Georgia Natural Wonder #96 – Currahee Mountain – Stephens County (Part 1). 1,313

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Georgia Natural Wonder #96 – Currahee Mountain  – Stephens County (Part 1)

OK there may still be much taller mountains in Georgia. We have identified over 1000. But this mountain has a rich history and we didn’t do a tangent on Toccoa and Stephens County when we visited Toccoa Falls with GNW #19. Therefore we travel back to Stephens County and this lone Currahee Mountain so important in American history. Plus I have a lot of personal photos today.



Currahee Mountain is a mountain located in Stephens County, Georgia, near Toccoa. The name appears to be derived from the Cherokee word meaning "stand alone." Technically a part of the Georgia Piedmont or "foothill" province, Currahee Mountain rises abruptly about 800 vertical feet above the local topography and is the highest peak in Stephens County. Part of the mountain is in the Chattahoochee National Forest. On clear days, the peak's 1,735-foot summit is visible for many miles and is a prominent landmark to the southeast of Georgia's Blue Ridge Mountain crest.



During the Indian Wars, the famous Indian fighter Andrew Jackson engaged the Indians at Fort Hill, which was near Currahee Mountain in the "Battle of Currahee."



Currahee Mountain is one of the landmarks used in the Treaty of Hopewell. The Treaty of Hopewell is any of three different treaties signed at Hopewell Plantation on the Seneca River in northwestern South Carolina. On November 28, 1785, the first Treaty of Hopewell was signed between the U.S. representative Benjamin Hawkins and the Cherokee Indians. The treaty laid out a western boundary for American settlement. The boundary went from the Tugaloo River in a direct line to the top of the Currohee mountain; thence to the head of the south fork of Oconee river.



It was also used by Benjamin Hawkins to run the Hawkins Line. It used the same Boundary involving Currahee Mountain as above, adding that “The hatchet shall be forever buried, and the peace given by the United States, and friendship re-established between the said states on the one part, and all the Cherokees on the other, shall be universal” Well at least for another 40 years.



On October 12, 1864, Confederate troops defeated Union troops at the Battle of Narrows, also called the Battle of Currahee, during the Civil War. The Confederate victory is said to have saved the area from pillage by Union troops. Casualties were small and the wounded were cared for by neighbors.


Battle of Narrows Historical marker at a park off road. This print of battle image is maintained by Lake Russell  Management Area.

The mountain was made famous internationally by Tom Hanks' and Steven Spielberg's television miniseries Band of Brothers, in which it was featured as a training site of the American Paratroopers at Camp Toccoa, Georgia, where they ran up and down Currahee.



Camp Toccoa (formerly Camp Toombs) was a United States Army paratrooper training camp during World War II five miles west of Toccoa, Georgia. It was first planned in 1938, constructed by the Georgia National Guard and the Works Projects Administration beginning 17 January 1940, and was dedicated 14 December 1940. The U.S. Army took over the site in 1942.



The U.S. Army took over a site with few buildings or permanent structures: personnel were originally housed in tents. More permanent barracks were built as the first soldiers started to arrive.


Private Albert Blithe, of E Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, pictured here at Camp Toccoa, sometime in 1942.

Initially, Camp Toccoa used the Toccoa municipal airport for jump training, but following a transport accident, it was abandoned for having too short a runway for safe C-39 and C-47 operations. All further jump training occurred at Fort Benning, Georgia.


Richard Winters at Camp Toccoa, 1942

Camp Toccoa also lacked a rifle range, so airborne trainees would march 30 miles to Clemson Agricultural College, a military school in South Carolina, to practice on the college's shooting range.


There are street name signs as you drive around Camp Toccoa today. This marker list the deaths and casualty’s of the main regiments that trained here. They are pretty significant percentage wise. 812 men of 506th were KIA or MIA. 845 of the 501st. Those were the European theater. The others jumped on Guadalcanal and lost 437 men combined with the 511th and 517th. Damn over 2000 men never came back home from here.

The most prominent local landmark is Currahee Mountain. Paratroopers in training ran from the camp up the mountain and back, memorialized in the HBO series, Band of Brothers, with the shout "three miles up, three miles down." Members of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment still refer to themselves as "Currahees", "standing alone". The regiment's crest is surmounted by a group of 6 fully deployed parachutes.



