Thank you for making your maps available of the Sipsey. They're very helpful. I go there often so I put most of the falls and campsites that you noted on your maps as waypoints in my Gaia app. Appreciate your willingness to share that information!
Glad you like them! I'm a bit of a map nerd, so they were fun to create. Every time I go out, I add something new to them -- so check back in the future; they will be improved!
Good to meet you Joe!! Crow is awesome and I smile everytime I see a new addition!! New sub!! Great TRAIL that I hope to hike someday and seek advice from you southern fellas!
Thanks! Yes, Crow is amazing. He weaves our community together. Thanks for the sub. I'll check your channel out! That's the best part of all of this -- discovering new channels!
It is very nice in either direction. Hard for me to say which way is actually best. Thanks for watching. I have to admit, I'm not caught up on all your videos yet either. You have been busy! 😀
Yes. You can camp anywhere you want. As a Federal Wilderness Area it has "dispersed camping". In fact, there are not supposed to be established camp sites in wilderness areas. However, in Sipsey, as you noted, there are MANY very established camp sites. The ones on my maps are so heavily used that I feel it's probably better to keep using them than create even more of them. But, I have camped in areas that weren't established. If you do so, make sure and follow leave no trace principles: lnt.org/why/7-principles/. If you stay in one of the established sites, try and follow the principles as best you can (understanding you can't return it to an entirely natural state).
Thanks for the videos! Headed to Sipsey for the first time this weekend! Your maps are very helpful. One question, if headed to the Big Tree which trailhead (Borden along 209 or Thompson) would have the fewest river crossings? Thanks!
Going in at Thompson eliminates having to do any significant creek crossings to get to Big Tree. Still may have some smaller ones depending on how much rain we get tomorrow(Bee Branch in particular). But those usually aren’t to bad. Have a great time! Let me know how it goes! 👍
I have been wanting to hike in the Sipsey Wilderness but haven't made it yet.That place you camped at is really neat .Is it right on the trail ,above it ? And about how many miles on the Big Tree trail.? Thanks
That site is maybe 30-50 yards off the trail that goes up out of the canyon by the Big Tree to reach the top of Bee Branch Falls. The official trail goes up VERY steeply (hands on ground required) and then turns sharply left. Where it turn sharply left onto a small ledge toward the falls, instead, go right and go around the corner. It is a very small site and can be wet, but I love it.
Hi! We want to head to the Sipsey wilderness this weekend and camp. We have a baby and therefore a ton of gear, and I was wondering how soon the good campsites begin if we start at the Thompson Creek Trailhead? We didnt want to hike in more than half a mile. Is that possible in this area? I would appreciate any information!
Yes! There are several good camp sites in the 1st mile south of the Thompson Creek Bridge. I don't show them on my map (www.dropbox.com/sh/3r6p4xvfqrx441o/AAASTYEbrWm6L9bsJqPSOTMha) only because I've never used them myself. In particular, there is a nice large site near the confluence of the White Oak Branch and the Thompson Creek that is maybe 1/2 mile south of the bridge. But I've seen people camped essentially just below the bridge too.
Glad I found this video! Mind i ask a question. I'm doing the 206 needle eyes trial starting at the bridge. I know there a camp site just below the needles eyes. If I continue to the top of the needles eye will there be any good camp spots and water at the top? I'm bringing a first time ever camper with me and would rather not have a water carry and disperse camp. From what I've researched this will be a great beginner trail! Any help you can give will be greatly appreciated!!
That is the most perfect backpacking trip for a first time camper ever! First, there are good camp sites all along Thompson Creek, so there will be no shortage of good places to camp. There is water available on either side of the Needle's Eye/Ship Rock as are good camp sites. There is a good camp site on the north side of Needle's Eye that is large and flat and comfortable (lots of nice sized rocks to sit on) and the Thompson Creek is maybe 20 yards away. The trail up to Needle's Eye goes through this camp site. If you go up and through Needle's Eye (or around Ship Rock), you can find a number of flat spots for tents right along the Sipsey Branch in the area known as "the rapids". There are a few choice spots there and the rest are kind of small and maybe a little sloped, rocky, or sandy. But it's beautiful camping right beside a roaring river. There aren't really spots at "the top" of Needle's Eye because it is a cliff with a hole in it and the top of Ship Rock is not accessible without climbing gear/skill. -- Joe
This map shows the camp site I mentioned on the north side of Needle's Eye, but there are good spots all along Thompson Creek as well as Sipsey Branch. www.dropbox.com/s/pe3jah7196xvnb0/Thompson%20Creek%20%26%20Big%20Tree.jpg?dl=0
@@SoutheasternFrontiers I greatly appreciate your help! After seeing the map and what you've told me, I think we'll set up at the larger camp before the hike up to the needles eye and the rapids. If this rain holds off we'll be out there this weekend. Thanks again!
