Here’s all the trips that I took in 2021.
Thanks to all the people behind the COVID vaccines and vaccination program, we were able to out and travel quite a bit in 2021 (though we avoided airports since the kid’s vaccine didn’t roll out until November).
Business, Leisure & Family Trips
Hard Labor Creek State Park – Fall 2021 – One of our favorite parks to stay at, especially with their renovated cabins.
Lake Seminole State Park – July 2021 – A small, but highly underrated State Park. Great cabins and amazing access to Lake Seminole. Peaceful vibe. Other than the gnats, this part of Georgia is lovely.
St George Island, Florida – July 2021 – One of the best beaches in Florida. Lovely time and just beat out Hurricane Elsa.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park – June 2021 – Part of our 2021 Eastern Parks Road Trip. Always the best to visit our “home” National Park. We stayed in Gatlinburg, which provides the biggest park / city contrast of any of the parks we visited.
Shenandoah National Park – June 2021 – Part of our 2021 Eastern Parks Road Trip. Amazing park with epic hiking. We stayed at the historic cabins – they were…old…but had incredible views.
Cuyahoga Valley National Park – June 2021 – Part of our 2021 Eastern Parks Road Trip. Greatly exceeded my expectations. Also got to see Cleveland and Lake Erie. We stayed in Akron and got to see a good bit of Ohio.
Mammoth Cave National Park – June 2021 – Part of our 2021 Eastern Parks Road Trip. Incredible Park. We stayed inside the Park at the Sunset Lodge. Underrated Park IMO since everything is underground. Will be back.
Smithgall Woods State Park – March 2021 – We stayed at a cabin. Always a lovely time. Hidden gem of a Park that I hesitate to post anywhere online since I (selfishly) don’t want to get *too* popular.
Hiking & Camping Trips
Cohutta Wilderness – December 2021 – I did a solo overnight backpacking trip.
Chattahoochee Bend State Park – November 2021 – Stayed at a walk-in campsite, had great weather, and a great time. The Park still feels new, but has been expanded thoughtfully over the past few years.
Cochran Shoals at the Chattahoochee National Recreation Area – November 2021 – I did a 8.5 mile day hike all around the Cochran Shoals and Sope Creek trail system on a lovely day. So thankful that this place exists – it’s in Metro Atlanta, but you’d never know it once hiking.
Cherry Hill Campground – September 2021 – We camped at Site #3. The campground is really well-maintained with nice hiking trails & waterfalls nearby. The weather was lovely. Upcountry South Carolina is highly underrated and easy to get to from Atlanta.
Mistletoe State Park – August 2021 – We camped at Walk-In Tent Site #2. The site was lovely – right on the water. Highly recommended. The weather was brutally hot, but the lake beach was great.
Deep Creek in Great Smoky Mountains National Park – July 2021 – We did a 2 night backpacking trip up Deep Creek to Martins Ridge to Indian Creek. We camped at Site #60 and Site #46. Rainy but great trip. The GSMNP is one of the few places where you can get more than 10+ miles away from a road on the East Coast.
Lake Conasauga Campground – June 2021 – We camped at a Forest Service campground. Perfect weather, great campsite. Great outing. Hidden gem that I hesitate to share because I don’t want it to get too popular.
Lake Sinclair Campground – May 2021 – We camped at a previously closed Forest Service campground. Awful outing due to a major tick infestation and general overgrowth. Hopefully the campground will get some TLC over the next year.
Dockery Lake Campground – April 2021 – We camped at a Forest Service campground. Perfect weather, great campsite. Great outing. Site has amazing access to so much of the central Chattahoochee National Forest.
Nubbin Creek Trail – March 2021 – I did a solo overnight backpacking trip. The Cheaha Wilderness is a special hidden gem in Alabama, but surprisingly close to Atlanta.
Burrell’s Ford Campground – March 2021 – We camped at a walk-in Forest Service campground. A bit crowded, but still a good outing with good hiking.
Cooper Creek Campground – January 2021 – We camped two nights at a great Forest Service Campground. Very cold, quiet, nice.
Here’s to 2022!
