Wood Booger Top 5: Favorite AT Shelters

March, besides being the beginning of spring it is also the start of Thru-Hiking Season on the Appalachian Trail (AT). In honor of this, I am doing a Top 5 of my favorite shelters on the AT. The area this blog will cover will be from Amicalola State Park in Georgia to Grayson Highlands State Park in Virginia and Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) in-between. I have visited 16 shelters on the AT and while that sounds like a lot, there are plenty more I haven't had the pleasure of visiting. Now the criteria for this list is just one thing which one I think is the coolest...that is it. Anyway this is why in the future this list could be completely different, but for now, this will be my Top 5 Favorite AT Shelters.

Honorable Mention #1: Max Epperson Shelter (Georgia) - Located at Amiacola Falls State Park this shelter is technically not on the AT (it is just off the Approach Trail, past the Arch) it is the first northbound shelter. It is named in honor of Max Epperson, a retired poultry farmer from Canton, GA, who was an AT volunteer. The shelter is enclosed by a wire front and can accommodate up to 12. Remember this is a hikers shelter only, so it is not for car campers.

Honorable Mention #2: Springer Mountain Shelter (Georgia) - Now this is the official first shelter on the northbound AT. It is located just a stone's throw (0.2 miles) from the AT Southern Terminus and was the first shelter I visited when I started hiking again in 2013. It is a fairly spartan wooden shelter, which sleeps 12, but there are tent pads nearby. Also, the shelter has water and a privy, but no bear cables.

Honorable Mention #3: Double Springs Gap Shelter (GSMNP) - Not to be confused with the Double Springs Shelter near Holston Mountain, this Smokies shelter is located on the other side of Silers Bald (1.7 miles). It is a popular shelter, because when I was there, last April, it had around seven to eight people there, and two miles south on the AT there was no one at the Silers Bald Shelter. It might be because this has two water sources and a privy or the fact it is in such a nice setting.

Number 5: Roan High Knob Shelter (North Carolina) - This is the highest shelter on the AT and that is one of the reasons it makes the list. Another cool thing about the shelter is it use to be the old Warden's Cabin for the fire tower, which once stood on the summit (& the concrete supports are still there). It stayed abandoned for 20 years before being turned into a shelter in 1980. Because it was an old cabin it is enclosed and sleeps 15. The setting is beautiful as it is shrouded in evergreen trees, making it smell like Christmas year round. It has water, but no bear cables and a number of good tent camping sites.  It is worth a hike either from Toll House or Carvers Gaps.

Number 4: Jerry's Cabin Shelter (NC-TN) - This is one of those shelters I had heard about for years, but I finally made it out to it in 2016, not once but twice. Located in Chestnut Log Gap. on the AT above Greeneville, this stone shelter built in 1968 doesn't look special being three sides and a roof and not very big (sleeps six). However, it is just one of those places you know has seen a lot. It gets used not from just thru-hikers, but section hikers, day hikers, hunters and others. It was once known as the dirtiest shelter on the AT, but that was until local Sam Waddle became its caretaker for many years and turned it into one of the cleanest and others have kept up this tradition. It has some nice quirks like the fireplace and a light switch.

Number 3: Ice Water Springs Shelter (GSMNP) - Any Top 5 list would need one from the Smokies and while there are some nice one on the AT in the High Country, Ice Water Springs Shelter is my favorite, This holds a special place for me as it is the shelter on my favorite trail section in the Smokies on the AT out to Charlie's Bunion. It is a typical, Smokies, three-sided stone shelter with a chimney. The shelter also has bear cables and one of the cleanest privies you will find and sleeps a dozen. Since it is called Ice Water Springs it has to have a good water source and it does. Oh, and there is a great view from the shelter all of this adds up to a spot on the list.

Number 2: Overmountain Shelter (North Carolina) - Another iconic shelter, this one was a barn in its previous life. When the land of an old farm was transferred to the US Forest Service (USFS) in the 1970's the old barn was converted into a shelter. Located on the North Carolina side of Yellow Mountain Gap it gets its name from the Overmountain Trail which goes past it. It is one of the largest shelters on the AT with room for up to 20 hikers. There is water nearby, but no bear cables and remember cooking is only permitted on the ground floor. Another reason it is iconic is the tremendous view into the Roaring Creek Area. It was almost featured in a movie back in 1989 called Winter People, but the scene got axed. It is a must visit if you are hiking in the Roan Highlands heading to the Humps,

Number 1: Blood Mountain Shelter (Georgia) - This iconic shelter was a no-brainer for the top spot. There is no shelter I have visited more as I have reached the summit of Blood Mountain seven times. Blood Mountain Shelter is one of the oldest in the southern Appalachian section of the AT, built by the Civilian Conservation Corp in the 1930's and was refurbished by the Georgia Appalachian Trail Club and the USFS in 1981 with more work was done in 2011. This two room all stone cabin maybe the most visited on the AT, but these days it may not be the best to camp in. While it has a privy, it can be iffy during the thru-hiking season (it was pretty nasty in March of 2015). Then there are no bear cables, so if you want to camp here from March to June you need a bear canister and there are no campfires allowed, year-round. Oh, the closest water source is south on the AT almost a mile down. Even with all of that this all stone two-room cabin is still a treasure, so much so that it was listed on the National Registry of Historical Places in 2013. Oh, I almost forgot if you climb up above the shelter at Picnic Rock a spectacular vista awaits (and there are others on this fantastic mountain summit). I just have to say I love Blood Mountain Shelter and that is why it is number one on the list.