For the last leg of our vacation we decided to get in some more hiking and one of the best trails I’ve hiked in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Georgia so far is Green Mountain Trail near Deep Gap. This trail has a lot of what I’ve come to enjoy in hiking – wide views, high elevations, and being right on the edge of a drop. It’s exciting at some points along the trail to look to your side and see that if you don’t watch your step, you’re going to end up falling down a sharp drop a few hundred feet.
Green Mountain Trail
Length: ~ 1.9 miles
Starting elevation: 2243 feet
Trail Head: Off of Aska Rd. located across from the parking lot of Deep Gap
Directions: Green Mountain Trail starts across from the parking lot at Deep Gap on the other side of Aska Rd and after about an hour of hiking, you’ll come out on the trail about 50 yards to the left of the starting trail. It ascends on on the southeastern side of Green Mountain and at about the halfway point, the trail steeply ascends onto the ridge of Green Mountain. You’ll come to a junction where you can follow a 2.5 mile trail to Forest Road 711, but if you turn back towards Deep Gap where the sign says “Green Mountain” it’ll be about a mile back with a beautiful winding up and down trail from the summit of Green Mountain that eventually descends and takes you right back to the car.
Time to hike! We set out with a couple bottles of water, our adventurous spirits, and the excitement that the great outdoors brings. I was feeling loads better than the day before since my cold was finally dwindling, but Sarah’s was actually getting worse. What a persistent cold! Of course on the trail I came across I stick that I just had to pick up to use for my walking stick. You just never know what you might need a good stick for.
The visuals were spectacular and we noticed that in the first 30 minutes of hiking the trail, it kept heading up and up. As we gradually gained altitude, we could start to see the trails that we had just come from down below. It wrapped around the ridge of the mountain and steadily climbed to the summit. I love hiking in a group because at some areas when you look back, you might notice that you’re on a completely different hill than someone else. There could be a big chasm separating you from the group and it gives you that grander sense that you’re really out there doing something in the wild.
If only there were some hills like this in Florida… But I guess every area has its own unique characteristics. Hiking has to be one of the best things you can do for yourself to take you away from the buzz of the modern world. I mean, what could be better than a little exercise and a big breath of fresh air?
Just as we reached the midway point of the trail, we found the junction to take the Green Mountain Trail back to Deep Gap. We hiked up about 5 more minutes and we had reached it! The summit of Green Mountain. It was all downhill from there and let me tell you, the descent was exciting to say the least. It dropped pretty quickly and if you didn’t have on some nice hiking shoes, you were in for some slips and falls.
As the trail quickly dropped and sharply turned left and right I began to think about the time I had spent in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Every day of the trip had something unique and special for me to remember. From the spectacular Amicalola Falls, to the cabin high in the clouds on the mountain, to the little mountain town of Blue Ridge, the amazing horseback riding, and especially the adventurous trails of Georgia, it was a great time. Even while having the worst cold I’ve had since I can remember, I’ll miss this place. Until next time Blue Ridge!
Tags: Aska Trails, Blue Ridge Mountains, Deep Gap, Georgia, Green Mountain Trail, hiking
