PTA Section 6

PTA Site M ap / www.pinhotitrailalliance.org
Pinhoti Trail Alliance
Connecting Alabama and Georgia to the Appalachian Trail

The Pinhoti Trail / Section 6
0.0 ~ Flagg Mountain Trailhead to
13.1 ~ AL 21 / CR 41 Trailhead

Trail Club
?
?

Hike Direction
Northbound

Hike Distance
13.1 Miles

Trail Blazes
Light Blue Vertical Rectangles

Trail Description
Moderate ~ Road Walk

Time vs Distance
Consider 2mph as the average hiking pace:
15 minutes = 1/2 mile
30 minutes = 1 mile
60 minutes = 2 miles

Abbreviations
CS ~ Convenience Stores ~ 6.5
TT ~ Trail Towns ~ 13.1
SC ~ Small Campsites ~ X
LC ~ Large Campsites ~ X
TS ~ Trail Shelters ~ X
SW ~ Seasonal Water ~ 0.4, 12.5
RW ~ Reliable Water ~ 1.9, 8.3
HS ~ Hot Showers ~ X

Driving Directions
For a weekend section hike, you may want to bring two vehicles to the trail so that you can shuttle
yourselves from one end of your chosen section to the other.

First, you will need to park your “finish hike vehicle” at your section’s northern terminus and then drive
your “start hike vehicle” down to your section’s southern terminus.

The driving directions begin by guiding you from a nearby town to the northern terminus, followed by
directions from there down to the southern terminus, where you’ll start your hike.

Be aware that out on the road you’ll find very few signs pointing the way. Your odometer / trip meter
is going to become your best friend. Please use it.

Also be aware that most of the section trailheads are in pretty isolated areas. Any valuables you plan
to leave in your vehicle should be hidden from view.

Trail Data
Trail Club ~ Alabama Hiking Trail Society
Hike Direction ~ Northbound
Hike Distance ~ 11.3 Miles
Southern Terminus ~ 33.5 ~ Adams Gap Trailhead
Northern Terminus ~ 44.8 ~ Cheaha Trailhead
ECT Mile Point ~ 1280.5 ~ 1291.8
Trail Description ~ Difficult ~ Dry Rocky Ridges, Long Climbs

Abbreviations
CS ~ Convenience Store / Nice Mom and Pop stores.

TT ~ Trail Town / Large enough for McDonald's.

SC ~ Small Campsite / At least one tent site.

37.9, 42.6, 42.7, 43.5

LC ~ Large Campsite / At least three tent sites.

36.6, 38.3, 38.9, 39.3, 39.5, 39.6, 42.1, 42.2, 42.6, 43.1, 43.7, 44.2, 44.3

TS ~ Trail Shelter / Three sided, open front.

SW ~ Seasonal Water / Needs rain in the past week.

34.7, 36.0, 36.7, 39.0, 39.4, 39.5, 43.7

RW ~ Reliable Water / Always available.

Trail Marking
The new standard blazes for marking the Pinhoti are light blue vertical rectangles. The standard distance
between blazes is around 0.1 miles. Most of these are painted on trees at about eye level and are about
the size of a dollar bill. Until this new changeover is complete, you will also see some white blazes, silver
metal diamonds and white plastic diamonds with a turkey track on them and some white painted turkey
tracks. All of these will guide you in the right direction.

Time vs Distance
To help you judge the time needed to travel from point A to point B, consider that the average hiking
pace is 2 mph:

60 minutes = 2 miles
30 minutes = 1 mile
15 minutes = 1/2 mile

Driving Directions
Be aware that most of these trailheads and road crossings are in pretty isolated areas and also be aware
that you’ll find very few signs pointing the way. Your odometer is going to become your best friend.
Although various cars and trucks tend to measure distances a little differently, these mileages should be
fairly close.

33.5 ~ ADAMS GAP TRAILHEAD / AL 281

Exit I ~ 20 at AL 21, in Oxford, AL.