@@SoutheasternFrontiers we made it out there this weekend, things went good, had a great time!. We had a large group so we had to camp just below the ship rock. The sites closer to the rapids I liked, they were a bit too small. Thanks again for the help, I really appreciate it!
If you were coming to Sipsey and doing a 2-night backpacking trip with 3 kids (11, 7, 5) at the end of October when there hasn't been much rain, would you recommend starting here? We might not be able to do the whole loop, but that's okay. Thanks so much :)
I like to start at Thompson Creek and do the loop shown in the video. Camp the first night along the Sipsey Fork (maybe near the Needle's Eye or a little further down along the Sipsey Fork) and the second night in the Bee Branch Canyon either at the confluence of the East & West Bee Branches or there is a nice site up the West Bee Branch right before the big climb up and out on the shortcut trail. Another option, with the water levels low, is to start at the Randolph Trailhead on Cranal Rd (southwestern corner of the Sipsey). You can hike up to the Needle's Eye area on Trail 201, cross the Sipsey Fork and take 209 down the Sipsey Fork to Bee Branch, go up and see the Big Tree, then come back and continue down the Sipsey Fork a bit until you reach the ford across the Sipsey Fork to go back to the Randolph Trailhead on Trail 202. It is a longer route than what is shown in the video, but avoids the very steep climb up the Big Tree Shortcut Trail. See one of my maps here: www.dropbox.com/sh/3r6p4xvfqrx441o/AAASTYEbrWm6L9bsJqPSOTMha
@@SoutheasternFrontiers thank you! I have all your maps downloaded already from when my husband and I were thinking about going earlier this summer 🥰. We were gonna do Sipsey as an easy first backpacking trip, but the weather forecast changed to 100+F so we went to the Smoky Mts instead. We did Alum Cave to amount LeConte to Icewater Spring to Newfound Gap, which was…a lot but we did it 🤣
Well! You can't go wrong with that route in the Smokey's either. LOVE IT!! Glad you challenged yourself. By comparison, Sipsey will be a walk in the park. Thanks for commenting. Love hearing from you! 👍
Great running into you on trail today!! 😃 I hope you all had a better second night and 3rd day than your first night. You get the award for being the very first person to EVER recognize me on trail!!! 🏆🏆🏆
The trail(s) to it are faint and not often traveled. You need to be a bit of a tracker to see them. The lon/lat are -87.4588380, 34.316634 and you can find it on my map here: www.dropbox.com/s/pe3jah7196xvnb0/Thompson%20Creek%20%26%20Big%20Tree.jpg
Yes. Gun deer hunting is allowed in the Sipsey Wilderness (Zone A of the Black Warrior WMA) from from mid-November through January (usually) with appropriate permits, and there are occasionally special hog control hunts. So, wearing orange in deer season is a good idea. But on the other hand, in my 20 years of hiking in the Wilderness, I have never, ever, met a deer hunter that was more than a mile into the Wilderness from one of the trailheads. I'm sure some hunters are out there, but they are not super common like they are outside the Wilderness. Along those same lines, the Forest Service asks that campers (not day hikers) in the Wilderness obtain free permits from the Bankhead District Rangers Office (Double Springs, AL) during deer season so they can try and track how many people are out there (hunters + campers).
Because of you and your videos my son and I are going backpacking for the first time. Guess where we are going. Big tree loop.
That's great! This is why I make these videos. I hope you have a great trip and drop by and let me know how it goes! 👍
I love the Sipsey Wilderness / Bankhead National Forest. So many waterfalls, especially in the winter and spring after some rain.
Same! A beautiful treasure right here in our back yard. The land of 1000 waterfalls (at least, in the wet season)! 😃
Thank you for making your maps available of the Sipsey. They're very helpful. I go there often so I put most of the falls and campsites that you noted on your maps as waypoints in my Gaia app. Appreciate your willingness to share that information!
Glad you like them! I'm a bit of a map nerd, so they were fun to create. Every time I go out, I add something new to them -- so check back in the future; they will be improved!
One more this is really fantastic.
I like the doors between the valleys
Sunny greetings Lobo
Yes! That is a lot of fun. Glad you liked it.
This was the first backpacking trip my dad took me on. Sipsey will always be a special place.
Oh that's great! Your dad knew what he was doing. Thanks for sharing! 👍
Sure is beautiful out there! Thanks for sharing
Yes it is! Thanks for watching.
