Cohutta Ranger District
Chattahoochee National Forest - North Georgia
Mountain Bike Trails and Rides

Description

This is an area with many places to ride. I have seen few mentions of this riding area on WEB pages about Georgia Mountain Biking. That may be because it is so spread out it is not good for a "quick ride", but is better suited for half or all day outings. It is located in Northern Georgia mostly in Murray and Gilmer Counties. The District Ranger's office in Chattsworth has an excellent 18 page booklet with a map of the area showing the trails and how to get to them. There are descriptions of each trail which is on the map. The last edition I have shows eleven (11) different trail loops. Most of the loops involve riding Forest Service roads back to the start. Some of these are gated roads some are not. Some of the bike trails are also open to ATV use. The booklet describes each trail and what kind of use the trail is open to. It also rates each trail as to difficulty. There are many places to ride here. I don't really know much about the area, as I have ridden it very little.
Bear Creek Loop Trail. It is a very good loop. The primitive camping area near the trail head is just that PRIMITIVE. You have to drive through a creek to get to the camping area. There is however, a good parking area at the trail head. I also know if you are going to ride the Mountaintown Creek Trail, the bear creek trail head is the place to park. The road to the lower trail head of Mountaintown is very, very rough single lane road and I would not drive my vehicle with a bike-carrier out that road. You can park at the Bear Creek Loop Trail head and ride both trails and have an all day ride. If you are looking at the maps and descriptions in the US Forest Service booklet my descriptions should make sense. Here is a list of the other trails in this area:

NOTE: It is important that you realize all of these trails may not be suitable for you, your riding style or riding ability. Some of them are primarly ATV trails and are open to bicycles. Some are very steep and rough. Some are great single tracks for mountain bikes. For more information on the difficulty and type of each trail you should check with the bike shops located in the area. The shop in Ellijay, GA has first hand information on some of these trails.

Information

You can obtain a trail description booklet of this area from the District Ranger Station located in Chattsworth. It is on the G I Maddox Pkwy which is also US 76. It is on the North side of the hi-way just before its junction with US 411. Note: US 76 is also GA 52 and the Chattsworth-Dalton Hi-way. You may also obtain the booklet by writing the station.
The address is:    U. S. Forest Service, Cohutta Ranger District, 401 G I Maddox Pkwy, Chattsworth, GA 30705.   Phone: (706) 695-6736

You can call the Ranger Station to find out how hunting season or other things affect the riding. I have been told the best camping in the area is at Conasauga Lake, but I don't know. Fort Mountain State Park is on the road from Chattsworth to Bear Creek and I have received several e-mails telling me that the Mountain Bike trail at Fort Mountain State Park is very good. Fort Mountain is also a good place to camp. The next time I am there I plan to go to Fort Mountain to find out. More information on Fort Mountain Park is on my North Georgia Page. The down side to this area is most of the trails are a long way apart. All of the roads are crooked and traveling takes twice to three times as long as you think it should. The good side is there is some great Mountain Biking in this area nice scenery with all types of terrain.

More Information

You can find our more about the trails and loop rides and access to the trails in a couple of books I have read. They are:

• Mountain Biking Georgia - by: Alex Nutt; from Falcon Press
• Off the Beaten Track Volume III: North Georgia - by: Jim Parham