Camping is allowed in dedicated campsites only – look for parking spaces off the road and existing fire rings.  The sites are primitive – offering no amenities other than the stone fire rings – but offer the ultimate in beauty in the surrounding Chattahoochee National Forest and the tumbling Noontoola Creek that runs beside the camp sites.

The moss-lined, roaring creek cascades down in small waterfalls along many of the sites – providing great background noise at night (nothing beats falling asleep to the sound of a waterfall in a beautiful section of forest).

The campsites here are set back from the Forest Service Road far enough for decent privacy – and are very generously spaced from other sites (ours was nearly a half mile from the nearest sites).  You’ll be camping around a mile from the convergence of the Benton McKaye Trail and the famed Appalachian Trail – making these sites an excellent base camp for day hikes along either of these famed trails – check out our review of the hike along the Appalachian and Benton McKaye from FR 58 to Long Creek Falls.  Also leaving from this same trailhead, southbound towards Springer Mountain, is our trail review of the 8.6 mile hike of the Appalachian Trail from Three Forks to Springer Mountain, traveling to the Southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail.  From the campsite, venture further South on FR 58 to the intersection of the Benton McKaye and Appalachian Trails.

Getting there: from Atlanta, take 75 North to 575 towards Ellijay.  In Ellijay, turn right onto the ramp to GA 52.  At the foot of the ramp, turn left to head East on 52, and travel 4.75 miles to Big Creek Road.  Follow Big Creek Road for 15 miles (.4 miles after the pavement ends) and take a right on Forest Road 58.  After passing several residences on FR58, enter the Blue Ridge Wildlife Managment Area of the Chattahoochee National Forest.

Campsites will be visible along the Noontoola Creek, which winds to the right side of FR 58.  Our campsite was about halfway to the intersection of FR 58 and the Benton McKaye and Appalachian Trails at GPS coordinates 34.671271,-84.191725.  

It’s here, along FR 44, that we’ve found our favorite campsites – a string of primitive sites with stone fire rings and gravel turnoffs for parking off the side of the Forest Road.  Here, many streams converge and flow past the large campsites to meet with the Chattahoochee River downstream.  The sites are distributed along 3 miles of the Forest Road. Depending on the site you pick, your nearest campground will be up to a half mile from the next nearest site.

The proximity of the sites to hiking on the nearby Appalachian Trail, along with the serenity that the private campsites offer, make these a perfect weekend camping getaway that’s not too far from home.   Just North of the campsites on GA 75 is one of our favorite hikes, Indian Grave Gap.  Follow GA 75 North of FR 44 approximately 4 miles to Unicoi Gap, and hike northward on the Appalacian Trail toward Adidas Gap.  This 5 mile hike is strenuous but affords breathtaking views of the Chattahoochee National Forest from the top.

How to find the campsites?  It’s easy – take GA 75 North from Cleveland 17 miles (you’ll pass through Helen on the way).  You’ll pass Andrews Cove Campground on your right  - and several miles later, you’ll see a sign for the Upper Chattahoochee Campground and a turnoff for Forest Road 44 on your left.  FR 44 is gravel but easily drivable – follow along the road, enjoying the scenery, until you come across primitive campsites around 2 miles in on both sides of the road.

Camping here is free, and some sites are more private than others – though no cost means no facilities, so bring plenty of drinking water.  If you decide the primitive sites aren’t your thing and prefer full facilities instead, continue on FR44 for another few miles to the Upper Chattahoochee Campground, which offers 34 family campsites with full water and bathroom facilities at the cost of $12 a night (and very small sites that border with your neighbors) – but still shares in the beauty of the area and proximity to hiking. GPS Coordinates: 34.789946,-83.760924

REI’s 100% satisfaction guarantee promises that if you’re ever dissatisfied with any item, you’re able to return or exchange it at any REI store or through their website.  It’s this guarantee that  keeps us coming back to REI for most of our outdoor gear.

We love this tent!  It’s flexible for variable camping conditions – use rain fly plus footprint, full tent with rain fly, or tent only on warm summer nights.  A freestanding frame allows for camping in a wide variety of terrain – from sandy beaches to rocky mountain vistas, and the 4 person version boasts 57 square feet, which we’ve found perfect for sleeping two adults and a large dog, with plenty of room inside to spare for gear- and includes large, easy-to-open doors on both sides of the tent.

