I used to spend weeks at a time in the Blue Ridge mts. The animals to really be aware of are the bears, snakes and panthers. Learn the plants, there's tons of stuff to eat, we didn't see much in the way of wildlife but we did catch fish in the creeks. Stop often and listen. And don't assume that all snakes will be on the ground. I was walking through a creek and pulled back a tree branch and almost put my hand on a snake so they can be anywhere.