@@SoutheasternFrontiers you're welcome!
Cool!
Glad you liked it! 👍
Good to meet you Joe!! Crow is awesome and I smile everytime I see a new addition!! New sub!! Great TRAIL that I hope to hike someday and seek advice from you southern fellas!
Thanks! Yes, Crow is amazing. He weaves our community together. Thanks for the sub. I'll check your channel out! That's the best part of all of this -- discovering new channels!
Thanks for sharing!
Your welcome! Thanks for watching.
I seen so many shadows of faces on that big tree 🤘🤘 did anybody else see them?
I love this loop but I usually hike it in the opposite direction. Nice video. Not sure how I missed this 8 months ago. 🦑
It is very nice in either direction. Hard for me to say which way is actually best. Thanks for watching. I have to admit, I'm not caught up on all your videos yet either. You have been busy! 😀
Best hike in thw sipsey
Agree! Thanks for watching.
Great video. I would love to try this loop.
You should! It isn't to hard and it is amazingly beautiful. I recommend doing it in cooler weather than right now though. 😎
Appreciate your videos. Can you camp anywhere along this trail? Last time I hiked the area, it looked like there were specific camp sites.
Yes. You can camp anywhere you want. As a Federal Wilderness Area it has "dispersed camping". In fact, there are not supposed to be established camp sites in wilderness areas. However, in Sipsey, as you noted, there are MANY very established camp sites. The ones on my maps are so heavily used that I feel it's probably better to keep using them than create even more of them. But, I have camped in areas that weren't established. If you do so, make sure and follow leave no trace principles: lnt.org/why/7-principles/. If you stay in one of the established sites, try and follow the principles as best you can (understanding you can't return it to an entirely natural state).
Thanks for the videos! Headed to Sipsey for the first time this weekend! Your maps are very helpful. One question, if headed to the Big Tree which trailhead (Borden along 209 or Thompson) would have the fewest river crossings? Thanks!
Going in at Thompson eliminates having to do any significant creek crossings to get to Big Tree. Still may have some smaller ones depending on how much rain we get tomorrow(Bee Branch in particular). But those usually aren’t to bad. Have a great time! Let me know how it goes! 👍
@@SoutheasternFrontiers thanks for the advice. Only got my feet wet crossing bee branch. Camper on the ledge just up from big tree. Great time.
@@kdthorne Glad you had a great time! It wouldn't be wilderness if you didn't get your feet wet once in a while. 😃
I have been wanting to hike in the Sipsey Wilderness but haven't made it yet.That place you camped at is really neat .Is it right on the trail ,above it ? And about how many miles on the Big Tree trail.? Thanks
That site is maybe 30-50 yards off the trail that goes up out of the canyon by the Big Tree to reach the top of Bee Branch Falls. The official trail goes up VERY steeply (hands on ground required) and then turns sharply left. Where it turn sharply left onto a small ledge toward the falls, instead, go right and go around the corner. It is a very small site and can be wet, but I love it.
@@SoutheasternFrontiers thank you .I have heard how beautiful Sipsey is ,and watching your videos I know for sure it's worth a trip
@@sunnygram3850 It is beautiful! I hope you have a great trip. 👍
Hi! We want to head to the Sipsey wilderness this weekend and camp. We have a baby and therefore a ton of gear, and I was wondering how soon the good campsites begin if we start at the Thompson Creek Trailhead? We didnt want to hike in more than half a mile. Is that possible in this area? I would appreciate any information!
Yes! There are several good camp sites in the 1st mile south of the Thompson Creek Bridge. I don't show them on my map (www.dropbox.com/sh/3r6p4xvfqrx441o/AAASTYEbrWm6L9bsJqPSOTMha) only because I've never used them myself. In particular, there is a nice large site near the confluence of the White Oak Branch and the Thompson Creek that is maybe 1/2 mile south of the bridge. But I've seen people camped essentially just below the bridge too.
Glad I found this video! Mind i ask a question. I'm doing the 206 needle eyes trial starting at the bridge. I know there a camp site just below the needles eyes. If I continue to the top of the needles eye will there be any good camp spots and water at the top? I'm bringing a first time ever camper with me and would rather not have a water carry and disperse camp. From what I've researched this will be a great beginner trail! Any help you can give will be greatly appreciated!!
