Hike and Climb to Yonah Mountain
Cleveland, Georgia
Details
Distance
4.53 miles
Elevation Gain
1417 ft
Route Type
Out-and-Back
Description
Added by Cole Christiansen
Hike to this huge rockface with great visibility and if you time it right, crazy Blueridge sunsets. Mt. Yonah aslo offers a camping and hammocking paradise.
The trail starts at "Mt. Yonah Trailhead" and is 4.4 mile round-trip with elevation of 1,500' to 3,166'. The trail stays below moderate tree coverage until around the halfway point where you will come upon a clearing known as the first LZ (landing zone). The mountain is shared with hikers by Army Rangers in training. They will occasionally conduct training and utilize these LZ's. Along with being a drop down spot for helicopters it's also a great camping spot with a view.
Next you will arrive at the main campground still under the treeline, complete with bathrooms. To get to the main summit you will continue past the campground. The trail opens up onto the mountain's massive rock face, spanning the whole western side. You can stop here or continue to the second LZ. This LZ is much larger and a perfect camping spot. If you prefer to fall asleep with a view of the sunset, though, a couple trees on the western rock face will do the trick. The mountain is fairly unaffected by light pollution and is great for astrophotography and constellation watching.
If climbing, you will take the trail to "The Lowers" from the main campsite or the lower LZ. There are lots of routes on The Lowers, but if you want to climb with a view you can repel or climb the main face.
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Hike and Climb to Yonah Mountain Reviews
This is a strenuous climb, but if you make it to the top the view is totally worth it (I took a picture with a suit at the summit on Instagram if you want to see what the view is like = micahtotherescue). First off, make sure you find he official trail head. There will be clearly marked signs. I took Google Maps and just typed in Yonah Mountain and it took me to the other side of the mountain and I hiked for like 15 mns before realizing the mistake 😅 Secondly, this is not an easy hike. A good portion of it is purely uphill. It took me roughly about two hours to get to the top. To be fair, I was carrying a suit along with my other gear to the top though 😃 Thirdly, bring plenty of water and food. I barely had enough of both and ran out just before getting back to the bottom of he mountain. Fourthly, watch out for snakes. I saw a huge black snake along the trail that hissed at me! Lastly, if you make it to the top, make sure to spend enough time up there to absorb it all in. It's one of the best views I've seen in Georgia because Yonah is an isolated mountain and you can see for miles.
5.0
I moved to Georgia before my senior year from the pacific north west and wasn't able to do this hike until recently, but man did I love it! Crazy different than Washington State's trails but it's a whole new world that I fell in love with. Definitely worth the incline, but it's not bad at all.
5.0
I went on a climbing/backpacking trip with Georgia Southern to this site. It had amazing views along with great climbing for beginner natural rock face climbers like me. The trail was a little tough with a lot of elevation change, but who doesn't like a good challenge.
5.0
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