620-O1 crew training in the Cohutta Wilderness
The easiest way I could centralize the planning and distribution of information for a light backpacking trip I’m planning for October 9-11, 2009 was to put it in my blog. So I might as well expand on it and turn it into something that will generate traffic, right? Right. The trip I’m going to be expanding on was originally a thought back in January/February for me and my Fiancee, Molly Locklear. However, she got ill immediately before the trip resulting in her being hospitalized leading to her being one organ (her gallbladder) shy of a full body. I never got back around to planning it out again, but another friend Nathaniel Foster expressed some interest in going on a short trip. So, I’ll rehash my ideas and start the planning again.
Picking a Location. The first thing that crosses my mind when I’m planning a trip is how hard do I want the trail to be. I’m taking a couple new (to backpacking) people along, so I don’t want them to be so tired and frustrated that it’s not a good experience for them. I also wanted to pick a place that was fairly scenic because everyone going along has a variable amount of interest in photography. Not too far away from Chattanooga/Dalton area is a fairly easy set of trails within the Cloudland Canyon State Park. In looking at the map available here. It doesn’t look like there are any crazy elevation changes on any of the trails except for the Sitton Gulch Trail, but it doesn’t have any camping sites. (more…)
Tags: backpacking, backpacks, Camping, camping sites, chattanooga, cloudland canyon state park, cohutta wilderness, crew training, elevation changes, fun, good experience, hiking, Leave No Trace, outdoors, Plan Ahead and Prepare, planning a trip, short trip, strenuous trail, trail itinerary, trip planning
When not spending time behind a computer screen bringing you his latest blog posts; you might catch him playing video games on his PC; eating/cooking something in the kitchen of his house in Northwest Georgia; watching movies from his Netflix queue; volunteering for the Boy Scouts of America; fueling his wilderness interests by hiking, camping, backpacking, rafting, kayaking; sustaining his established hobbies in Amateur Radio, videography, photography, or music; running his DJ business with his brother as a partner; or hanging out with his friends doing any number of fun activities. 