5 Notes on Visiting Redwood National & State Parks
I got to visit Redwood National & State Parks in Northern California. Here are 5 notes from the trip.
Experiences
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7 Notes on Visiting Georgia Veterans State Park
The short version? Georgia Veterans checks all the boxes of a state park…but it doesn’t feel like a Georgia state park. It’s one of the wildcards.*
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5 Notes On the Cohutta Wilderness
The Cohutta Wilderness is the largest designated Wilderness area east of the Mississippi river. It is only about a 2 1/2 hour drive from Atlanta, so I have been able to spend quite a bit of time there.
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TIL about America’s National Grasslands
America’s national grasslands are basically National Forests…but grasslands. They’re managed by the US Forest Service for multiple use – wildlife, recreation, grazing, scenery, and ecosystem services, but also mining, oil drilling, and gas production. They’re part of the National Forest System, which means they’re managed under a different mandate than most Bureau of Land Management land.
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5 Notes on Visiting an Industrial Electric Motor Factory
Every year, the ABB Baldor-Reliance plant in Athens, Georgia opens its doors to employees and their families.
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5 Notes on Georgia State Astronomy’s Observatory Nights
Georgia State University owns an observatory in Hard Labor Creek State Park, about an hour east of Atlanta. It is operated by their Physics and Astronomy Department, and they open it to the public once a month, usually from April until October. You can see the listings on their website and their Facebook page.
This August, I decided to go out and see what it was all about.
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Clearing Blowdown on Conasauga River Trail
The most satisfying parts of volunteering with a Forest Service Trail Crew (specifically the amazing Cohutta Wilderness Trail Volunteers) is the direct connection between work and result.
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Ancient Rock Formation in the Cohutta Wilderness
The Cohutta Wilderness protects some of the oldest land in North America as part of the Ocoee Supergroup.
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Bend on the Conasauga River
Georgia’s Conasauga River is one of the loveliest rivers I’ve ever seen.
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A Saddle on The Conasauga River Trail
The Conasauga River Trail is wholly within Georgia’s Cohutta Wilderness. Even though it’s mostly along the river, it also goes up onto saddles between ridgetops, especially at the end.
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A Swamp Cove in the Okefenokee Swamp.
The Okefenokee Swamp is one of the most underestimated landscapes that I’ve ever been to. One part that that is not captured by a photograph is how quiet it can be. On one hand, it can be creepy, but on the other hand, it’s enchanting.
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Start of the Atlanta Marathon
Most years, I get to run either the full or the half marathon in Atlanta. It usually takes place early in the year, in late February or early March. It’s a great event with a great course, but it’s always funny just being part of such a giant crowd that is out to…run.
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4 Notes on Visiting Allatoona Dam
Allatoona Dam is on the Etowah River in Georgia, near Cartersville. It is an incredible piece of infrastructure, and I…
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Visiting Laura S. Walker State Park
Laura S. Walker State Park is a very underrated state park in Georgia. It is in between Waycross and the northern entrance of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Life Refuge. The park has lovely cabins, a great day use area, a beautiful lake, and the landscape is enchanting with pine trees and South Georgia flatwoods.
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4 Notes on Seeing a Mature(!) American Chestnut Tree
I got to see a mature-ish American Chestnut!
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Old Railroad Cable in the Cohutta Wilderness
Whether you are hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains National Aprk, the Cohutta Wilderness of Georgia, or the Alleghenies of Pennsylvania, you’re probably going to run across some evidence of human civilization, even in deep forest that has been protected for 100+ years.
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Georgia State Parks & Historic Sites Visitation Statistics
The State of Georgia Auditor did a (fascinating) performance audit of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ State Parks &…
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5 Notes on Playing FootGolf for the First Time
On a recent trip to Jack Hill State Park, I got to try FootGolf for the first time. The Park…
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5 Notes on Visiting Jack Hill State Park
Jack Hill State Park is an underrated State Park in Middle Georgia, surprisingly close to the Coast with a bonus FootGolf course.
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Grant Park’s Summer Shade Festival
The Summer Shade Festival is one of the largest neighborhood festivals in Atlanta. It takes place in Grant Park in August every year. It’s always fun and well attended and very, very hot.
