Gold Branch Lariots

Hike the Gold Branch Trail on the banks of the Chattahoochee River near Roswell, exploring a wildlife- filled forest, visiting Bull Sluice Lake, and catching exceptionally beautiful river views.  Young hardwoods shade a forest floor that fills with mosses, ferns, and native Georgia wildflowers in warm-weather months. The tranquil lake and river are home to cattails, marsh grasses, and aquatic plants. And wildlife fills the banks, waters and air surrounding these lesser-traveled, often quiet trails: heron, geese, ducks, fish, turtles, and deer are frequent sights along the trail.

This is not a beginners hike. 

To qualify, you must have:

1. recently (last 2 weeks) kept pace with a D2 group doing 3.0 mph and be willing to keep pace at 3.0 mph with the group on this hike.  

2. recently (last 2 weeks) kept pace with a D2 group doing a 600 foot elevation gain hike

3. not fallen twice in the same day on a D2 hike

For this hike, we will accomplish --

Avg. Speed:  3.0mph 

Elevation gain:  673 feet (includes 3 climbs of 150-170 feet)

Terrain:  RUGGED; the riverside section is rocky and the treadway is slanted and slippery in places

We will bear to the left to descend to the river, do the entire river stretch, and then start working our way to the parking lot but not without three final dips down from the ridge top to see the river again.  The dips are part of the loops forming 3 lariots.

There are no bathrooms at the park.

You will need a Chatahoochee NRA or N(ational Parks parking pass for the park which is best to buy in advance. 

We will meet at the kiosk at the back of the parking lot.

Here is the Google Maps link:

https://goo.gl/m a ps/bCQJ1kPq72Bv6uW58

Google labels the pinpoint as the Gold Branch Trail

The park entrance is directly across Lower Roswell Road from the Ashforde subdivision and easy to drive past.

Trail conditions can be sloppy, muddy, puddles, slippery, roots and rocks

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