I noticed on my topographical map that the old Gooch Gap shelter that was torn down in 2001 (I think?) was still shown on the map.
So I went looking for it this past weekend on the Georgia AT. I heard one of the reasons it was torn down was that it was too close to a public road and frequently used by locals to throw a party in the woods.
I started out at Gooch Gap hiking south on the AT but could not find any old trails. So I went back to Gooch Gap and started looking around again.
In one corner of the gap between two Rhododendrons I noticed a faint trail so I followed it up and out of the gap.
After a few blow downs and about 1/4 mile I came to the old shelter site which still has the original foundation in place. It was a really small shelter.
On top of the shelter, a huge tree has fallen. Good thing the shelter was moved or someone could have been killed.
A nice spot on the side of Gooch Mountain. I saw one blue blaze and tried to follow it down to the water source but couldn't find it.
Carl
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