September Meetup Hike - UPDATED

We will hike down the Foothills Trail to the Palmetto trail.  The trail leads through a mature forest of mixed hardwoods, pine and the remnants  of large hemlocks.  We will continue to hike down the Palmetto trail which eventually turns into an old logging road where we will stop for lunch overlooking Rock Mountain.  We will then hike back up to the  Carolina Hemlock Loop.  There are 15 switch backs to get us to the top of the loop.  Along the way will  see many large Carolina and Southeastern Hemlocks.  These Hemlocks have  been treated to protect them from the Hemlock Wooly Adelgid which are  killing all unprotected Hemlocks in the Southeast. We will return back  up the Palmetto trail to the Foothills trail.  There is a good deal of  elevation change and steep at times.  Please bring at least 2 liters of  water and snacks for calories.  We will then return to Mt. Sassafras the  highest point in South Carolina and visit the summit tower with 360  views of the the Blue Ridge Mountains, Foothills and Lake Jocassee. The hike will be roughly 7 miles long