Hiking Black Rock Mountain

Today I'm sharing pictures from our hike at Black Rock Mountain. 

We woke up bright and early at 4am to make the 2-hour drive to North Georgia to hike Black Rock Mountain. We arrived at 6am, only to find out the park didn't open until 7am. No worries! We backtracked to the nearest gas station and grabbed a cup of coffee while we waited for the gates to open.

We decided to continue driving around the mountain, just to explore the area and kill some time. It turned out to be a road full of residential housing. Nothing too exciting. My sister asked me to pull over so she could take pictures of the star-filled sky.

 My sister and friend were being paranoid about the dark and quiet roads, talking about how this is how most horror movies begin. As we sat there idling, I decided to mess with them. I looked in my mirror and screamed, "OH MY GOD, WHAT IS THAT?!?!" Everyone screamed and I gunned the gas pedal, speeding away! I died laughing while they all smacked me saying it wasn't funny. I got a good laugh out of it!

The gates to the park opened at 7am sharp. We were the first ones there. We parked at the trailhead and got our gear out. With a flashlight in one hand and a coffee in my other, we began the hike. 

As we started out, we were all a little on edge about how dark it was on the trail. We knew what we were in for but it didn't make it any less creepy. To be honest, we were more nervous about what we couldn't see. We've heard rumors of black bear sightings on the trails, so it's a little nerve-racking when you can only see as far out as the flashlight projects light. 

We raced through the trail trying to reach the summit before we missed the sunrise. Along the way, I loved capturing pictures of the sun shining through the trees. I love the feeling of warmth that the sunlight provides when it shines on your skin. 

Our hike started out easy, then inclined to moderate, then inclined to "I think I'm dying," then inclined to "Yep, I'm definitely dying."

There's nothing more satisfying than reaching the summit and feeling that sense of accomplishment like, "Yes! I did it!" 

It helped that the view was gorgeous and well worth the climb!

The summit of the mountain was cold and windy. Once the tree line opened up and the wind whipped through, we were freezing! We took a group photo before disappearing back into the woods. We made our way down the mountain and back to the parking lot.

2.2 miles later, we finished Tennessee Rock Trail.

James Edmonds Trail, I'll see you in a few years, lol! 

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