The camp closed at the end of the war. In the late 1940s, it served as a Georgia State Prison site, housing primarily youth offenders, but several escapes forced the state to close the site, moving the operation to a new facility at Alto, Georgia. The twisting trail up Currahee is now named for Colonel Sink.



The only remaining building from the camp is the mess hall, which sits on a corner of a Milliken & Company textile plant.



The Patterson Pump Company occupies another portion of the grounds.



In 2012 an organization, Camp Toccoa at Currahee, a not-for profit foundation, was formed to celebrate the lives and contributions of the Airborne paratroopers who trained at Camp Toccoa at Currahee Mountain during World War II.



A plan was set forth to restore the facilities at the camp site.


Boots on ground.

Currahee is currently the site of the Annual Currahee Challenge, a three- and six-mile race on the mountain that occurs in the fall.


Rural Graffiti  on way up road.

It is also a popular destination for rock climbing and rappelling. Graffiti artist.



One of the radio towers at the top holds NOAA Weather Radio station WWH24, serving parts of northeast Georgia and upstate South Carolina from NWS Greer.



Now I drove up the Mountain, lazy bastard. But I found this very lively hike description from Atlanta Trails.

“Three Miles Up, Three Miles Down!” Not the most encouraging words you want to hear when you’re setting out on an outdoor adventure. Unless you’re a history nut like me.



In 2001, just after I enlisted in the army. I read Stephen Ambrose’s book, “Band of Brothers,” and immediately felt like I knew the men of Easy Company, 506th PIR personally. A few months later, all of our lives changed one September morning; I would end up at Fort Bragg, N.C. and earned the Airborne tab on my shoulder. Though not a Screaming Eagle of the 506th, my connection to the men in the book, for various reasons, some obvious, was growing stronger. When HBO released “Band of Brothers,” the miniseries, I felt a pull to run Currahee Mountain.



The same mountain braver men than me ran several times a week at Camp Toccoa between 1942 and 1944. Men who were attending Army Airborne training during WWII. Men who would put their lives on pause for our country. Some men – many in fact – who would never again see the country they would go to war defending.



Currahee Mountain sits at the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Georgia and its name (“stand alone,” in Cherokee) became part of the motto of the 506th: “Stand alone… together.” A motto that meant so much to men that would easily find themselves alone, or in small groups, far behind enemy lines.



I thought of these soldiers way back in 2001 and 2002. And again, they were in my thoughts as I parked at the bottom of the mountain and assessed the challenge in front of me. There was no time limit and no reason to run up the mountain, save for honoring the memory of the men who gave so much so I could decide, if I felt like it, to run or walk, in their footsteps. But off I went…


Hendrix was thrilled.

In the year that my family has been in the Atlanta area we have tried to do all the things that continue to drive our interests – explore, explore, explore. We have annual passes to Stone Mountain Park and have hiked some trails and have hiked some of Georgia’s waterfalls, but every time we’ve planned a day trip with the family I kept regretting I wasn’t running Currahee. So, on a recent Saturday with the wife and kids away, I woke up way too early and drove northeast and hour and a half with a big smile on my face. I was going to run Currahee Mountain.



Now, if you’re interested in running, walking, biking, or skipping up the mountain, I’m happy to provide a few pointers. First, be well hydrated. If you can, bring water, because there are no water stops along the way or at the top. You will need water.



Second, don’t be afraid of the mountain. Yes, it’s roughly three miles up, gradually ascending for much of the run, before a sharp increase at a switchback near the top that brought me from a slow jog to a slow walk. There’s no shame in taking your time, because unlike the men of Easy Co, there is no CPT Sobel barking at you to pick up the pace. In fact, if you’re lucky enough to go on a day where the sun is out and the clouds are minimal, the view is well worth enjoying at every step. For me, I had it in my mind to take in the view after I reached the top. My mind’s motor was working through thoughts of the men who’s iron will was forged on this same mountain road 70-some years ago. I thought about my grandfather who was in WWII at Normandy and Bastogne, my six years in the Army, my brother who still serves, and the millions of Americans who have taken the oath.



