Take a left at Canyon Mouth Park and continue on CR275  for 11 miles to AL176. Bear right at the 275/176 junction,parking on right.

Trail Length: 1.5 miles in and out

Difficulty: Strenuous

This trail is not as steep or rocky as the Lower Two-Mile Trail, but it is still rugged and steep. This one is a little more developed and seems to get a good bit of use as it’s at the main junction in the canyon and there are picnic tables and outhouses at the top.

The trail descends a few switchbacks 3/4 mile down to the canyon floor where there are some nice boulders and rocks to hop out to a great vantage point in the middle of the river. A good place to spend some time resting for the ascent back up the trail. It’s short, but steep so you will be winded, but it’s easily navigable. There are benches just in case. Definitely worth your time.

Tags: Eberhart Trail, hiking North Alabama, Little River Canyon Hike

Nearest Town: Fort Payne, Al

Directions: From Al 35- Take AL 176 South for approx. 2 miles Parking area on the left after Mushroom Rock

From Leesburg-Take Al 273 North to CR 275 on left. Take a left at Canyon Mouth Park and continue on CR275  for 11 miles to AL176. Bear right on 176 and go North past Hawk’s Glide Overlook, parking on right

Trail Length: 2/10 mile in and out

Difficulty: Rugged/Steep

I don’t know if we can really consider this trail a hike when it’s really more of a climb. The best part is the reward at the bottom. It takes you down a steep and rocky incline to a sandy beach on the canyon floor where we spent some time watching kayakers go by and letting the kids play. Beautiful and so much fun!  I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Tags: Hikes in Alabama, Little River Canyon hiking, Lower Two-Mile Trail, trails in the south, Trails near Fort Payne

Nearest Town: Fort Payne, Al

Directions: From Al 35- Take AL 176 South for approx. 1 mile. Parking area on the right just sfter the Lynn Overlook parking lot.

From Leesburg-Take Al 273 North to CR 275 on left. Take a left at Canyon Mouth Park and continue on CR275  for 11 miles to AL176. Bear right on 176 and go North past Mushroom Rock, parking area on left.

Trail Length: 1.8mile loop

Difficulty: Easy

Beaver Pond Trail is the first hike we did along Little River Canyon. This trail is rated Moderate according to the map we picked up at the canyon center but we never figured out why. The entire trail is pretty flat with the exception of a few small ups and downs that are barely more than a few steps.

There’s a short lead in to the loop at which we headed right. After crossing a couple of footbridges we came to a junction that points to the actual observation deck at the actual Beaver Pond. We saw no beaver so we continued around the loop. We passed by several park benches and over a couple more footbridges before we ended up back at the start of the loop. There are no views of the canyon to be had here and it’s a little bit noisy as it is near the canyon road but there’s a lot of nice mossy ground.  We all enjoyed this trail. It makes for a nice easy walk in the woods.

Tags: Beaver Pond Trail, hiking near fort payne, hiking North Alabama, Little River Canyon hiking

Nearest Town: Fort Payne, Al                                 

Directions: From Al 35- Take AL 176 (canyon road) South

From Leesburg-Take Al 273 North to CR 275 on left. Canyon Mouth Park straight ahead or continue left onto CR275 to travel North through the canyon.

We haven’t had a whole lot to write about over the winter between traveling and projects around the house and we spent a lot of time doing some of our same old- same old favorite hikes that are close to home but we had perfect weather last Saturday and decided to get out and go somewhere we usually don’t go like Alabama.

We headed for Little River Canyon and it is decidedly one of the best things the state has to offer. The canyon drive is 20 some odd miles and offers many lookouts with some really great views and several short hikes along the way. We started at the North end and worked our way down.

The first trail we hiked along the way was the Beaver Pond Trail. Next we headed to Mushroom rock on the way to the Lower Two-Mile Trail. Then after stopping at several lookouts along the way we hit Eberhart Trail and ended at Canyon Mouth Trail.

The Canyon took all day because of all the stops and the four hikes but it was a day well spent. The kids got a lot of playtime in , we saw some awesome views, and enjoyed being able to do several hikes in a day. Well worth the trip.

Tags: hiking alabama, hiking trails in alabama, kayaking Alabama, Little River Canyon hiking, southeastern hiking, trails, waterfalls in alabama

Hidden Pond Songbird Trail

Nearest Town: Chatsworth, GA

Trailhead Location: South Parking Lot closest to entrance of Carters Lake Dam

Difficulty: Easy

Trail Marker: None

Trail Length: Less than 1 Mile

Parking Fee: None

Address/Contact Information: Reregulation Dam Recreation Area, Chatsworth, Georgia 30705 / Georgia DNR 706-295-6041

Directions: From Chatsworth, travel south on Old Hwy. 411 for about 15 miles. Turn left into the recreation area for the Carter’s Lake Reregulation Dam. Trailhead parking will be on your right directly after crossing the Coosawattee River.

From 5/515, Take 136 NW towards Carters Lake until fork (apx. 2.1 mi.). Fork right on 136 W and travel (11.2 mi.). Take a right on Old Hwy. 411 (0.7 mi.) Right into Re-regulation Dam Park.