That is the most perfect backpacking trip for a first time camper ever! First, there are good camp sites all along Thompson Creek, so there will be no shortage of good places to camp. There is water available on either side of the Needle's Eye/Ship Rock as are good camp sites. There is a good camp site on the north side of Needle's Eye that is large and flat and comfortable (lots of nice sized rocks to sit on) and the Thompson Creek is maybe 20 yards away. The trail up to Needle's Eye goes through this camp site. If you go up and through Needle's Eye (or around Ship Rock), you can find a number of flat spots for tents right along the Sipsey Branch in the area known as "the rapids". There are a few choice spots there and the rest are kind of small and maybe a little sloped, rocky, or sandy. But it's beautiful camping right beside a roaring river. There aren't really spots at "the top" of Needle's Eye because it is a cliff with a hole in it and the top of Ship Rock is not accessible without climbing gear/skill. -- Joe
This map shows the camp site I mentioned on the north side of Needle's Eye, but there are good spots all along Thompson Creek as well as Sipsey Branch. www.dropbox.com/s/pe3jah7196xvnb0/Thompson%20Creek%20%26%20Big%20Tree.jpg?dl=0
@@SoutheasternFrontiers I greatly appreciate your help! After seeing the map and what you've told me, I think we'll set up at the larger camp before the hike up to the needles eye and the rapids. If this rain holds off we'll be out there this weekend. Thanks again!
@@aw1008 You can't go wrong in that area. Have a great time and let me know how it goes!
@@SoutheasternFrontiers we made it out there this weekend, things went good, had a great time!. We had a large group so we had to camp just below the ship rock. The sites closer to the rapids I liked, they were a bit too small. Thanks again for the help, I really appreciate it!
If you were coming to Sipsey and doing a 2-night backpacking trip with 3 kids (11, 7, 5) at the end of October when there hasn't been much rain, would you recommend starting here? We might not be able to do the whole loop, but that's okay. Thanks so much :)
I like to start at Thompson Creek and do the loop shown in the video. Camp the first night along the Sipsey Fork (maybe near the Needle's Eye or a little further down along the Sipsey Fork) and the second night in the Bee Branch Canyon either at the confluence of the East & West Bee Branches or there is a nice site up the West Bee Branch right before the big climb up and out on the shortcut trail. Another option, with the water levels low, is to start at the Randolph Trailhead on Cranal Rd (southwestern corner of the Sipsey). You can hike up to the Needle's Eye area on Trail 201, cross the Sipsey Fork and take 209 down the Sipsey Fork to Bee Branch, go up and see the Big Tree, then come back and continue down the Sipsey Fork a bit until you reach the ford across the Sipsey Fork to go back to the Randolph Trailhead on Trail 202. It is a longer route than what is shown in the video, but avoids the very steep climb up the Big Tree Shortcut Trail. See one of my maps here: www.dropbox.com/sh/3r6p4xvfqrx441o/AAASTYEbrWm6L9bsJqPSOTMha
@@SoutheasternFrontiers thank you! I have all your maps downloaded already from when my husband and I were thinking about going earlier this summer 🥰. We were gonna do Sipsey as an easy first backpacking trip, but the weather forecast changed to 100+F so we went to the Smoky Mts instead. We did Alum Cave to amount LeConte to Icewater Spring to Newfound Gap, which was…a lot but we did it 🤣
Well! You can't go wrong with that route in the Smokey's either. LOVE IT!! Glad you challenged yourself. By comparison, Sipsey will be a walk in the park. Thanks for commenting. Love hearing from you! 👍
Great running into you on trail today!! 😃 I hope you all had a better second night and 3rd day than your first night. You get the award for being the very first person to EVER recognize me on trail!!! 🏆🏆🏆
Is there a trail to the salt Peter mine I have went twice looking for it and can’t seem to find it
The trail(s) to it are faint and not often traveled. You need to be a bit of a tracker to see them. The lon/lat are -87.4588380, 34.316634 and you can find it on my map here: www.dropbox.com/s/pe3jah7196xvnb0/Thompson%20Creek%20%26%20Big%20Tree.jpg
I hunt the zone b. So can people hunt the wildness ? Just asking cuz y’all aren’t wearing orange and people are out there with guns
Yes. Gun deer hunting is allowed in the Sipsey Wilderness (Zone A of the Black Warrior WMA) from from mid-November through January (usually) with appropriate permits, and there are occasionally special hog control hunts. So, wearing orange in deer season is a good idea. But on the other hand, in my 20 years of hiking in the Wilderness, I have never, ever, met a deer hunter that was more than a mile into the Wilderness from one of the trailheads. I'm sure some hunters are out there, but they are not super common like they are outside the Wilderness. Along those same lines, the Forest Service asks that campers (not day hikers) in the Wilderness obtain free permits from the Bankhead District Rangers Office (Double Springs, AL) during deer season so they can try and track how many people are out there (hunters + campers).