If you are coming from Atlanta, go to the end of the exit ramp. Turn left and go

under the I ~ 20

bridge to the first red light. Turn left.

If you are coming from Birmingham, go to the end of the exit ramp. Go straight

across at the red

light.

Go appx. 4 miles to a 4 way stop sign. Turn right.

Go appx. 4 miles to just before the overhead bridge. Turn left.

Go 0.1 to the stop sign at AL 281. Turn right.

Go 15.2 miles to the trailhead parking area / end of pavement.

The north trail goes in the Wilderness on the left, by the downhill paved road.

The south trail is on the right by the Adams Gap Trailhead sign.

44.8 ~ CHEAHA TRAILHEAD / AL 281

From the Adams Gap Trailhead, go back on AL 281 6.4 miles to the Cheaha

Trailhead

parking area,

on the right.

The Pinhoti Approach Trail begins at The Arch, at the back of the parking area.

Go through The Arch 50 yards to the Info Board.

Turn right and go up the hill 0.1 miles to the Pinhoti.

The north trail goes to the right.

The south trail goes to the left.

Trail Guide
33.5 ~ ADAMS GAP TRAILHEAD / AL 281 ~ 1444' ~ (Photo)

From the parking area, cross over AL 281 and go down the

downhill

paved

road

about

20' and turn

left up the hill into the

Cheaha Wilderness.

NEXT RW

~ 11.5 miles.

33.6 ~ SOUTH CHEAHA WILDERNESS BOUNDARY ~ 1500' ~ (Photo)

For many hikers, the

Cheaha

Wilderness

(Map)

is the # 1

destination

on the

Pinhoti

because of

it's stunning views and

numerous side trails,

which offer a lot

different

loop trail

possibilities. The dedication for

the

7490 acre

Wilderness

was

in 1983 and

this is the

south

western

boundary. There are 26

fire rings on the

Pinhoti in the next

11.4

miles

34.7 ~ 36.0 ~ 6 SPRING CROSSINGS ~ 1360' +/- ~ SW

36.6 ~ CAMPSITE ~ 1380' ~ LC

36.7 ~ SPRING CROSSING ~ 1360' ~ SW

37.0 ~ SIGN BOARD ~ 1460'

The trail turns right and goes 0.2 miles on the road bed.

37.2 ~ SIGN BOARD ~ 1575'

The trail goes back in the woods on the left. This sign board

is off trail

10' on the

left

and is

easy to miss. The road bed is

blocked with rocks

and logs here at the

turn.

you climb

over all this stuff the road

continues for another 0.2 miles up

the

gap.

There was

a hot fire up

here several years ago that

killed all the trees and

now

the gap

is a big

brush pile.

There

are no clear places to camp and no views.

37.2 ~ * STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN ~ 1575' ~ (Photo - Grey Eagle)

Here is a huge rock garden and t

ere are a lot of tricky little uphill

rocky

switchbacks for the

next 0.5

miles. There are

also good dark blue

blazes here,

which are not

allowed in the Wilderness

: ) Keep a

watch on them! If you are

familiar with the blaze system, you

know

that an off ~

set double blaze

(

) means

there is a turn coming up.

The

blaze on

TOP is

off ~ set,

either to the

right or left, signifying which

way

turn. As

of early 2003

all

the top

blazes in this section

are opposite

what they should be, but

who's

complaining?!

37.8 ~ * PEARLY GATES ~ 2050'

You will have to see it to believe it. Yikes! This is an

appropriate

introduction to

what

lies ahead

on the way up to

the

Cheaha Trailhead

; difficult but worth

every

drop of

sweat.

37.9 ~ * HEAVEN / ROCKY TOP 4 ~ 2135' ~ SC - (Photo by Mike and Lua n n e Boggs )

There is a hidden rocky overlook on the left as you scramble your way

around the

north side of the

peak.