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I broke my toe a couple weeks ago and yesterday was the first time out hiking since. I revisited the Carter’s Lake area for a short hike on the Hidden Pond Songbird Trail to start back in easy. This Corps of Engineers trail is short with very little elevation change and would be good for anyone in the area looking for a quick outing or a nice short hike with the family. I could see myself killing a couple hours sitting by the pond waiting to spot some wildlife with the kids. While I was there I attempted to snap some shots of  three little turtles that kept climbing up a log for some sun but seemed to scare them away every time.

There is plenty of wildlife to see in the area from the viewing areas along the banks of the pond. Blue herons, hawks, wild turkey, raccoon, opossum, white-tailed deer have all been spotted and one point or another.

Below is a shot of the dam where there is a park, picnic tables for day use which I imagine can get a little crowded during the warmer months. If your are an avid hiker looking for exercise this will not be challenging enough for you but all in all is a nice little walk in the woods. There are some longer trails in the area such as the Talking Rock Nature Trail and Big Acorn Nature Trail which you can access from the Carters Lake Visitor Center.

Tags: Big Acorn Nature Trail, carters lake hiking trails, Georgia Trails, hidden pond songbird trail, north georgia hiking trails, Talking Rock Nature Trail, trails near chatsworth, trails near talking rock

Attention trail runners,

If you are a trail runner here in the Southeast and have a bit of the competitive nature in ya you’ll be interested to know that the 2010 Rockcreek Trail Series is underway with the next competition, the Rock/Creek River Gorge Trail Race coming up March 27th. The races are a 10.2 mile starting at 8:30am / and a 6.5 mile starting at 9:00am.

Taking place among some of the most dramatic ridges, gorges, and waterways in the mountainous areas surrounding Chattanooga, TN, the Rock/Creek Trail Series beckons runners of all experience levels to experience self discovery.

For more information visit: http://www.rockcreek.com/rivergorge/
For registration: https://www.raceit.com/Register/?event=901

Tags: rockcreek trail series, trail running in the southeast

It was nice to have a dry weekend, huh? The weather was perfect and we wanted to get out in it so we drove up to the Wildcat Tract area. I’ve wanted to check out the campground to see if it was a place we’d like to stay at for a few days.

The campground is just okay but the cool thing about it is that its free and the area gives you direct access to all the trails and waterfalls nearby. At one end of the campground you have the trailhead for the Wildcat Creek Trail which connects to the Fall Creek Trail and on the other end of the campground a footbridge crosses the creek to access the Turner Trail. We are thinking of heading up to camp up here sometime in the next few weeks.  We will let you know how it goes.

Directions:

From 575 go South on 53 approx. 1.8 miles, take a left on Burnt Mtn. Rd (which turns into 136). Right on Steve Tate Rd. Right on Wildcat Campground ( DIRT ROAD )

GPS data: N34° 29.72′ W84° 16.85′

Tags: free campsites, north georgia camping, trails in north georgia, Wildcat Tract Camping

If you visit the site regularly your probably wondering where we’ve been and why we haven’t been posting recently. Well, we’ve been traveling for what seems like a month straight.

It started with me going down to Florida, then out to Utah for the Outdoor Retailer 2010 etc.. and of course, to get some snowboarding in. After returning I was here a couple days and was able to recoup before traveling back down to Florida for our family vacation at Disney.

Leading up to my trip out west I was doing a lot of hiking every day but on local trails we have previously posted on. We also have been finishing up a clubhouse we’ve been building for our kids which we’ll likely post on in the near future.

The trip to Utah went very well and the timing could not have been better. I’m told the snow was slim pickins’ for a month or so previous and it started snowing the morning of my flight out. It snowed just about every day while I was there so needless to say we had plenty of  powder. When I lived in Utah I hiked Park City Mountain Resort but this was my first time snowboarding there and I have to say I enjoy it more than the Canyons.

I was out there for a full week this time and we were able to ride just about every day and even managed to work in some cross country skiing as well.

Tags: clubhouse, park city mountain resort, snowbasin, Snowboarding, utah

This is the first pair of END(Environmentally Neutral Design) shoes I have owned. I bought them from www.backcountry.com because they have a five star rating on a few different websites, they are nice looking and the price was right. I have to say I’m really liking this shoe so far.
First, it was really comfy right out of the box. I wore them around the house for hours to get used to them but there was no need. No blisters, no toe cramping or heel slipping which probably has a lot to do with the fact that there are no steel or hard plastic parts in the shoe. Second, they are very lightweight but they feel very solid and sturdy. Third, it is a nice looking shoe and I get compliments on them all the time.
A few good points about this shoe are that they run true to size, the toe box is very roomy without the appearance of a clown shoe, and the upper has very little padding. I’m sure some people like a lot of padding in a running shoe I, however, do not. In my opinion it makes for a better fit and allows for the laces to create a better support for your foot. I really liked the last pair of trail runners I had, but the collar was so thickly padded it looked like my ankle was being forced out of it and I had to lace them really tight to allow for the padding.
As far as performance I have been really happy with them so far. I have used them on and off trails. The soles have great traction, something most running shoes claim to offer, but sometimes fail to deliver. Nothing like landing on a damp wooden footbridge and turning your run into a skate! Ouch! These are just sticky enough to give you the confidence without tripping you up.
The fact that END uses a lot of recycled and low emission materials in all of their shoes so they have a low impact on the environment doesn’t hurt either.

Tags: END footwear review, END stumptown review, womens END Stumptown