Pinhoti Trail - Bear Creek to Buddy Cove Gap

This is a great summer hike with lots of creek crossings. Following the Pinhoti Trail through the Cohutta WMA we'll hike from the Bear Creek trailhead to Buddy Cove Gap just a few miles short of the Pinhoti's northern terminus where it joins the Benton MacKaye Trail.

Beginning at the Bear Creek trailhead we'll head north on the Pinhoti trail following Bear Creek. Along the way we'll pass the Gennett Poplar (Georgia's 2nd largest tree). After a few creek crossings we'll climb up and over the ridgeline to Crenshaw Branch.  We'll follow Crenshaw Branch for the next 4 miles crossing it a few times before climbing up to Buddy Cove Gap where we'll have lunch then turn around and follow the same route back to the cars.

You'll get our feet wet on several of the creek crossings so bring water shoes.  We can stop to change shoes as needed or you can decide to go with the same (wet) shoes for the duration.

It's also possible that parts of the trail may have blow downs or be a little grown over. I haven't found any recent postings that mention trail conditions so be warned...

This is a long D5 hike with over 2700 feet of elevation gain, recent D5 experience is required. You should be comfortable hiking 6 hours with few breaks at a pace of 2.7 - 3.0+ mph. Expect an email from me to assess your compatibility if you are new or haven't done prior AOC D5 hike events.

Kudos to Ron for the original post of this hike.

We will plan to meet at the trailhead for a 9am start.  The last 2 miles to the trailhead is on a gravel/dirt road that should be passable for most cars.

Click here for Trailhead location