This picturesque and immense Georgia State Park features outdoor activities aplenty across more than 4,000 acres of land. Fort Mountain State Park sits on the Southwestern end of the area's mountain pass known as the Cohutta Mountains. This recreation area features year-round activities and accommodations for nature enthusiasts, sports lovers, and individuals looking to get out of the house for the day or weekend. Fort Mountain in Northern Georgia is a well-liked destination for residents of the Peach State as well as for people coming from surrounding states like Alabama, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
What to Do at Fort Mountain State Park
This state park in Georgia is an easily accessible and very scenic trip for the whole family. Simply sightseeing throughout the Fort Mountain region is usually enough to make this a memorable journey. What's more, this park boasts accommodations for popular outdoor activities like hiking, mountain biking, fishing, swimming, boating, camping, horseback riding, and more.
There are 60 miles of hiking trails, nature trails, horseback riding trails, and mountain biking trails for park guests to explore the beautiful scenery on two legs, two wheels, or via horseback.
The Big Rock Nature Trail is a popular start to the trip. Fort Mountain's visitors will see the hardwood forests and blueberry thickets, which characterize this region of the state.
Guests of Fort Mountain can experience the native wildlife and natural, untouched ecosystem that the park's management preserves. The 17-mile Fort Mountain Lake is accessible to visitors via the Lake Loop Road. The park's largest body of water is perfect for fishermen, boaters, swimmers, and beachgoers. The lakeside beach is the perfect spot to sunbathe, cast out, and utilize the picnic area. This zone also offers a boat rental space where park goers can grab kayaks, canoes, paddleboards, and pedal boats. Whether swimming, fishing, paddling, or just hanging out, the lake is the spot to be when the weather gets warm at Fort Mountain State Park.
For those who'd like more than just day use at the park, there is a campground on site. This area features campsites for tents and RVs available for reservation. The Fort Mountain State Park Campground and RV Park offers campsites, restrooms, showers, electric hookups, and car parking. Campers can also choose from fully equipped cottages, backcountry campsites, or covered platform sites.
How to Get to Fort Mountain State Park
https://www.instagram.com/p/CPbHpf6hCwy/
RELATED: The Famous Gold Mine of Lost Dutchman State Park
The Park address is: 181 Fort Mountain Park Road in Chatsworth, GA 30705. The state park is part of Georgia's Murray County, just West of the Chattahoochee National Forest. Travelers should get on Hwy. 52 and drive through the scenic Cohutta Wilderness as they make their way toward the park. Driving onto the main park road, travelers will need to pay a five-dollar entrance fee at the park gate in order to access parking lots, camping areas, sports facilities, and the surrounding nature preserve.
Fort Mountain is just over two hours from Atlanta, Georgia's major metropolitan hub. When in this region of Northern Georgia, tourists should check out nearby attractions like Amicalola Falls State Park, the Blue Ridge Mountains, Funk Heritage Center, and Resaca Battlefield. The park's location also offers accessibility to nearby towns of like Dalton, Ellijay, Calhoun, and Griffin which provide opportunities for shopping, historic landmarks, restaurants, and entertainment.
Planning Your Trip
Fort Mountain is home to an awesome campground, scenic lake, and even a miniature golf course! Hikers can explore the Tower Trail to find the manmade, stone wall, fire tower built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). Along this pass there is an ancient rock wall which stands on the highest point of the mountain—an elevation 2,800 feet above sea level. This strange 855-foot-long wall is said to have been built by Native Indians as a fortification and/or place for ancient ceremonies, according to Georgia state parks. The park's area as a whole is a historic site because it was once the home to the North Georgia Cherokee Indians for hundreds of years.
Today, visitors can book online, call ahead, or simply drive into the park after checking daily hours of operation. For visitors in Georgia and in the surrounding area, Fort Mountain State Park is an easy choice for an outdoor adventure in a well-kept recreation area. Travelers come time and time again for a pet-friendly state park with awesome accommodations like the site's event venue, gift shop, playground, picnic tables, educational events, and more.
Have you ever visited Fort Mountain State Park? Share your adventure at our Wide Open Roads Facebook!
