April 7, 2026
Benton MacKaye Trail from GA Hwy 60 to the Toccoa River Swinging Bridge
near Suches, GA
Another great hike day with sunny skies and temperatures in the 50's and 60's. This section of the Benton MacKaye Trail was in great shape with no blowdowns, no muddy or wet sections, few rocks or roots with mostly a soft trail bed of shredded leaves to walk on. Yes, there is an initial climb of ~600-700 feet over 1.4 to 1.6 miles followed by a steady, less steep, downhill of 800 feet over 2.1 miles. However, we did not find any of the inclines to be terribly difficult. Thile the hardwood trees were leafing out, we still had a views of the surrounding mountains along much of the ridgeline trail. The Toccoa River Suspension/Swinging Bridge was impressive and it did swing as we walked across it. The reported waterfall on the south side of the river is just a small cascade from a feeder branch into the river. We saw just a few wildflowers today. This is a moderately difficult to difficult hike. Great job everyone!
Today's Hikers: Don Pratt, Terre Pratt, Randy Passow, Matt Henderson & Toby, Jack Treadman, Renée Corbett, Linda Shultz, Heather Wall & Toby, Betty Smith, Pam Hembree, Cindi Hansen & Mike Bell.
The route
7.7 mi · 1,696 ft climbing · 4h 23m out, 3h 49m walking · 2.0 mph moving
Elevation
Hover over the profile to see the elevation and steepness. Your position will be shown on the map.
- Steepness
- Gentle under 5%
- Moderate 5–10%
- Steep 10–15%
- Very steep over 15%
24 photos are shown on the map where they were taken — click one to see it full size.
Photos (24)
Toccoa River Suspension/Swinging Bridge . . . depends on which sign you see. Today's Hikers (L-R) Back: Don, Terre, Randy, Jack, Renee, Linda, Betty, Pam Cindy; Front: Matt & Toby, Heather & Toby and Mike Getting ready at the parking area across from the trailhead. Heading up the trail. Catesby’s Trillium, our first and only Trillium found today. Some views through the trees along the trail. That's Wallahlah Mountain in the backkground. A fair number of Star chickweed today. Squawroot is always an interesting find. It is parasitic on the roots of woody plants Dwarf crested iris. Plenty of leaves popping up, but not many in bloom today. Being the sweep most of the time, I don't always get many pictures of our hikers from the front. Benton MacKaye trail blaze along a very nice trail. We spotted this small lily beginning to send up a bloom shoot. PlantNet says it might be a Carolina Lily. At this point near the public parking for the bridge, the trail shows much heavier use. First sighting of the Toccoa Suspension Bridge as we approach it from the north. A view of the bridge down the 270 feet of its length. Views down and up the Toccoa River, known as the Ocoee River in Tennessee. A plaque on a support crossbeam providing a little history of the bridge. A final view of the Toccoa River Suspension Bridge from the south side of the river. Lunch time on the south shore. A "tail" of two Toby's. We think this weak cascade is referred to as a waterfall in some writeups of this hike. Headed back across the bridge heading home. It's a 2+ mile hike up the south side of Tooni Mountain on our way back. Lots of these Halberd-Leaf (top) and Common Blue (bottom)violets.