Cohutta Wilderness, GA

[Firehole Hunter]

Just checking back in to see if you made it to Cohutta? How was the fishing? Any intel?

Went the 4th of July weekend and it was hot. Made several rookie mistakes and should have known better. Tried to ford the stream in my hiking boots instead of taking the time to put on my wading boots when I was tired. Fell twice and banged and bruised up both knees. Did a split and felt it for two weeks thereafter. Did I say it was hot. Sleeping in a tent was miserable. Went in on Friday and came out Sunday and couldn't wait to sit in my truck with air conditioning. Realized that if I ever did it again I will have a good camping chair. I am too old to be sitting on logs and rocks. Oh, to answer your question my buddy caught a couple nice sized redeyed bass 8-10 inches and I caught a nice 14 inch Rainbow on a Stonefly imitation with rubber legs at the base of a waterfall. Only fished a few hours in that I was too tired to do much more. Had trout for lunch over an open fire on a stick with a little bit of salt and it was great. A lot better than those Mountain House meals for sure. But our experience was a success and we accomplished what we set out to do (live out under the stars with what we carried on our backs). We camped just upstream of the Jacks River Falls on the Jacks River Trail.

Here's a photo: As soon as i figure it out.

 

[Firehole Hunter]

 

[Firehole Hunter]

I had a video of me cooking it and it fell off the stick and I caught it just before it went into the fire, but I don't think I can load videos here.

 

[Cng]

Haha, thanks for your honesty. I’ve definitely had more than a few trips like that!

Glad you caught something though. I did a similar trip in western NC this summer and caught my first brookie on the fly right under a waterfall. Pretty fish, beautiful scenery, all around good trip.

 

[Cng]

Hi guys, just wanted to follow up and say thanks again for the tips. I shot a small female, about 125lbs or so, on Friday afternoon. Packed quarters, hide and head a few miles back to camp that evening and then out to the truck and check station the next morning. My buddy shot a larger one the following evening, but it was a quartering shot with no exit. We looked for hours and found a single broken branch with a wisp of blood on it. Never could find the bear. Still a great experience all the way around.

We ended up hunting lower than planned. It’s been really dry there and there was absolutely no water in the drains higher on the ridges. We dropped down, setup camp near a stream and spent a ton of time covering ground and scouting. I found at least one spot with excellent sign, but the wind swirled too much and, after the recent wildfire on the ridges and the rhododendron in the bottoms, there was just no way to get a bear out of there. I moved on and found a drain with good visibility, several white oaks, quite a bit of scat, and some paw prints in the mud. I sat on the bench where an old tree had fallen and was only there for twenty or thirty minutes before I shot my bear.

The following evening, before my buddy shot, I setup in a similar location a few miles away, but this time in the bottom looking up at the hillsides. The wind swirled and one winded me, crossed the hillside right in front of me at around 50 yards, and then stopped at about 80 yards. I probably could have taken the shot, but there was some brush in the way and this one wasn’t appreciably larger than the one I had already shot, so I passed. About 10 minutes later my buddy shot and I headed back to camp to meet up with him.

Like I said, great experience all the way around. Thanks again for tips and advice.

 

[AnyMinuteNow]

Hi guys, just wanted to follow up and say thanks again for the tips. I shot a small female, about 125lbs or so, on Friday afternoon. Packed quarters, hide and head a few miles back to camp that evening and then out to the truck and check station the next morning. My buddy shot a larger one the following evening, but it was a quartering shot with no exit. We looked for hours and found a single broken branch with a wisp of blood on it. Never could find the bear. Still a great experience all the way around.

We ended up hunting lower than planned. It’s been really dry there and there was absolutely no water in the drains higher on the ridges. We dropped down, setup camp near a stream and spent a ton of time covering ground and scouting. I found at least one spot with excellent sign, but the wind swirled too much and, after the recent wildfire on the ridges and the rhododendron in the bottoms, there was just no way to get a bear out of there. I moved on and found a drain with good visibility, several white oaks, quite a bit of scat, and some paw prints in the mud. I sat on the bench where an old tree had fallen and was only there for twenty or thirty minutes before I shot my bear.

The following evening, before my buddy shot, I setup in a similar location a few miles away, but this time in the bottom looking up at the hillsides. The wind swirled and one winded me, crossed the hillside right in front of me at around 50 yards, and then stopped at about 80 yards. I probably could have taken the shot, but there was some brush in the way and this one wasn’t appreciably larger than the one I had already shot, so I passed. About 10 minutes later my buddy shot and I headed back to camp to meet up with him.

Like I said, great experience all the way around. Thanks again for tips and advice.

Were you seeing any deer while you were out there? Considering some N. GA whitetail hunting but the general consensus is they are far and few between up north

 

[Cng]

Were you seeing any deer while you were out there? Considering some N. GA whitetail hunting but the general consensus is they are far and few between up north

Yep, very few and far between. I didn't see any deer or deer sign on that trip.

I went back to Cohutta for the early rifle season last year. I was bear hunting, but I spooked a whitetail. I believe it was a doe, but I didn't get a good look at it as it ran off. I won't tell you where because it was fifty yards from some of the best bear sign I've ever found. Problem is, all that sign was at least a couple of weeks old, and I didn't see a single bear on that trip. I plan to go back for archery sometime and, if that spot is still eat up with bear sign, I'm going to haul a climber or saddle back in there.

 

[AnyMinuteNow]

Yep, very few and far between. I didn't see any deer or deer sign on that trip.

I went back to Cohutta for the early rifle season last year. I was bear hunting, but I spooked a whitetail. I believe it was a doe, but I didn't get a good look at it as it ran off. I won't tell you where because it was fifty yards from some of the best bear sign I've ever found. Problem is, all that sign was at least a couple of weeks old, and I didn't see a single bear on that trip. I plan to go back for archery sometime and, if that spot is still eat up with bear sign, I'm going to haul a climber or saddle back in there.

Nice. Thanks for the reply. I hope you fill your tag with a giant!