Maps and Navigation
A map is simply a tool to get us from one place to another? A map is a safety device that allows a lost hiker to find her way out and a confused hiker to find his way back to the trail? A map is a foreign language as uninterpretable as Chineese characters? A map is a key to the potential beauty and isolation of a wilderness, sparking images of lakes surrounded by snow covered mountains, cliffs from which you can see the entire land, and quite glens with green rhododendron and gurgling brooks? Different people think of maps in different ways, in this section I'm going to discuss the maps used on this web page, and that you will need or want for the trail. (Can you tell that I love maps?)
First of all, an experienced hiker can find their way through most of the Pinhoti without any maps, so long as they can find the trailhead. However, as I've noted at various places the trail is not as well maintained as trails you may be used to, and it is not uncommon for me to wonder if I'm still on the trail or to get off the trail by accident. Thus I suggest that you carry the forest service trail map for the section you are hiking. If you aren't sure where the trail goes, and the blazes have run out, look for logs that have been cut to make way for the trail, trampled leaves, and stones or other obstacles that have been moved. You can almost always find your way. Word has it that they now sell the park service maps at the Cheaha Park Store.
I'm not including topo maps for the trail on the web site because they are large, difficult to scan and include in a way that they can later be printed, and easily available from other sources. However, I am currently planning to revise the forest service distance estimates and to add elevation gain/loss data as well as a profile for each section of trail. I plan on getting this data by using a GPS device on my through hike, and then importing the data into a mapping software (Terrain Navigator by MapTECH). I'm currently providing this data for the
side trails in section 7, please let me know if you find it useful. Please note that the data provided for the side trails is only approximate and was computed by tracing the trail map of section 7. In most cases the distances are very close to the forest service distance, but not in all. Future updates should improve accuracy. Finally, note that the steepness of the hills in the profile does not correspond to how steep the actual hill is, the scale they are on is quite different. I'm providing you with the maximum grade for each section, for comparison the stairs to your front door has a grade of approximately 20% (at least mine does) so a 20% grade would be like walking up a ramp as steep as your stairs, it is pretty steep.
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About Lee, webmaster and author of Hiking Alabama
Last Updated: April 2003
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