Pinhoti Trail in Georgia

Area Status: Open
A church group goes for a day-hike on the Pinhoti Trail.

The Pinhoti (Creek for the turkey's home) Trail is one of the Southern Appalachian Mountain's premier long distance hiking trails, offering over 160 miles of recreation opportunities for hikers, backpackers, horse-riders, and mountain bikers in the state of Georgia. It also serves as an excellent connector trail, linking the Pinhoti Trail in Alabama to the Appalchian Trail atop Springer Mountain, via the Benton MacKaye Trail found on the South Fork of Jacks River within the Conasauga Ranger District.

At a Glance

Current Conditions:  
Restrictions: Motorized traffic: is not allowed on the Pinhoti Trail with the exception of those segments where the trail follows public roads.
Non-motorized mountain bikes: allowed on all sections except the Bear Creek Loop to the Mountaintown Creek Trail. 
Horses: allowed on all sections except the Hurricane Trail junction to Dug Gap, and from Tatum Lead Road to Forest Road 64 at Buddy Cove Gap. 
Horse and bike traffic must use the northern route around Keown Falls and Pilcher Pond.
 
Closest Towns: Stores can be found along road-walk sections of the trail between Cave Spring and Coosa, and between Dalton and Chatsworth. 

A wide range of services, including medical services, are available in Rome, Summerville, Dalton, and Chatsworth.
Information Center: Please contact the Conasauga Ranger District at 706-695-6736 or visit one of our partner organizations:

General Information

Parking:

We manage multiple Trailheads along the Pinhoti Trail. Those with large parking areas accommodating many cars and horse trailers are: 

  • Snake Creek Gap (Georgia Highway 136)
  • HighPoint trailhead (Georgia Highway 100)
Trailheads with smaller parking areas holding anywhere from 3-5 cars but only 1-2 horse trailers at most: 
  • Old Narrows Picnic Area
  • West Armuchee Creek (Manning Mill Road)
  • Hurricane Creek
  • Jacks River Fields Campground and Horse Camp

Other smaller parking (holding 2-6 cars but not appropriate for horse trailers) are:

  • East Armuchee Road
  • Johns Mountain Overlook
  • Keown Falls Recreation Area
  • Pilcher Pond parking area on Pocket Road
  • Bear Creek
  • Mack White Gap (U.S. Highway 27)

General Notes:

For detailed directions to our Trailheads, where to get maps, trail section descriptions, mileage and up-to-date information on the Pinhoti Trail please see the Guide to the Pinhoti Trail in Georgia pdf.

Click here for important safety information...


Activities

Mountain Biking

The Pinhoti Trail contains many great opportunities for mountain-bikers, with only limited areas where biking is not allowed (see restrictions above).  
For detailed information on mountainbiking and events realted to mountainbiking in Northwest Georgia please visit the Northwest Georgia SORBA website.

Dispersed Camping

Camping is allowed on any Forest Service lands along the trail unless there is a specific posted prohibition. Be aware that the trail passes through private property, where camping is prohibited.

General Info:

Safety Information

 

Long sections of the trail are along ridgelines where there is no water. When water sources are encountered, consider the water to need boiling or chemical treatment before it is safe for human consumption (many larger streams are downstream from livestock and agricultural enterprises). Water sources that are available in winter may be dry in summer and fall.

Day Hiking

You don't have to be a backpacker to enjoy this amazing trail.  According to one of our very own seasoned hiking professionals here on the Forest, there are numerous wonderful day hiking opportunities on the Pinhoti. One such opportunity awaits visitors at the Cohutta Overlook.  Here one can hike in as far as one chooses, and enjoy stunning vistas (especially in the winter!), passing through gaps and over creeks.  The return trip, although along the same path, promises different views of the scenery along the trail.


To start your hike, follow Highway 52 west from the Cohutta Overlook parking area about 100 feet to the trailhead.  The trail is marked with either a plastic “turkey foot” blazer or a white paint blaze.


Others include:

Backpacking

A portion of the Pinhoti Trail in Georgia is also designated as the Great Eastern Trail. This is a long trail that is under development to link numerous existing trails such as the Pinhoti Trail in Alabama and Georgia, the Cumberland Trail in Tennessee, the Pine Mountain Trail in Kentucky and Virginia, the Allegheny Trail in West Virginia, the Tuscarora Trail in West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, the Standing Stone Trail in Pennsylvania, the Mid State Trail in Pennsylvania, and the Finger Lakes Trail in New York. When complete, the trail will run from a spur of the Florida Trail and the Alabama state line to the North Country National Scenic Trail in New York. 

Please see the Guide to the Pinhoti Trail in Georgia, provided by the Georgia Pinhoti Trail Association, for detailed and up-to-date descriptions and information on the trail.

General Info:

Parking

There are multiple Trailheads located along the Pinhoti managed by the Forest service. Those which can accommodate multiple cars and/or horse trailers are:

  • Snake Creek Gap (Georgia Highway 136)
  • HighPoint trailhead (Georgia Highway 100)
  • Buddy Cove Gap (Forest Service Road 64).

 

Smaller Trailhead parking holding only 2-3 horse trailers at most and/or 3 -15 cars:
  • Mack White Gap (U.S. Highway 27)
  • Old Narrows Picnic Area
  • West Armuchee Creek (Manning Mill Road)
  • Hurricane Creek 

Other smaller parking areas holding 3-15 cars but not suitable for horse-trailers:

  • East Armuchee Road
  • Johns Mountain Overlook
  • Keown Falls Recreation Area
  • Pilcher Pond parking area on Pocket Road
  • Dug Gap
  • Bear Creek
  • West Fork Jacks River

For detailed information and directions to the individual trail heads please review the Guide to the Pinhoti Trail in Georgia...


Horse Riding

What a treat it is to go horseback riding on a trail like the Pinhoti!  Please see Restrictions above for the areas where horsback riding is not permitted on the Pinhoti.
For more information on joining a group ride, horseback riding organizations in Georgia or equestrian conservation awareness, please visit any of the below listed websites: