Hiking Georgia With Dogs: Pine Log Creek Trail

Rocco pauses on the trail for a quick pic!

Last weekend Rocco and I  headed up north of Atlanta for some agility practice with our pals Johann, Gracie, Rach and their mum Leslie. Afterward we found this nifty little hiking trail not too far from the Canine Ranch agility field. 

The Pine Log Creek Trail System is located about an hour north of Atlanta in Bartow County near Waleska, Ga.  This hike is a little closer to Atlanta than the hikes we've been doing in the North Georgia mountains, and it was a good choice for it's convenient location near the agility field.

Just beyond the entrance to the hiking trails we happened upon this historical marker at the site where the Cherokee Indians settled prior to 1775. You can read about Pine Log Town's history here.

Back to the hiking trail, we headed out on the West Loop Trail which covers 2.58 miles, including a 400 foot climb over .7 miles. 

The beginning of the trail was a bit wider than the rest of the trail and the dogs were enjoying walking side-by-side. We were all on the move so it's kind of blurry!

This really cool bridge took us across the creek at the start of the trail. 

There were plenty of logs to jump over and to balance on... 

Making it extra fun for Rocco!

At the top of the climb, there was a bit of a view. I imagine you can see more in the winter.

On the way back down we saw this tree with an interesting bark formation. After doing a little research I found this is known as a gall, which can be caused by bacteria, fungi, insects, environmental stress or genetic predisposition.

During one of our many water stops, we also stopped for a photo of all four pups -- Johann, Gracie, Rach and Rocco!

It was super hot that day, and even though it was heavily shaded we were careful to stop often for plenty of hydration for both the humans and the dogs.

The rest of the trail system includes a 1.54-mile East Loop trail while leads to a .03 mile Quarry Trail. We opted not to do the rest of the trails on this day because of the heat. And, we had already run agility early in the morning... so all of us were ready to head back home!

There wasn't a lot of running water on this hike, but this was one nice spot near the end of the trail. 

Before we headed back, we also took a good look for ticks. This was the first time I spotted one on Rocco this season, but we were able to remove all ticks before they attached.

Have you spotted any ticks on your pups this season?

We'd love to hear what kind of remedies you use. Let us know in the comments below!

The fun and games continue every Friday with FitDog Friday, the weekly Blog Hop brought to you by To Dog With Love, SlimDoggy and My GBGV Life to promote a healthy active lifestyle for pets (and their people, too!). Join in every Friday by linking up your FitDog story or visiting the blogs in the Hop.