Warning: Do NOT follow GPS directions to the "shortcut" on the Appalachian Trail in Virginia

I was hiking the AT near Pearisburg last October and my phone GPS showed this little dotted line that would shave off like 3 miles. Turned out that route was an old logging road that just dead ended into a BEAR DEN. Not even joking, I walked right up on a momma and two cubs about 30 feet away. Had to backtrack real slow with my heart pounding out of my chest, adding back those 3 miles plus another 2. The trail marker was completely gone and the path was overgrown with thorns that ripped my pants. Learned my lesson the hard way: stick to the white blazes and ignore what the phone thinks is faster. Has anyone else had a GPS send them into a disaster on trail?

2 comments

2 Comments

johnson.jason27d ago

Man that bear den thing is terrifying, I had basically the same thing happen near Roanoke but with a washed out creek crossing. GPS showed a shortcut but the bridge was gone and I ended up wading through waist deep water in November, soaked for two hours before I found the trail again.

the_cameron27d ago

That part about the GPS leading you to a washed out bridge is exactly why I don't trust those shortcuts anymore. Did you ever check what the trail conditions were supposed to be like before you went, or were you just following the blue dot blindly like I used to? I feel like half the time those GPS shortcuts are based on old maps that don't account for weather damage or seasonal changes. Just curious because I've been trying to figure out what the best practice is for those situations, especially when you're miles from anywhere and the sun's going down.