This northern view

gives you a good

idea of

where you'll be

for the next 7.1

miles

on the way

up to Mt.

Cheaha. The

trail follows the ridge on

your right north for 4.1

miles,

then it comes

back

south 0.6

miles to the McDill

Overlook Trail, which

is that

rocky

point

straight out in front of

you. After

McDill,

the trail

turns

north again

and goes

2.4 miles to Cheaha, which is that

farthest

peak

you can see

from here. The faint blue

ridge

that's back behind

Cheaha is our Sister

Ridge

(Choccolocco

Mountains). You

can check

out Section 5,

mile

70.0, for more

details. You will have

off and on

views of

this 61 mile

mountain chain as she parallels

the Pinhoti all the

way up to

Dugger

Mountain in

Section 2. If you should ever make

it up

to Bald Rock on top

of Cheaha,

there

is a

close up view of her

as she

makes her

way east

from Coldwater to Oxford

and

then

the

northeast

turn in Golden Springs

before heading on

up to Piedmont.

ILDFLOWER

Mountain Laurel / Late Spring / White.

38.3 ~ 38.9 ~ 3 CAMPSITES ~ 2100' +/- ~ LC ~ Good views

39.0 ~ SPRING CROSSING ~ 2140' ~ SW

39.2 ~ * ROCKY TOP 5 ~ 2160'

39.3 ~ CAMPSITE ~ 2120' ~ LC ~ Good views

39.4 ~ SPRING CROSSING ~ 2120' ~ SW

39.5 ~ LITTLE CANEY HEAD ~ 2100' ~ LC, SW

The Pinhoti goes straight through

this 4 way intersection

This is the former site of

the Little

Caney Head

Shelter. Wilderness guidelines do

not

allow any

man

made structures within the

Wilderness

boundaries, so the

shelter was

flown by helicopter 3.2

miles

west on

the

Chinnabee Silent Trail to

Cheaha Falls and has

been renamed the Cheaha Falls

Shelter. This

shelter is in

great shape but it is a little homesick. It does have a good

view of its

old home up

here though and the falls make good

company

for it too.

Little

Caney Head is also

home

to the

intersecting point of 2

major side trails. This

is the

eastern

terminus

the

Chinnabee

Silent

Trail

which goes to the left

5.7

miles to

Lake

Chinnabee

This trail was

completed in 1976

by Boy Scout Troop # 29

from the

. I had the pleasure a

few years

ago of

meeting

one

of the original Troop Leaders who helped build this trail

back

the

70's.

This

gentleman and some of his friends still

come out every

year

to do

trail

maintenance.

This is also the

northern terminus of the

Odum

cout

Trail

which

goes

the right

4.9 miles to

the High Falls

Trailhead.

This trail was

built

by Boy

Scout Troop

and was

completed in 1961.

ILDFLOWER

Mountain Laurel / Late Spring / White

~ Little Caney Head is a busy place with 6 fire rings.

~ The spring is 50' down the CST, on the left.

39.6 ~ CAMPSITE ~ 2100' ~ LC ~ Good views

41.1 ~ CCT CONNECTOR ~ 2200'

The Pinhoti goes straight through.

The

Cave Creek Trail

Connector

goes to the

right

here 0.2 miles to the CCT sign

board, on the

left. You

can go left 3.8 miles to

the CCT

northern terminus at the

Cheaha

Trailhead or you can

straight 1.2

miles to the

Nubbin Creek Trail

and

another 1.9

miles to the CCT southern

terminus at the Odum

Scout Trail.

42.1 ~ CAMPSITE ~ 2040' ~ LC

This campsite and the next one have nothing even close to a

flat spot.

42.2 ~ CAMPSITE ~ 2060' ~ LC

42.6 ~ McDILL OVERLOOK TRAIL ~ 1940' ~ SC, LC

Good views. The Pinhoti goes straight through.

