The Pinhoti Trail is a Southern

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

long-distance trail, in length, located in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

within the states of

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. The trail's southern terminus is on Flagg Mountain, near Weogufka, Alabama, the southernmost peak in the state that rises over . (The mountain is often called the southernmost Appalachian peak, though by most geological reckonings, the actual Appalachian range ends somewhat farther north in Alabama.) The trail's northern terminus is where it joins the

Benton MacKaye Trail The Benton MacKaye Trail or BMT is a footpath nearly in length in the Appalachian Mountains in the southeastern United States and is blazed by a white diamond, 5″ across by 7″ tall. The hiking trail was created and is maintained by the Ben ...

. The trails highest point is Buddy Cove Gap, with an elevation of 3164 feet near the

Cohutta Wilderness The Cohutta Wilderness was designated in 1975, expanded in 1986, and currently consists of . Approximately are located in Georgia in the Chattahoochee National Forest and approximately are located in Tennessee in the Cherokee National Forest. T ...

. Its lowest point above sea level is close to Weogufka Creek near Weogufka State Forest at 545 feet. The Pinhoti Trail is a part of the Eastern Continental Trail and the

Great Eastern Trail The Great Eastern Trail is a network of hiking trails forming a long-distance route in the eastern United States. North of Georgia, the route runs parallel to, and slightly to the west of, the Appalachian Trail. As of 2022, it is still under deve ...

, both very long-distance US hiking trails connecting multiple states.

Geographic characteristics

The north terminus is approximately west of

Springer Mountain Springer Mountain is a mountain located in the Chattahoochee National Forest on the border of Fannin and Gilmer counties. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains in northern Georgia, the mountain has an elevation of about . Springer Mountain serves ...

, which is the southern terminus of the

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tr ...

. Georgia has about of the trail, and

contains the other of the trail.

History

From th
Pinhoti Trail Alliance
The PTA Facebook account has the most history and current trail conditions online. "The Pinhoti Trail is considered the realization of forester Benton MacKaye's original 1921 vision of a trail extending the length of the Appalachian Mountain chain, connecting several existing trails, and sprinkled with permanent camps and constructed to "stimulate every line of outdoor non-industrial endeavor," including recreation, recuperation, agriculture and study. He hoped to spark a "back to the land" movement to relieve the ills of urban industrial life." https://www.bhamwiki.com/w/Pinhoti_Trail From the Georgia Pinhoti Trail Association website: Construction of the Alabama Pinhoti Trail began in 1970 within the

Talladega National Forest The Talladega National Forest is located in the U.S. state of Alabama and covers 392,567 acres (613.39 sq mi, or 1,588.66 km2) at the southern edge of the Appalachian Mountains. Before it was bought by the federal government in the 1930s, th ...

in east central and northeast Alabama. In 1977, the Talledega National Forest portions of the trail were designated a

National Recreation Trail The National Trails System is a series of trails in the United States designated "to promote the preservation of, public access to, travel within, and enjoyment and appreciation of the open-air, outdoor areas and historic resources of the Nati ...

.Pinhoti
National Recreation Trails. AmericanTrails.org. Last Updated 06/06/2011. Accessed 2011-07-16. By 1983, of trail had been constructed and Mike Leonard of the Alabama Wilderness Coalition proposed connecting the Pinhoti to the Appalachian Trail in Georgia. The U.S. Forest Service and Alabama's Forever Wild land trust aided in the acquisition of major wilderness tracts. The Pinhoti Trail currently travels through some of those acquired lands and others in which it is planned to go through. The Pinhoti Trail was initially completed in February 2008, and officially opened to the public on March 16, 2008. Efforts continue to improve the trail, mainly involving moving road walk sections of the trail onto trails away from the road. A new southern terminus of the trail at the base of Flagg Mountain, opened in March 2015.

Appalachian Trail designation

Occasionally, a small but vocal group of Alabama hiking groups have been advocating to officially designate the Pinhoti Trail as a part of the

— a move that would make Flagg Mountain the southern terminus of the AT. However, these attempts have garnered a significant amount of controversy and backlash. Groups trying to push the merger forward utilized disinformation tactics and attempted to claim that Benton MacKaye wanted this and that acclaimed Alabamian hiker Nimblewill Nomad was promoting the idea. However, this was revealed to be disinformation and Nimblewill Nomad clarified his position by stating on his website that he was completely opposed to Pinhoti being made a part of the AT and that the two trails should remain separate.

Trails used in the system

* Johns Mountain Trail and the Keown Falls loop trailM. Lee Van Horn
The Georgia Pinhoti
Alabama Hiking Trail Society. Last Updated April 2003. Accessed 2011-07-21. * Simms Mountain Rail Trail * The Pinhoti joins the Chief Ladiga Trail, a

rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetcar ...

, for a short portion.

Connecting trails

* The northeastern terminus is the

. * Heflin Spur (3.5 miles) established in August 2018 connecting with the Pinhoti at FS 500 parking lot to Heflin City Hall. * Chinnabee Silent Trail (8.0 miles) established in 1977 connecting with the Pinhoti at Little Caney Head in the

Cheaha Wilderness The Cheaha Wilderness lies next to Cheaha State Park, near the Talladega Mountains in Alabama, United States. It lies within the Talladega National Forest and is administrated by the US Forest Service. Congress designated the area on January 3, ...

to the Chinnabee Lake Recreation Area.

Public lands traversed

* Weogufka state forest *

including the

and the

Dugger Mountain Wilderness Dugger Mountain Wilderness is Alabama's third and newest wilderness area. Dedicated April 2000, Dugger Mountain Wilderness covers of Talladega National Forest in Calhoun County and Cleburne County in Alabama. Geography Dugger Mountain, the sec ...

. Talledega National Forest has of trail in its boundaries. * Most of the Georgia Pinhoti Trail is in the

Chattahoochee National Forest The Chattahoochee River forms the southern half of the Alabama and Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia border, as well as a portion of the Florida - Georgia border. It is a tributary of the Apalachicola River, a relatively short river formed by the con ...

. * Indian Mountain Complex managed by Alabama's Forever Wild

References

External links

Pinhoti Trail AllianceAlabama Hiking Trail SocietyAlabama Trail AssociationGeorgia Pinhoti Trail AssociationPinhoti Trail at The Conservation Fund
{{Coord, 32.9781, -86.3547, display=title Hiking trails in Alabama Hiking trails in Georgia (U.S. state) Long-distance trails in the United States National Recreation Trails in Alabama National Recreation Trails in Georgia (U.S. state) Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest Great Eastern Trail Protected areas established in 1970 1970 establishments in Alabama Protected areas of Alabama Alabama placenames of Native American origin Georgia placenames of Native American origin