The REI Half Dome tent is versatile in a wide variety of weather conditions – from warm summer camping, when the fine mesh breathes well but keeps out flying creatures of the night, to cold fall and early winter camping, when we’ve used tent down to 30 degrees and remained toasty warm inside with rainfly on and vents open.

The rainfly vent system keeps airflow continuous without leaking heat – allowing for adequate ventilation without compromising heat retention during chilly winter, spring, and fall nights.

A rainfly provides extra storage for muddy boots and extra gear that need to be kept dry, and an integrated “attic” – netted area at peak of the tent – keeps cell phones, flashlights, and other essentials handy while you sleep.  The REI Half Dome HC also integrates multiple interior pockets – which are large in size for storage of essentials (wallets, keys, cell phones, flashlights) that need to be kept organized for easy access in the darkest of camping nights.

A sturdy loop at peak of the tent is perfect for hanging lantern;  the tent also boasts multiple interior loops along pole lines allow for hanging of additional lines or equipment.

This tent provides ultra fast setup – with no tedious pole threading – using a quick hook setup.  You extend the poles, hook center of tent to pole center hub, attach poles to color-coded corners and clip tent to poles, and you’re done – a process that takes 2-3 minutes when working with a camping buddy.  Tie downs on rainfly allow for extra ventilation.

A footprint is a highly recommended – providing extra protection for the floor of the tent, and is much cheaper to replace or repair than the tent floor itself.  The added bonus of the footprint is the ability to skip the main tent body on journeys when weight matters – allowing you to pitch a structure using only the rainfly and footprint with minimal weight and setup time (1-2 minutes).

The tent’s construction is quality throughout – tight, waterproof seams are well-placed to keep wet weather out, and tough zippers wear through the heaviest and most demanding use. Seams are stitched in reference to the high quality aluminum poles to manufacture a tent that, while lightweight, feels extremely sturdy in construction regardless of the wind or weather.  The rainfly, when used in rainy weather, is constructed to avoid contact with the tent sides or ceiling to prevent leaks – allowing water to run off without fear of leaking.

Order the Half Dome tent from REI:

REI Half Dome 2 Plus Tent

The hike starts from the trailhead with a climb up stairs from the parking area, climbing through rocky forest.  Follow a mountain stream as the trail switches back and forth as you ascend. Continue the climb as you pass the junction of the blue-blazed Rocky Mountain Trail (your return hiking route after passing through Indian Grave Gap later in this hike).  The Appalachian Trail is blazed white through its entire stretch from Georgia to Maine, with side trails (such as the Rocky Mountain Trail) blazed in blue.

The Appalachian Trail begins to level as you approach Rocky Mountain’s peak – and the forest begins to thin to reveal large outcrops of rock.

Views here – and as the trail extends down from the crest of the mountain – are beautiful and make for the perfect place to stop for a water break after the steep climb up.  Several campsites are visible from the trail – available to those who don’t mind packing their camping gear up the steep climb.

Oak predominates the forest as the trail descends and enters an area thickly vegetated with fern – a pretty contrast to the rocky face of the mountain in your ascent on the Western face.

Pass through Indian Grave Gap, so named for a stack rock pile to designate the grave of a Cherokee Indian buried off the trail, to meet the gravel Forest Service Road 283 at just over 2.5 miles from the trailhead.  Turn left on FR 283 and hike down the forest service road, following the blue blazes of Rocky Mountain Trail.  Blackberries grow alongside the road as it descends down, crossing several small streams along the way. As the road curves to the left, look for Rocky Mountain Trail to depart the road on the left hand side, marked by a double blue blaze at 3.3 miles from our trailhead.  The trail passes through rocky forest of tulip poplar and maple as it circles the mountain before beginning the ascent on the East side of the mountain to rejoin the Appalachian Trail.  You’ll pass a few sets of natural trail markers – as you likely saw at the trail where it departed FR 283 – of small stacks of rocks.

Small streams bisect the trail as it travels through the forest before crossing a stream during your climb.  The Rocky Mountain Trail intersects the Appalachian Trail at around 4.5 miles from the trailhead.

Turn right at the intersection of the Appalachian Trail to return to the trailhead, enjoying the decent downward. You’ll probably notice – as we did – more details of this beautiful, rocky section of forest on the decent than you did on the way up – as gravity is doing most of the work on your way down.

