Читать книгу Afoot & Afield: Atlanta. 108 Spectacular Outings in North-Central Georgia онлайн

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From the north side of the day-use parking lot, begin at the trail kiosk and take the paved path that leads to the canyon overlook (Waypoint 1). Enter a dirt-and-gravel path (Waypoint 2) and begin your descent into the canyon. At the first trail junction, take a sharp right and an immediate left to descend metal-and-wood stairs. At 0.2 mile (Waypoint 3), turn right at the T intersection and descend, following the trail marked WATERFALL 0.3 MILE. At the next trail junction, turn right and descend toward Hemlock Falls. Near the floor of the canyon, you reach a wood footbridge (Waypoint 4) and a sign marked SITTON’S GULCH TRAIL. Turn right and cross the footbridge with Daniel Creek flowing below. Just beyond the bridge, steps lead you into the shade of hemlocks, and the trail skirts two stocky waterfalls that burst through seams in the rock like a broken dam. A little farther on, the roar of the falls recedes and the trail rolls easily through more hemlocks and hardwoods. During your trek, take time to wander down to the creek bank and rest on the large boulders that overlook broad swimming holes (Waypoint 5). Periodically, the path drifts away from the creek, but it eventually sidles back up to the bank. At 1.7 miles, the land flattens and the creek widens to flow more slowly through younger forest. At the 2-mile mark (Waypoint 6), bear right at the Y junction to continue on the Sitton’s Gulch Trail. After another 0.1 mile (Waypoint 7), a trail intersects on the left, and you should continue straight and travel north to stay on the Sitton’s Gulch Trail. You’ll reach another Y junction at 2.2 miles, and you can bear right to continue another 0.3 mile to the end of the trail at a parking lot (Waypoint 8). From the end of the trail, retrace your steps. Then, at the 3-mile mark, turn right at Waypoint 7 to take an interior loop trail that stretches 0.7 mile. When you return to Waypoint 6 at 3.3 miles, turn right and retrace your steps back to the trailhead.