The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost 2,200 miles (3,540 km) between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy claims the Appalachian Trail to be the longest hiking-only trail in the world. More than three million people hike segments of the trail each year.
Dawson County is a county located in the Northeast portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 26,798 up from 22,330 in 2010. The county seat is Dawsonville.
Springer Mountain is a mountain located in the Chattahoochee National Forest on the border of Fannin and Gilmer counties. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains in northern Georgia, the mountain has an elevation of about 3,782 feet (1,153 m). Springer Mountain serves as the southern terminus for the Appalachian and Benton MacKaye trails.
Amicalola Falls State Park & Lodge is an 829-acre (3.35 km2) Georgia state park located between Ellijay and Dahlonega in Dawsonville, Georgia. The park's name is derived from a Cherokee language word meaning "tumbling waters". The park is home to Amicalola Falls, a 729-foot (222 m) waterfall that is the highest in Georgia. However, an analysis conducted by the World Waterfall Data base suggests that the main part of the falls is 429 ft (131 m) in height, followed by a prolonged gently sloping run in which the flow drops another 279 ft (85 m). It is considered to be one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Georgia. An 8-mile (13 km) trail that winds past Amicalola Falls and leads to Springer Mountain, famous as the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail, begins in the park. Amicalola Falls State Park also offers many hiking trails, a guest lodge, restaurant, cabins, a shelter for long-distance Appalachian Trail hikers, a campground, and access to the eco-friendly Len Foote Hike Inn.
Catoctin Mountain, along with the geologically associated Bull Run Mountains, forms the easternmost mountain ridge of the Blue Ridge Mountains, which are in turn a part of the Appalachian Mountains range. The ridge runs northeast–southwest for about 50 miles (80 km) departing from South Mountain near Emmitsburg, Maryland, and running south past Leesburg, Virginia, where it disappears into the Piedmont in a series of low-lying hills near New Baltimore, Virginia. The ridge forms the eastern rampart of the Loudoun and Middletown valleys.
Mount Le Conte is a mountain located within the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Sevier County, Tennessee. At 6,593 ft (2,010 m) it is the third highest peak in the national park, behind Clingmans Dome and Mount Guyot. It is also the highest peak that is completely within Tennessee. From its immediate base to its summit, Mount Le Conte is the mountain with the highest relief east of the Rocky Mountains, rising 5,301 ft (1,616 m) from its base, near Gatlinburg, Tennessee. For comparison, Pre-1980 Mount St. Helens in Washington was roughly 5,000 ft (1,524 m) above its base.
Blood Mountain is the highest peak on the Georgia section of the Appalachian Trail and the sixth-tallest mountain in Georgia, with an elevation of 4,458 feet (1,359 m). It is located on the border of Lumpkin County with Union County and is within the boundaries of the Chattahoochee National Forest and the Blood Mountain Wilderness. There are several waterfalls, hiking trails and other recreational areas in the vicinity. This mountain marks the southernmost range limit for many Northern and Appalachian species, especially for plant species.
Dick's Knob or Dicks Knob, with an elevation of 4,620 feet (1,408 m), is the third-highest peak in the State of Georgia if using a 200 ft. prominence rule. It is located in Rabun County, Georgia within the Southern Nantahala Wilderness and is the second-highest mountain in the county.
Standing Indian Mountain, elevation 5,499 feet (1,676 m), is part of the North Carolina portion of the Southern Nantahala Wilderness within the boundaries of the Nantahala National Forest. The mountain lies along the Appalachian Trail and is the highest point along the Nantahala River.
Rich Mountain, elevation 4,040 feet (1,230 m), is the highest point in the Rich Mountain Wilderness of the Chattahoochee National Forest in Gilmer County, Georgia. It is the second-highest peak in Gilmer County; only Big Bald Mountain is taller, with its summit at 4,081 feet (1,244 m).
The Appalachian National Scenic Trail spans 14 U.S. states over its roughly 2,200 miles (3,500 km): Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. The southern end is at Springer Mountain, Georgia, and it follows the ridgeline of the Appalachian Mountains, crossing many of its highest peaks and running almost continuously through wilderness before reaching the northern end at Mount Katahdin, Maine.
Mount Oglethorpe is a mountain located in Pickens County, Georgia, United States. The southernmost peak in the Blue Ridge Mountains, the mountain has an elevation of 3,288 feet (1,002 m), making it the highest point in Pickens County, and the Atlanta Metropolitan Area.
Waterrock Knob is a mountain peak in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the highest peak in the Plott Balsams and is the 16th-highest mountain in the Eastern United States.
Maintop Mountain is a mountain in Nelson County, Virginia. The mountain is a peak on a spur off the main Blue Ridge Mountains, about 2 miles (3 km) east of Elk Pond Mountain, and about 3.5 miles (5.5 km) west of The Priest. The mountain is located in the George Washington National Forest.
The Eastern Continental Trail (ECT) is a network of hiking trails in the United States and Canada, reaching from Key West, Florida to Belle Isle, Newfoundland and Labrador.
Lake Winfield Scott is an 18-acre (7.3 ha) mountain lake located 10 miles (16 km) south of Blairsville, Georgia in Union County. The lake, which is owned and managed by the U.S. Forest Service, is the source of Cooper Creek. It is the centerpiece of the Forest Service's Lake Winfield Scott Recreation Area, a park which features hiking, fishing, boating and other outdoor activities. At 2,854 feet (870 m) elevation it is one of Georgia's highest altitude lakes. The various habitats surrounding the lake support a wide assortment of plants and animals.
Albert Mountain is a mountain in North Carolina's Nantahala Range of the Appalachian Mountains. The Appalachian Trail goes along its summit, which is around 5,200 feet (1,600 m) high. A fire tower offers views of the Blue Ridge and the Little Tennessee River valley.
The Len Foote Hike Inn is a sustainably designed and LEED-certified ecotourism facility located near the peak of Frosty Mountain in the Chattahoochee National Forest in Dawson County, Georgia, USA. The lodge is open year-round and is only accessible via hiking trails. Twenty rooms, a two-story central lobby, a dining room, a bathhouse, toilets, and a common room comprise the facility.
