Cohutta Wilderness Blog: Cumberland Island Update

The Cohutta Wilderness

We love this place and I want to take my childern and grandchildren there so please please pratice Leave No Trace Principals! (see links if you don't know what they are)

This land was intensivly logged until the 1920's (70% or so). The area has recovered remakably well. Now all that remains are, old road beds, cables, and the ocassional railroad ties.

It became a wilderness area in 1975 @ 36,977 acres it is the largest NFW in the southeast. (The Cohutta Wilderness ajoins the Big Frog Wilderness (8,055 acres) across the state line in TN.

The Cohutta Wilderness in GA is part of the larger 95,265 acre CWMA.

Highest Points: Big Frog Mountian 4,224(TN) East Cowpen (4,200 ish)
Major Rivers: The Conasauga River, and Jacks River. These 2 give you good reason to always carry sandals when in the Cohuttas.

The Benton MacKaye Trail is in and the Pinhoti Trail Borders the Wilderness

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Cumberland Island Update

3 weeks ago I was invited on one of those once in a lifetime trips. Cumberland Island, GA. I was going with 3 veteran's and 2 other newbies like me. After the long drive from Dalton to St Mary's (the jumping off point for excursions to Cumberland Island) we settled into our hotel The Riverview. I highly recomend this place. Great food and a great little bar. We awoke early Sunday morning to a beautiful day and began to unload our gear for the ferry ride over (just across the street from the hotel). The Ferry ride only take about 45 minutes. Once on the island you grab some carts for your gear (for those camping at Sea Camp) and then head into the Ranger Station for a interpertion and campsite assignments (your name is called then you choose in the order your name was called). There is a cold water bath house and running water at Sea Camp. Once you hike the 1/2 mile to camp and get set up its time to explore! The Beaches, The Ruins, The Dunes, The Marshes, The Wildlife there is so much to see is amazing