Getting there: take GA 75 North from Helen 9 miles to Unicoi Gap, passing one of our favorite camping spots in the Chattahoochee National Forest – the primitive sites along Forest Road 44 before the Upper Chattahoochee Campground – just before Unicoi Gap.  GPS Coordinates: 34.800927,-83.742955

We found REI’s Camp Roll table to be perfect – it’s lightweight, quick to pack, and best of all, backed by REI’s 100% satisfaction guarantee, so if anything goes wrong with this little table, you’ve got a replacement waiting for you at your local REI store (or online). Lightweight aluminum slats accordion closed and legs quickly collapse to break this table down in easily less than a minute – and setup is just as fast. The table comes with its own stuff sack for quick storage. Unfolded, the top is 27″ square – and the total weight of the table is around 9 pounds, making this table too heavy for backpacking but an easy win for camping trips when the trek from the campsite to the car isn’t terribly long.

The look of the table is stylish, too – not necessarily a requirement with camping gear, but great looks on gear that’s also functional and well designed is a bonus in our book.

We’ve got one of these great little tables – but are looking to get another for extra room when camping with friends (or on the nights when the dinners are campsite gourmet and we could use a little extra table room).

Order the Camp Roll Table from REI:

REI Camp Roll Table at REI.com

This hike is nothing but fascinating, and seems to get better on every visit, with seasonal changes making the terrain always-changing  (this was our 3rd hike on this trail, having found it 4 years ago – we’re eager to return any time our travels take us on this stretch of the Blue Ridge).

Turn off the Blue Ridge Parkway at milepost 418 into the paved parking area on the North side of the Parkway.  You’ll find several trails leaving the parking area – all wind through similar terrain and hike through to the same destination – the falls.  Total loop distance to the upper falls and back is a moderate hike of 4 miles.

The knobby, rolling terrain of the area –  both beautiful and seemingly alien – is guessed to have been formed by a windstorm that felled the large trees in the area, followed by extensive fires in the 30s that destroyed the remnants of the forest and created the continuous terrain of small mounds between the mountainous peaks that form the valley.

Cross over the first falls by footbridge and wind through the rolling terrain along the stream, passing many primitive campsites along the way.  (If you choose to camp, please use one of the already-used sites – in the 4 years since we first visited, the number of campsites has likely tripled and the signs of overuse are starting to show).  The payoff at the end of the hike – a set of falls that cascades – and then slides – down a long expanse of rock.

This hike has become one of our favorites – we hope you find the beauty of the area as striking and alluring as we have. GPS Coordinates: 35.320168,-82.823181 (click here for directions)

The gorge and surrounding 12,000 acres of Linville Gorge Wilderness a wealth of fantastic hiking trails and climbing – arguably some of the best in the state of North Carolina.

It’s here, across Forest Service Road 210 from the Hawksbill Trail trailhead, that we found one of our favorite camping and backpacking spots in North Carolina. Set back from the gravel forest road and trailhead a distance of a quarter mile, several primitive campsites here, marked with circular stone rings, offer solitude from the busy Linville Gorge hiking while providing close proximity to hiking in the gorge.

The campsite itself offers fantastic views from a 30 foot rock outcrop that opens to a wide valley facing north away from Linville Gorge. Views here are expansive – and equally beautiful at sunrise and during the day.

Parking is available along Forest Road 210. Access to the campsite is across the forest road from the Hawksbill trailhead; head a quarter of a mile along the trail. The first campsite is located in a wide clearing and offers ample space for several tents around the large stone fire ring. Our campsite of choice is located to the left of the first site; turn left when you reach the large clearing and follow the trail to the large rock outcrop that juts from the ground at a 45 degree angle.

Permits are required for camping in the gorge from May 1 through October 31, available from the Linville Falls Visitor Center.

Getting there: Turn onto Forest Service Road 210, Gingercake Road, from NC 181. Turn right at the fork on FR 210. The road rises as it climbs to the ridge of Gingercake and becomes a gravel road at the entrance to the Linville Gorge Wilderness. The Hawksbill Trail and camping area are located 3 miles along Forest Road 210 from Gingercake Acres. GPS Coordinates: 35.952285,-81.892862