March 20, 2023
Raper Mountain Loop
near Batesville, GA
This was an exploratory hike to check out a trail and waterfall nearby. We had sunny weather, but a cold start later warming to near 50 degrees. We hiked on a combination of forest service roads, old logging roads, single person paths and ATV trails. The trail was in fair condition considering limited FS maintenance. It is a moderately difficult hike with the first half of the hike up a continuous, but not difficult incline. The trail is not blazed, but not difficult to navigate with AllTrails maps. Raper Creek Waterfall at the start of the hike is very nice and is not difficult to find by an unmarked but fairly obvious side trail off the road. It does require a bit of a scramble to reach the bottom of the falls and return. We were pleased by seeing several varieties of wildflowers. While we parked at the intersection of Raper Mtn and Raper Creek Roads, there is room for 4-5 vehicles to park on the side of the road near the path to the waterfall. There is no overlook at the top of Raper Mtn. Overall, this is a very nice hike.
The route
5.8 mi · 791 ft climbing · 3h 31m out, 3h 4m walking · 1.9 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%
16 photos are shown on the map where they were taken — click one to see it full size.
Photos (16)
Raper Creek Falls Today's hikers (L-R): Ray & Mike . . . that is the not so impressive Raper Mtn behind us. Initial forest road section leading up to falls, but also representative of first mile of hike. Left: Limited available parking along FS 376; Right: Unmarked trail down to Raper Creek Falls. Going down or back up the side trail to Raper Creek Falls is a bit of a scramble. We're scratching our head on this very nice concrete piered and paved bridge across Raper Creek. Nice water, however, flowing in Raper Creek under the bridge. Didn't see any trout. This is where FS 376 splits with FS 376A headed off to the right and forming a loop trail by Raper Mtn. The trail, FS 376A, is restricted to foot traffic and is fairly easy on the feet. FS 376A transitions to a single person trail and past an overgrown meadow along this ridge. We saw the usual violets including some yellow Halberd-leaved violets not shown. This Barren Appalachian Strawberry was a surprise. . . terrible photo! Even the Huckleberries seemed to not be affected by the past 3 nights of sub-freezing temperatures. Daisy Fleabane anyone? This Trailing Arbutus found near the end of the hike made Ray's day! The last portion of the loop by Raper Mtn. is part of a well-used ATV trail.