That shortcut on the Appalachian Trail near Hot Springs almost got me lost last week

I was hiking through the section just north of Hot Springs, North Carolina and decided to take what looked like a well worn side path to save a mile. About 20 minutes in the trail markers vanished and I was bushwhacking through rhododendron thickets. My phone had no signal and I had to backtrack using the sun position since I left my compass in the car. By the time I got back to the main trail I had wasted 2 hours and my water was half empty. Has anyone else run into fake shortcuts on that stretch?

2 comments

2 Comments

thea70428d ago

Heard a ranger say those paths are old logging trails that just dead end in the brush.

thomas.cameron28d ago

So why do they still bother marking them on the map if they just end in a wall of blackberry bushes? Sounds like a good way to waste an afternoon and end up scratched up for no reason. Guess the rangers just want us to appreciate the local flora up close and personal.