Foothills Chattooga River Trail Loop - Sat, Jan 17 2015

REGISTRATION REQUIRED: Once you've reviewed the event details, and decided you'd like to join us, you MUST sign up at the bottom of this page.



Foothills Chattooga River Trail Loop


The Basics:
Event Type:Backpacking
Event Location: Ellicott Rock Wilderness   Backpacking: Foothills Chattooga River Trail Loop   National Weather Service Forecast
Date(s) & Time:Sat, Jan 17 2015  7:30 am >> Sun, Jan 18 2015 5:00 pm  (Carpool Departure: 7:30 am   *log in for location*)
Registration Opens: Sat, Jan 10 2015 8:00 pm
Registration Cut Off: Fri, Jan 16 2015 7:00 pm
Event Duration:Per Itinerary
Difficulty Rating:D5: Difficult (Exploratory)
Distance:18 Miles
Pace:Moderate
Trip Leader(s):
Aaron
Jennifer S
Email Trip Leader(s)
You must be logged in to get the Trip Leader contact information.
Member Cost:None

Participant Info:
Who's Invited: Members Only, 21 And Older Only
Maximum Group Size:8
Minimum Group Size:4
Number Registered So Far: 4 / 0 (To see who's signed up, log in to the Member Area)
Are Dogs Permitted: Yes

Note: This is an "EXPLORATORY" trip. This means that there are parts of this trip, or perhaps the whole trip, that is new to your Trip Leader(s). However, they are confident that this will not be an issue.
This note is here so that you can make an informed decision. When a Trip Leader isn't personally familiar with a trip, there is an increased chance of things not going as planned and you need to be prepared. The Trip Leader may have additional details in the itinerary.

Itinerary:

After leaving from Burrell Ford campground parking area and heading east, this overnight trip into the Ellicott Rock Wilderness will take us up the Medlin Mountain section of the Foothills trail where will we will gain several hundred feet in the first few miles. We then level out as we approach the fish hatchery for an overall gain of 580' over 7 miles. This section does not have water, but hopefully the creek we will encounter on the next section will supply our bottles and bladders.

After passing by the path to the Walhalla Fish Hatchery we will veer west onto the Fork Mountain trail, the longest in the Ellicott Rock Wilderness. Keep an eye out for rust colored, sparingly spaced blazes, . We will only hike for a couple of more miles before we find a spot near a creek to camp out Saturday night.

Once breaking camp and warming our lungs with hot tea, coffee, or oatmeal in the morning we continue on Fork Mountain trail. This trail is a lesser maintained one that crosses Bad Creek a couple of times as it loops into and quickly back out of NC. We finish the 6.4 mile Fork Mountain trail at the Bad Creek junction. From there, following more white blazes we make our way south along 4.5 miles of the remarkable Chattooga River Trail where, if it's warm enough, our keen eyes may spot the only overwinter butterfly, the Mourning Cloak.

Because the Chattooga River and Foothills trails share the same track for about 0.6 miles, we begin and end on the Foothills. With the bare winter branches we should have a few good views of the river on Sunday. If we are ahead of schedule, we have options near he end of the hike. We can take a short detour and hike 0.5 miles to Spoonauger Falls or drop our packs at the end and hike to the King's Creek Falls - another 1 mile round trip for the view.

The trip leaders will most likely stop for dinner on the return trip home. All are welcome and encouraged to join. If you choose not to join us, please mention this at the carpool before we leave or plan on being a driver.


Required Items to Bring:

Backpack equipped with cold weather backpacking essentials
Mittens
Cozy Hat
Rope for hanging your raccoon-proof food bag
Layers of Clothing for Winter Backpacking

Recommended Items to Bring:
Use our Event Checklists to make sure you have everything you need.

First aid kit
Stove w/fuel fit for cold weather
Backpacking saw
Hiking Chair
Feet warmers
Hand warmers
Extra socks
Moleskin
Hiking poles
Bandana(s)


How to Get There:
Event Directions:

From the SC Visitor Center we will take scenic highway 11 into Walhalla, we will then take SC 28 for 7.5 miles then bear right on SC 107, drive 10 miles then turn left on Burrells Ford Road.  The parking area is approximately 3 miles ahead on the left.

We will hand out driving directions.

Plan on stopping at the SC Visitor exit for a bio break and to regroup.

Carpool to Event Distance (round trip):245Mile(s)
Carpool Departure Time: 7:30 am
Carpool Location:   Log in for location
Carpool Directions:   Log in for directions
Carpool Cost: Estimated cost per vehicle for this event is $98.00 using a reimbursement rate guideline of $0.400 per mile. The total amount should be divided by the number of people in the vehicle, including the driver. This is a guideline, not a rule, for drivers but the cost should not be higher unless there are extenuating circumstances.

Notes:
* We encourage all members to follow our Etiquette Guidelines while participating in AOC events.


Cancellation/Partial Attendance:   Please review the AOC cancellation policy.