From its start 8 miles north of popular Amicalola Falls  in Dawsonville, GA (only about 30 min from Long Mountain Lodge, a beautiful state park with a breathtaking waterfall), the Appalachian Trail winds north past mountains with names like Blood, Trey and Big Cedar and through gaps named Addis, Neels and Woody. Part of the trail can be accessed from a trail right off of Camp Wahsega Road (the road Long Mt Lodge is located off of).

The trail is a microcosm of the natural history of the North Georgia mountains.

It follows the high eastern ridge of the Appalachian Mountains. Much of the trail is covered with snow in the winter. Spring melts give way to many of the wildflowers common throughout the mountains including bloodroot, trillium, and azalea. Laurel and rhodedendron "hells" bloom in the early summer and cover much of the clear areas of the trails. Forests are mostly second growth hardwood with hickory, oak and poplar dominating.

White rectangular blazes mark the trail over the entire 2100 miles from Georgia to Maine. Turns are marked with double blazes and side trails and approaches use blue.

Trail Segments Near Long Mt Lodge:

Springer Mt to Woody Gap
(The start of the Appalachian Trail)

Woody Gap to Neels Gap

Neels Gap to Hogpen Gap

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