High Falls State Park

Dates: 04/22/2012 - 04/24/2012
Campground: High Falls State Park- Jackson, GA - Site 112
Pictures: http://s1217.photobucket.com/user/squirellman/library/High%20Falls%20State%20Park

- Base Camp (site details)With so many sites it would be expected that each site would be small, not in this case. The campground itself is very large with multiple loops. Site 112 is across the street from the lake. There are also very nice sites directly on the lake, but these are very popular. This State Park is not what you would expect to find a few miles south of Atlanta, but after stopping here on our way back from a Florida beach we put it on our list of places to see. A few years later we attended a wedding at the park giving us an opportunity to explore more thoroughly. The sites here do have water and electrical hook ups which normally attracts very large campers, but even with the large sites the parking areas are not designed for large vehicles of any kind. This limits the large RVs to sites further from the lake. This may be a good time to also mention that there are two actual campgrounds here. The larger campground with much more shade is on the riverside of the park. The two sides are divided by a busy highway that passes over the river just below the dam. I would recommend picking the side that fits your needs better. I will get into attractions later, but there are two pretty distinct sides of the park. The foliage in the lake area is mostly the pine you would expect to see in central Georgia. The riverside of the park has much thicker forests with large deciduous trees.

- Campground rules (Nazi's to Trashy)
Like many Georgia State Parks this campground is in a good medium of regulation. There are rules to protect the safety of the tenants, but still allow recreation. You can bring your own private boat on the lake, fish within the park, and have dogs. The only rule that seems restrict activities is the fence surrounding the tailwater area of the dam. There are many large flat rocks that are begging to be hopped and explored. I would understand the lack of access if the dam was hydroelectric with large intermittent water releases, or a flash flood prone high elevation lake... but this is a small over spill dam with very low tailwater flow.

- The hood (what kind of people camp here)
With such a prime location close to Atlanta and Macon this park is often full of families. There were a few groups of guys camping that were visiting to fish in High Falls Lake, but for the most part there were numerous groups of kids playing and parents lounging. With great early spring weather in central Georgia tents abound, but I can imagine that in the heat of the summer the park will feature more RVs with air conditioners running all day.

- Sawyer Factor (what will you kids do)
One reason I love State Parks is the wide demographic they are built to include. In this case there is a decent playground and large flat areas to play. The hiking trails have fences to help keep kids on the trails and away from the drop offs. The trails to the waterfall area are also quite easy with a kid in tote.

- Bathhouses
I have to take part of this section to praise the campground host. The hosts in these parks often cleans the bathrooms, and this one went above and beyond. The bathrooms were clean and he even put silk flowers in the sink area for a home like touch. Beyond that bathrooms the host was very nice driving around on his golf cart delivering firewood, ice, and answering any questions with his little dog in tow. Back to the bathhouses... they are for the most part a little aged, but very clean and well kept.

- No car attractions
As you can tell by reading my other entries, we much prefer to put Sawyer in his baby hiking backpack and hit the trail rather than getting in and out of a car over and over. In this case we were able to do most of what the park had to offer without ever starting the truck. This included the playground, pavilion area, Dam area, Falls Area, River trail, and although it required a walk off the trail we were able to even walk to the wedding at the park conference facility.

- Area attractions
Although the park is close enough to Atlanta to take a drive to Stone Mountain, or any Atlanta area attraction, the immediate area has very little in the way of attractions. The park sales firewood and ice, and if you find yourself a meal short there is a small restaurant that stayed busy the whole time we were there approximately 1 mile from the park entrance.

- Fees
Like many state parks the fees are minimal. The camp site was $20/night and there is a one time $5 parking fee. Ice and wood were priced at a market average which is great considering the lack of area options.

- Ownership
The park is owned in its entirety by The State of Georgia DNR. Website: http://www.gastateparks.org/HighFalls?c=4347203&eventid=203611&p=31

- Accommodation/reservations
Like all other Georgia state parks campsites can be reserved months in advance. The reservation does not guarantee a specific site, but rather that you will have a site upon arrival... the earlier you arrive the better site you will likely receive. Although we are avid tent campers its also worth mentioning that the park has recently added yurts. We have never stayed in a yurt, but these looked very nice... almost cabin like.

Frozen Head State Park

Trying to catch my blog up to date! We camped at Frozen Head State Park in Wartburg 03/16/2012. We have camped/hiked at Frozen Head in the past and is where we had our engagement pictures taken. Now for the review!

Check out other pics from the trip here!