You can go

left 0.25

miles at the

sign

board to McDill. There is a great

overlook of

the

western

1/3 of the Wilderness

here

and views

of the Appalachian

Chain

as it

makes a perfect 20 mile

sweep

to the

southeast. There is a

pack of

Coyotes

living

the

Wilderness now and you can

hear

them

yipping

and howling

most any night

season. Look for gray, fuzzy

poop on the

trail; they like

to eat Possums 8~(. (No,

are not on the

Coyote food

chain : )

~ At the McDOT sign board, you can go right 50' up the

hill to some

small

campsites.

~ Go left on the McDOT 0.25 miles to several large

campsites

at the

overlook

42.7 ~ WHO ROCK ~ 1960' ~ SC

Good views. The trail

Bears

to the right here through the

pines.

This

campsite was

named by Dr. Lee, author of the

Hiking

Alabama

website.

There

is a large

western

view from

this small point. The night

time lights

are from

Talladega on

the left

and

Munford on the right.

43.1 ~ CAMPSITE ~ 2060' ~ LC

43.5 ~ NORTH CHEAHA WILDERNESS BOUNDARY ~ 2320' ~ SC

This is the northern boundary of the Wilderness

and

you have

just come

the

switchbacks and

reached the top of the

ridge

. T

he trail turns left

here

and the

Wilderness Dedication

Marker is

on the left at ground

level.

~ The campsite is on the right.

43.7 ~ HERNANDEZ PEAK ~ 2344' ~ LC, SW

This is the highest trail elevation on the Pinhoti. There are

several

campsites but

great views

here.

CAUTION ~

The trail makes a

tricky left turn up

ahead so here's the deal;

once

you make it

the Wilderness

Dedication Marker on top of this ridge, it's

almost

flat

as a pancake

for about

1/4 mile, then the ridge

ends and you start

going

downhill.

After

about 50'

you come

to a flat

grassy spot on the left

surrounded

big

rocks. The

trail

turns sharp left here and goes down

through a

steep

rocky

chute. Once you come

down off the ridge through the

chute, the

trail

crosses a

spring (bog) and gets on an

old jeep

road.

The Hon. Bill

Nichols used this

road to

ride

out to the

Cheaha

Wilderness Dedication

Ceremony. (Hey, he was an

old guy

! ! ) You

only go 50

yards

on the

jeep road and then

the trail veers off to

the left.

~ Come down off the ridge through the chute and go 50

yards to

the

spring.

43.8 ~ * HERNANDEZ PEAK SHELTER (planned 200?)

The exact location for this shelter has not been determined.

44.2 ~ CAMPSITE ~ 2140' ~ LC ~ Good views

44.3 ~ CAMPSITE ~ 2140' ~ LC ~ Good views

44.8 ~ CHEAHA TRAILHEAD ~ 1940' ~ (Photo)

Turn right at the

trailhead

sign board

and go

down

hill

0.1 miles to the Info Board.

The Cave Creek

Trail

northern

terminus is on the

right. The

trailhead parking

area

and

The

Arch are straight

ahead

yards. This year

there is a new

addition

the

trailhead

parking area.

The Approach

Trail to the

Pinhoti

Trail, Cave

Creek

Trail and

the Cheaha

Wilderness begins at

The Arch

which

is a

big

rock and

wrought iron

structure

that has 36

hand fired clay tiles with

actual

impressions

some of the

native

flora,

4 information plaques,

some wrought iron

Pine

cones and

Pine

branches,

2 rock

benches and

a VERY

unusual sidewalk. It is all

really

cool.

Some local artists

and

several groups of local school

kids

put

a lot of

time and

energy into

this first

class work of art.

It is a

tremendous

addition to our trail,

stop

by and take a

look.

Thanks guys !!

PT A S ite Map

Millennium
Legacy Trail

Section 6 ~ Trail Condition

Northern Terminus

0.0 ~ Trailhead
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ x
Brush 200? ~ Blowdowns 200? ~ Blazes 200?
0.0 ~ Trailhead

Southern Terminus