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Informationen zum Autor Marcus Woolf has written for national outdoor magazines, such as “Backpacker” and “Outside,” and for 20 years he served as an editor and journalist for outdoor business publications. In 2011, he cofounded The Adventure Post website, where he shares his passion for the outdoors and adventure travel. While doing the legwork for this book, he survived a nose-to-nose encounter with a bear at 2 a.m. and a charge from a particularly mean opossum. Woolf is based in the Southeast, where he enjoys hiking, kayaking, and an unhinged passion for Alabama football. Klappentext This book showcases more than 100 great hikes within a 2-hour drive of Atlanta. Leseprobe Yonah Mountain Distance Up to 4.2 miles, out-and-back Difficulty Moderate Elevation +/-1,545' Trail Use Climbing and backpacking Best Times Spring, fall, and winter Agency Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests Recommended Map USGS 7.5-minute Helen HIGHLIGHTS Near the center of White Country lies the massive Yonah Mountain, a 3,156-foot peak with a great brow of exposed granite stretching across its upper face. That sea of granite has made climbing the primary activity on Yonah, though improved access has attracted more hikers. A gravel access road leads to a well-constructed parking area. A unique aspect of Yonah is that it serves as a training site for the US Army Ranger 5th Battalion. The Mountain Phase of Ranger School includes climbing instruction, so the rangers have established bolted routes that are ideal for beginner or intermediate climbers and are open to the public when not in use by the school. Less than a mile in, a grassy clearing offers views of a placid valley, and higher on the mountain, exposed granite faces make a great perch to look out over rolling forested ridges and the lowlands to the south. DIRECTIONS From Atlanta, take I-85 north to I-985. Take I-985 to Exit 24 for GA 369. Turn left onto GA 369 west, go 0.6 mile, and turn right onto US 129 north. Take US 129 to Cleveland. From the town square in Cleveland, go 0.4 mile and turn right onto GA 75. Travel 3.6 miles on GA 75 and turn right on Tom Bell Road. Go 0.1 mile on Tom Bell Road, and turn left onto Chambers Road. Travel 0.8 mile on Chambers Road and turn left onto a gravel road. Travel 0.4 mile to the parking area. FACILITIES/TRAILHEAD There is a privy at the trailhead and another at the clearing at 1.5 miles. There is no fee for parking or camping. There are no water sources, so carry all the water you will need. NOTE(S) To avoid hiking or climbing during ranger training, call the US Army Ranger 5th Battalion at Camp Frank D. Merrill at 706-864-3327. DESCRIPTION At the northeast side of the gravel parking area (Waypoint 1), enter the narrow dirt path that cuts through high grass. You soon walk a shaded trail that rises gradually through mixed hardwoods, pines, and mountain laurels. The path winds among large boulders scattered throughout a modest slope and then up the mountain’s south- western flank. Climb two sets of stone steps, and then walk downhill briefly. At 0.9 mile, you scramble over large rocks and pass between two boulders that are about 20 feet high. Another gradual walk uphill brings you to a grassy clearing at 1.1 miles (Waypoint 2). To the left is a wide break in the trees where you can see for miles, with lowlands extending to the western horizon. A trail to the right marked lowers leads to the lower climbing crag. Go straight toward the upper climbing area, traveling north across the field to continue up the mountain and begin a steep ascent on an old roadbed of red earth. At 1.4 miles, a narrow trail on the right provides alternate access to the upper cliff faces. Continue straight, traveling north. At 1.5 miles (Waypoint 3), turn right onto a gravel road and tra...
