Three Forks and Long Creek Falls to Springer Mountain (8:10 am carpool departure)

Come join me on a hike from the beautiful Three Forks to Long Creek Falls, then back through Three Forks to Springer Mountain. We will travel several loops on the AT and Benton Mackaye Trail, so our return from Springer to Three Forks will be on different trails. Springer Mountain and Three Forks are very popular areas on the Georgia AT, and for good reason. We will aim for a 2.8 mph/21-minute/mile pace. We will remain together, and will pause briefly for photos, delayering, water, and snacks. We will have lunch at Springer Mountain. 

While this is not at the top of the D4 range, it does require recent club experience at the D4 level, or the ability to document comparable current abilities. If you don't have club experience that meets this, expect to get an email from the trip leader.

The start of this hike is somewhat difficult to get to, as it is down about 10 miles of forest service road of variable difficulty. Low-clearance vehicles (e.g. Prius) should not attempt this road. I usually try to avoid such a long time on forest service roads, but here I include it because it allows us to begin our hike at the lowest point, so we hike up on the first half and mostly down the last half. 

I encourage people to carpool, as the parking at the trailhead is just on the side of the road, with a small lot that can hold about 3 vehicles. 

Here is the map for this hike:

We will begin our hike at Three Forks. You can get there using "Three Forks Trailhead" in Apple Maps, or "Long Creek Falls Trailhead" in Google Maps. 

There are no restrooms at the trailhead, but there is a privy at each of the two shelters we pass.