Customer Rating:  
Summary: maps?
Comment: The trail descriptions in this book are great. The book may be worth buying for the descriptions alone. But there are only 11 (very) simple line drawing maps for 124 trails and there are no elevation diagrams whatsoever. In fact, you have to search each trail description if you want to find the elevation change. That information could have been displayed in the margin (which is how the author displayed information he thought was important). This book has 124 trails and therefore desperately needs a section classifying the trails in groups such as long, short, scenic, strenuous etc. The only trail classification in the book is with the very long trails. Another thing that should have been included was an overall map showing how the smaller maps relate to a map of northern Georgia. I ordered two other northern Georgia hiking books, which will hopefully fill in the details missing in this one
Customer Rating:
Summary: A good reference guide
Comment: This book was highly-recommended, and it does not disappoint. It provides useful maps and directions for locating trailheads, and detailed descriptions for planning short day hikes or longer multi-day treks for experienced backpackers.
A good reference guide for hikers living in the Atlanta area.
Customer Rating:
Summary: High on a mountain
Comment: Since I moved to Georgia 5 years ago, this book has been my most reliable hiking companion. The maps and directions are good, and the trail descriptions are detailed. A handy sidebar tells you the important stuff: what towns the trail is near, what features you'll encounter, the difficulty rating, the ranger district, and the length. Trail histories and Cherokee name translations add interest to the excitement of hiking in the lush Appalachians.
The "highlights" sections for each trail are especially nice -- peaks, falls, rapids, creeks, scenic views, notable ruins, giant trees, etc. are listed along with the mileage. It also has a decent amount of room for your own notes.
I wouldn't mind if they had a new edition with more Georgia trails; I know some of the newer volumes in this series feature more Georgia trails. However, I realize a more complete guide might have to be about 900 pages and therefore difficult to fit in the Camelback. It's a good book, though, and I've recommended it to many.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Homan hits a homer
Comment: Tim Homan defined hiking in north Georgia. His trail descriptions and mileage are accepted as the most accurate. The directions to the trailheads are right on the money.The first time I met Tim he was walking a trail with a wheel, measuring the distance. That was almost 15 years ago. In fact, Tim wrote the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest brochure trail descriptions. That brings me to the only problem with this book. Its title should be "Hiking Trails of the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest" since he rarely strays outside of its management area. If you have hiked all the trails in the book you would have hiked less than half the trails in North Georgia. Still, there are at least three hundred miles of hiking trails in this book, and you can chose your favorites based on the quick guide in the margin of the book. My personal recommendations from the book would be DeSoto Falls for a family day-hike, Appalachian Trail from Neel's Gap to Hogpen Gap for a challenging day-hike and Duncan Ridge for the most challenging multi-day hike. The maps are improving with each edition, and Tim is now aided by the excellent help of the Georgia Conservancy. I guess the best testimonial for this book is that each time a new edition comes out I am forced to buy it because my copy of the previous edition is so dog-earred from over use.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Excellent logistic and descriptive hiking guide
Comment: This is THE serious hiking/backpacking guide for the North Georgia Mountains. Tim is very accurate and precise on logistic details such as trailheads and landmarks. He's also good at describing views, falls and flora. I have hiked up what what Tim describes as 'steep descents' and thought I should have hiked in the direction Tim wrote. His Joyce Kilmer / Slickrock Wilderness guide also is spectacular for a remote area in Western North Carolina.
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