Back to my adventure of this sliver of the Blue Ridge. Obviously, the best part is the feeling you have once you reach the top, around 1700 feet above sea level (Yes, you may feel as great as I did once I made it back to my car, but that’s downhill, so big deal, right? Ha!). Up on the summit, hopefully, you’ve found your way to the path around the radio antennas down to the flat rock (with so much graffiti, bummer) and a view of two or three states in the near distance. This is the best part. I took my hammock out of my pack and hung the straps on a nearby tree, gave my dog some much needed and well-earned water and treats, and I laid about reflecting on a dream realized. I took pictures and had a twenty-minute siesta and I just… was. It was perfect.



What goes up must go down. After an hour on top of the rock, I started my return run amongst a mountain bike race, which was now underway. I very much enjoyed the downhill and made it to my car about 11 minutes faster than it took me going up. Back down to my car at the bottom, with the COL Robert Sink memorial plaque by the road, I did a final assessment of my day and felt something I don’t know how to describe. It wasn’t an accomplishment, though I was glad to have done this run. It wasn’t pride because I hadn’t been seeking that emotion. I guess the closest thing I can think of is a reverence I had for the men who trained here. Their sacrifices are not lost on me. My connection to the ghosts of these men was further hardened that day.



Wear a hat. Although there are trees all over the mountain, the road is exposed and there is very little canopy cover as you make your way up. I’d also be sure to check the weather. You can actually drive right to the very top of the mountain along the narrow 1 and ½ car dirt road, but I wouldn’t want to be on the road after a big rain. The ground was soft in a lot of places, and as such, the road looks as if it has been re-graveled and rolled dozens of times. A week after my run I brought the family up via car for a picnic. Please clean up after yourselves.


Real clean place, let’s keep it that way.

Pack out everything you pack in, and please leave no trace. The mountain has suffered from years of graffiti and abuse: please don’t contribute to the problem. And, please consider helping with the Currahee Cleanup Project, a group that’s dedicated to restoring and conserving this important historic mountain.



There are many side trails all over the mountain rendering great views, and at least three spots for repelling and caving, I’m told. If you’re interested in the mountain for its place in military history, then I also highly suggest heading a few more minutes into the town of Toccoa after your sojourn on the mountain. There is a small, but very well maintained museum dedicated to Camp Toccoa and the Airborne soldiers who trained there.



The Stephens Co. Historical Society Office, Currahee Military Museum, and Stephens Co. History Museum are all located in the newly-renovated Train Depot in historical downtown Toccoa, GA, where paratroopers first arrived in town by train before walking to the camp to begin their training.



The Currahee Military Museum and Toccoa's annual Currahee Military Weekend celebrate and preserve the legacy of Camp Toccoa, a bold experiment designed to take men directly from civilian life to the battlefields of World War II as paratroopers. The Stephens County Historical Society maintains the Currahee Military Museum at the site of the old train depot where soldiers arrived before they made the five mile hike to Camp Toccoa. The Museum houses photos, documents and memorabilia of World War II.



The museum, housed in the Toccoa Train Station, tells the story of trainees who spent time in Toccoa, to become some of the most physically fit soldiers in the Army. More than 18,000 paratroopers trained at Camp Toccoa prior to and after D-Day. including an actual stable that housed members of the PID before and after D-Day.



One of the most popular exhibits is a horse stable from Aldbourne England that served as housing for 506th PIR, American paratroopers. The stable 17x70 feet long serves as a reminder of some of the finer living conditions during the war. Located in the depot are local exhibits that tell the history of Stephens County for the last 100 years.



Information for this section excerpted from the Camp Toccoa at Currahee Project website. The purpose of the project is to celebrate the lives and contributions of the Airborne paratroopers who trained at Camp Toccoa at Currahee Mountain during World War II. 



Each of these boys left Currahee as “Toccoa men”  and have since carried on the tradition of "Currahee - We Stand Alone".  These American Heros deserve to have their legacy of leadership preserved.



The Camp Toccoa at Currahee Project started as a dream that “should be” done and has now become a project that “must be” completed for the stories of these true American heroes to be told on the hallowed ground where their lives were changed forever.



Well it’s time for work, so I will have to do a part 2 tangent on Stephens County tomorrow. I can stretch this top 100 georgia natural Wonders for a while because I have some worthy tangent areas on all of the next 4. Farewell Mount Currahee.



Our GNW gal today is at home in the sky.