Hale Road to Rabun Bald Ga's 2nd Highest Peak Bartram Trail Hike

Rabun Bald

Distance: Round Trip 8.4 Miles
Difficulty: Strenuous & Arduous
Hike Time: 4 - 6 hours
Elevation +/-: 1446' or 450m Some report Elevation change at 2340' 780m

From the Observation platform on the summit you can see GA, SC & NC in a 360 degree panoramic view. The views are supposed to be spectacular. The first 3 miles are roughly a 200' increase (66m) with the last 1.2 miles ascending 1200'

The top of Rabun Bald offers that rare view of wildness — no houses, roads, cellular towers or smokestacks. On a clear day, looking northeast, you can see for 100 miles across the Blue Ridge Escarpment, where Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina meet. There lie some of the last large uninterrupted forests in the Southeast.

Layers of ridgelines on the horizon, dark to lighter purple, appear endless. From the observation platform atop the 4,696-foot summit of our two-mile climb, the clouds move in horizontal puffs of gray and white, inviting us to reach out and touch. Rabun Bald, in the northeast corner of the state, is Georgia's second-highest peak, topped only by Brasstown Bald.

This is a part of the Bartram trail which I am attempting to hike the whole trail, over the next year with these day hikes.

IF THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT RISK OF A THUNDERSTORM THIS HIKE WILL BE POSTPONED, THE STORMS ON THE TOP OF RABUN BALD ARE WARNED AS VERY DANGEROUS.

Trailhead is about 50 miles from Seneca 1.25 hours 100 * .08 = 8.00 gas expense
Trailhead is about 80 miles from Ryan's 2.25 hours 160 * .08 = 12.80 gas expense

We hope to leave the Walmart parking area at 9:00 am so that we can be hiking by 10:30
allowing us to be out of the woods before 5:30 pm.

Hike will be at Bill, Janice & Mike speeds, as I wheeze my way up the Mountain. I am probably the slowest of the bunch.

This should be very enjoyable hike, but no walk in the park as it is 1200' higher than Sassafras Mountain.

ALWAYS BRING WATER AND SOMETHING TO EAT.

Everyone meet in Walmart parking area behind Zaxby's 1636 Sandifer Blvd
Seneca, SC 29678 We'll leave at 9:00 am.

No Dogs are allowed on our Hikes !

DISCLAIMER: PARTICIPATION IN THE UPSTATE HIKING AND ADVENTURE GROUP ("THE GROUP") IS ENTIRELY VOLUNTARY. THE GROUP PLANS TO PARTICIPATE IN HIKES RANGING IN DIFFICULTY FROM EASY TO DIFFICULT AND HIGHLY RIGOROUS. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO DETERMINE HOW FAR AND HARD YOU CAN HIKE WITHOUT ADVERTENTLY OR INADVERTENTLY CAUSING INJURY TO YOURSELF OR OTHERS. THERE ARE ALSO INHERENT RISKS IN TRAVELING TO AND FROM ANY TWO POINTS, INCLUDING TRAVEL TO AND FROM THE HIKES AND OUTINGS FOLLOWING THE HIKES. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO OBSERVE APPROPRIATE SAFETY MEASURES DURING ANY AND ALL ACTIVITIES CONCERNING THE GROUP. BY PARTICIPATING IN THE GROUP YOU EXPRESSLY WAIVE ANY AND ALL CLAIMS THAT COULD ARISE FROM HIKING AND/OR ANY OTHER GROUP RELATED ACTIVITIES. BY PARTICIPATING IN THE GROUP YOU EXPRESSLY WAIVE ANY AND ALL SUCH CLAIMS AGAINST EACH AND EVERY OTHER MEMBER IN THE GROUP, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY AND ALL CLAIMS AGAINST THE GROUP ORGANIZER.