Conditions in Cohutta

I am planning to do some backpacking/hunting in Cohutta Wilderness this coming weekend. I have not been up there in a while so was wondering what it looks like in the burned out areas. It would be kind of cool to see that.
Also, looks like winter conditions this weekend which I am prepared for. I know some of the roads up there are closed for the winter, but was thinking of going in from the west via Rocky Flats which I believe should be open as I have gone there in the winter in the past. I dont think the west side got burned did it? I can't seem to find any info on the final burned area, but will call the forest service before I go.

Thanks for any info

With what is coming I would not be there this weekend!

That is the whole idea!

I do lots of winter backpacking.. even in deep snow in the smokies last year. So my main concern is the roads.. but I have snow chains for my tires and a come-along in case I get stuck.

Anyways, there is no rain forecast up there as in Atlanta.. only a little snow Saturday morning, so am not too concerned.

35 Whelen said:

https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/conf/news-events/?cid=FSEPRD527533

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Awesome link! It has a link to a map showing closed roads, and other info.
Thanks!

How did your trip go? We got about 5" of snow in Union County so I imagine the Cohuttas got more. It was 7 degrees this morning that would be mighty nippy in a backpacking tent.

ripplerider said:

How did your trip go?

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Great! I went up Friday before the snow hit. I hiked about 3 miles up a closed off forest service road and found a valley with a creek. There was only about an inch of snow there.. just enough to get a taste but not too much to get me stuck. It was in the teens at night.
I had a .22 in case I saw wabbits. Saw tracks but no wabbits.
On my drive out there were lots of people heading up the mountain to go sledding or whatever, so there were some packed icy spots, but I had tire chains (glad I brought those).
I rarely use tents for backpacking (too heavy), usually a tarp or hammock. This time I set up a 'super shelter'.

Looks like a great trip. I use a hammock when backpacking/hunting as well. The pick in my avatar was on the AT at Rock Top Spring two years ago. It got down in the low teens that trip. Water bottles would start to freeze immediately unless you stuffed them inside of your jacket. I had enough gear for the cold temps, but the 20 mph gusts all night long made it difficult to sleep. The tarp was flapping like a ships sail no matter how low I pitched it.

I use a hammock when it is not much below freezing. But once it gets colder I usually use an insulated air mattress on the ground with a bivy bag and tarp over me.
This is the second time I used a super shelter.. the first time was in high winds and got tore up. I was also under some tall trees which were really blowing and I was lucky nothing fell on me.
This time I was in a valley so the wind was not bad even though it was windy at night. Even though cold air sinks into a valley I would rather be protected from the wind. Next time I am going to use a strong ridge pole with sticks along the back side as protection against widow makers falling on me. This will also help reinforce the back wall against wind. I poured hot water in both my water bottles and kept them in my shelter.. but by morning there was ice in them (not frozen solid though). I did not keep the fire going all night.. otherwise they wouldn't have done that as this shelter is warm when the fire is going.

Yeah.. you dont sleep much when it is windy.
Cheers

Looks like a great time!

livinoutdoors said:

Looks like a great time!

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Yeah brother! I love winter camping.. most of the time I do it with the Atlanta Outdoor Club. But I also enjoy going on my own when I can do some hunting. I also like to try different bushcraft/survival techniques. You just gotta have backup gear in case something doesn't work. I've learned some good stuff from the Primitive Skills forum on this site.

When I was in my twenties some friends and I went on a December backpacking trip several miles up Bobs Branch on Brasstown Bald every year. The first year we came downhill from the parking lot from the top. I didnt own a good backpack back then so I carried my gear in a large duffel bag. Talk about getting sore that very extreme downhill slog had us so stiff the next day we could barely walk despite being in good shape. We camped the first place we found level enough to pitch tents near the head of Bobs Branch which was a LONG way down.
Believe what you will about global warming/climate change but Decembers were much colder in the 80's. We didnt have all this lightweight warm clothing and gear thats available now just cotton long johns, flannel shirts, blue jeans or overalls and heavy coats. We did have goose-down Army issue sleeping bags. We had to keep a huge fire going most of the time to be halfway comfortable. We built an enormous fire pit with reflector rocks behind it made a poker table out of a big rock slab and generally had a ball. We came in from the bottom Forest Service road after the first year which reduced the hike by a couple of miles but we were still way yonder back in there. Every year we improved the fire pit built fairly comfortable rock chairs and generally improved the campsite. We kept a cache of frying pans, pots, etc. under a big boulder and every year the bears would scatter it around. Eventually it died out as friends got married, moved away for work or just got too fat and lazy to do it. I took my son back in there several years ago and a big oak had fallen right across all our hard work.
Still have a lot of good memories from those days though. It motivated some of us to acquire more backpacking gear and make many trips into Cohutta, the Chatooga river (mainly the West Fork area) the Smokies and various other wild places, usually to trout fish. I miss that cold weather camping it was a real challenge.

Is that some kind of reflector behind your fire or were you just drying something out?

ripplerider said:

Is that some kind of reflector behind your fire or were you just drying something out?

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That is a reflector with mylar. Kind of overkill since it was only in the teens.. but wanted to experiment.

I regularly go to Chatooga with friends.
Also, a few years ago there was an ice storm on thanksgiving week. So I decided to hike up to Brasstown bald via Jack's Knob trail. I didn't have spikes for my boots, and it was slippery going up, but I made it up there. I brought my rifle because it was deer season. No one was up there because the road was not open. Pretty cool walking around Brasstown Bald with my rifle.
I hear you about the weather up there. Brasstown wilderness has some of the lowest recorded temperatures in Georgia I believe.

THAT LOOKS LIKE A GOOD TIME!!