Dr. Dolapo Babalola, who goes by “Dr. Babs” at her Marietta primary care practice, talks the talk and walks the walk.
“Regular physical activity is good for your heart, brain, bones, lungs and muscles and helps prevent many chronic diseases like diabetes and cancer,” says the lead physician for the Marietta chapter of Walk With a Doc, a national group with several Atlanta chapters.
“Research also suggests that getting outside can reduce stress, depression and anxiety and improve sleep, brain function and the immune system,” she says.
Although there is no firm line between a hike and a walk, there is general agreement that a hike is longer and more purposeful than a walk and is in nature. Whatever you call the activity, here are a few of the many metro Atlanta groups that organize group hikes.
Credit: Anna Huthmaker
Credit: Anna Huthmaker
Trail Dames
When Anna Huthmaker hit the Appalachian Trail in 2003, she noticed “nobody on the trail looked like me at all: No one was overweight. They all looked like an L.L. Bean catalogue.” So in 2007 she started Trail Dames, aimed at women who were not already hikers and billed as “a hiking group for women of a curvy nature.”
Now with chapters in 14 states, Trail Dames has more than 10,000 members nationally. Hikes in metro Atlanta can attract from 10 to 30 members, depending on difficulty and location. In the Georgia chapter, most women are between the ages of 50 and 70, with all body types, she says.
Her personal favorite hike is the Laurel Ridge Trail in Buford, a four-mile loop. “You hike around Lake Lanier for part of it, you hike through beautiful woods for part of it, and it can be welcoming to new people,” she says.
Credit: BLK Hiking Club
Credit: BLK Hiking Club
BLK Hiking Club
Georgia’s BLK Hiking Club began in 2021, when Tracy Stephens was hiking on Pine Mountain near Cartersville.
“I encountered this Black woman, and something was just off,” he says. “I asked her, ‘Are you OK?’ She said, ‘I just feel like I don’t belong out here. There’s Confederate flags and things that make me feel uneasy.’
“I asked her how would she feel if there was a group, a safe space, for Black men and women to hike together? And BLK Hiking Club was born.”
The first hike attracted 12 people, but since then the group has grown exponentially. The club now has 1,900 members, and 13,000 Instagram followers. An average hike usually includes about 130 people, so many that they use a drone to take a group selfie.
The club’s next hike is Saturday, April 6, a sunrise hike at Brasstown Bald, the highest spot in Georgia, about a two-hour drive northeast of Atlanta, where the 360-degree views stretch for miles in all directions. The hike will be on a paved incline from the parking lot to the top, much less than the typical 4-6 miles on wilderness trails that is standard for the club.
East Cobb Seniors
When David Bohannon retired six years ago from his job as a construction project manager, he decided to volunteer as a hike organizer. He founded the East Cobb Seniors, based out of the Tim D. Lee Senior Center in Marietta.
He keeps the group up to date with a mailing list of 280 names, although about 20 usually show up. Ages range from the low 60s to the high 70s, he says.
“A hike might have a two-mile, four- mile and five-plus miles version. We all start at the same time, and people can go back to their car early.”
Most of the hikes are on wilderness trails, although the group sometimes hikes places such as the Roswell Riverwalk. One of Bohannon’s favorite spots is Vickery Creek Park in Roswell. “We see a couple of man-made waterfalls and there’s some Civil War ruins in addition to nature. We get pretty good attendance on those,” he says.
For more information, call the Tim D. Lee Senior Center at 770-509-4900.
Credit: Vishwas Sinha
Credit: Vishwas Sinha
WISH Atlanta
The acronym stands for Walk Inspire Socialize Hike, says group leader Vishwas Sinha: “Walk because not everyone likes to hike, we inspire by sharing small little wins to encourage each other like somebody lost five pounds, we socialize, and hiking is going on trails.”
The Facebook group has 1,400 members, with about 20 showing up each weekend. “We have a very good mix of people,” Sinha says. “Seniors, college students, minorities, new immigrants, old native Atlanta people.”
“We love the river and do several hikes by the Chattahoochee River,” he says. “Sometimes we go as far away as Helen, or we do urban hikes in Cobb and Fulton counties. We do the Silver Comet Trail a lot.”
One hike Sinha calls a “hidden gem” is Gold Branch, a wilderness area nestled between Sandy Springs and Roswell. The group usually walks four miles in about two hours and sees a great deal of wildlife on the walk.
facebook.com/groups/walksmyrna
Panola Mountain State Park
For a different way to hike, head to Panola Mountain State Park in Stockbridge. The only way to reach the summit there is on an educational ranger-led hike. Panola Mountain is a rare example of the monadnock ecosystem, and certain plants grow only in that system. Rangers stop along the hike to talk about the flora and fauna, as well as the history of the mountain, says interpretive ranger Veronica Healy.
There are 3.2-mile daytime hikes (times vary; see website) for $10 per person, and also shorter 1.75-mile twilight/sunset hikes for $15 per person.
“We rate these hikes as being moderately strenuous and there is some rocky terrain,” Healy says. “We suggest participants be 10 years or older.”
gastateparks.org/PanolaMountain
Correction: This story has been updated to correct the name of BLK Hiking Club.
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