Base Camp: The sites here are VERY spacious. I normally despise all caps, but sites on the outer loop are possibly some of the largest sites I have ever seen. The park calls the front country camping area "Big Cove", and it lives up to its name. Most of the sites are reasonably flat with large enough driveways for multiple vehicles and a camper. All sites have well drained tent boxes and picnic table areas with an abundance of tree cover. We prefer sites 1-5 as they are on the water and on the outer loop. The only detractor to these sites is the drop off behind the campsite to the water. An adult can walk up it, but a child could roll down quite a ways by accident. There is no electricity or water hook ups at the campsites, but there are numerous community water spigots throughout the campground.

Campground Rules: The only "strict" rule at Frozen Head is the closing time of the park. The park closes to outside guest AT DARK. This is figurative in most parks, but they actually post sunset times for the entire 365 calendar year. These are also the times the gates will close. The Wartburg nightlife is not that alluring, so being by your campfire by 7:36p EST should not be difficult. The lack of petty rules has to be one of Tennessee State Parks strongest assets. Our dog can hang out on her leash, and we can walk her on any trail, road, path, etc...

The Hood: If you front country camp at all you will notice that electricity is a crucial factor for RVs. Since we pop up or tent camp the lack of electricity does not bother us. This also leads to a great deal of other tents and pop ups. There were a handful of travel trailers in the park, but most everyone was tent camping. Also, when you see tents, you often see young families. This was definitely the case at Frozen Head where the average camper was still ok with sleeping on the ground or air mattress.

Sawyer Factor: The Tennessee State Park system seems to view campers as their preferred customers. Frozen Head is no exception. The playground is a stones throw from the camping area complete with easy creek access for the warm days. The sites themselves are plenty spacious enough to keep from waking the neighbors if your little one is having a rough night, and the trails in the lower elevations of the park are easily walkable with children. The Flat Fork trail is also semi stroller friendly with a mainly gravel path.

Woof: I mention a little about the dog policy in the rules section, but this is a very dog friendly park. Tennessee State Parks now limits each site to 2 dogs, but they do allow dogs on all trails so long they are on a leash. The posted limit is 6', but the rangers didn't say anything about Laurel being on a 20' lead at the campsite. The large sites are great for our husky as she likes to play the "how many trees can I wrap my lead around" game.

Bath Facilities: My family and I would argue that the Frozen Head bath facilities are the nicest around. They are fairly modern, but most of all are VERY clean and well kept. Unlike TVA and many private campgrounds there is soap in the bathroom with a hand dryer. The showers have plenty of hot water and the lighting is really good for a rustic bath house in the woods. Its evident that the guy with the worst job in the park takes pride in his work!

No Car Attractions: Frozen Head is known for its rough terrain. A bird walk to history tells that James Earl Ray while being held at Brushy Mountain State Prison once escaped and made his way in to the Flat Fork Gorge of Frozen Head Mountain. He ran for well over a day before collapsing in exhaustion. He later was found what he thought were miles into the forest... he was 2 miles away. This also greatly limits the roads in the Park. From the campground there are numerous trails that lead to various places. I strongly recommend a map from the welcome center. To be quick however from the campground you can walk to the play ground in 5-7 mins, amphitheater 5-7 minutes, picnic area 6-8 mins, flat fork walking trail 5-7 mins, Panther Branch Trail head 10-15 mins, Emory Branch Falls 30-45 mins, Debord Falls 1h-1.5h. It should be noted that walking to the Panther Branch Trail head will require walking on the road. Most drivers are very considerate and the speed limit is very low. I have recommended the flat fork walking trail be extended to the trail head for safety.

Area Attractions: Immediately after entering the camping area you will likely see canoes and kayaks and wonder how they are running such a shallow creek. Well, they aren't. A few miles down the road is the Obed National Scenic River. The Obed is a awesome gorge with various rapids and unspoiled river, however Frozen Head is the closest campground. The Cumberland Mountains although lower than the Smokies have some large water ways that after a rain can become torrents. One example is Potter Falls just outside downtown Wartburg. There are 4 waterfalls on a small trail. These are low falls, but have massive amounts of water. After some rainfall this is a must see. Here is how to get there.

Wartburg and the surround area is very small, but if you wish for more activities Oak Ridge is the History/Science headquarters of Tennessee.

Fees: Since there is no electricity camping here is relatively cheap at $13/ night. There are no other fees unless you wish to purchase items from the welcome center.

Ownership: As mentioned a few times previously Frozen Head is owned by Tennessee State Parks.
Website: http://www.tn.gov/environment/parks/FrozenHead/
Address: 964 Flat Fork Road; Wartburg, TN
Phone: 423-346-3318

Accommodations/Reservations: At this time there are no available reservations for the standard front country campsites, but a group site can be reserved by calling the park. The regulations for the group sites are listed on the website, but in a nutshell you need at least 8 people. Besides camping there are no other overnight accommodations in the park.

If you have made it this far, Thank you for reading! I hope this has been a help to your trip planning. Please feel free to reach out to me with any additional questions. Thanks again!