Well the wife is out of town and then the boy will play? LOL…read more When I mean play, I mean get the opportunity to do somethings that I have been meaning to do. I wanted to go back to hiking paths and climbing mountains, like i used to do when I lived in the Adirondack Mountains. Getting here was a bit of a challenge. The GPS was a little off, but following the car in front t of me helps a lot. They looked like a bunch of hikers due to the stickers all over their car... Arrival to the parking lot was all gravel. The trailhead had some signage which was incredibly helpful. I took several pictures of the map and the direction I wanted to go. Seeing on a map and reality are two different things. At least I had some marker points to refer and go by. Down over the bridge you are met with a steady uphill climb some switchbacks and some rocky terrains to go over. The first Awesome fixture was the Fatman Squeeze. A hulking boulder with some tight side paths to go up on both sides end up at the same place. Then venturing on to the gravel path which takes you to the cell towers. Once past that the. Looking for the sign that leads you to the overlook. There it was. Beautiful over look to the mountains in the area.since we were facing the south the real mountains could not be seen. Couple of things to share, need to remind people that the canopy can be stuffy and humid. Be prepared to sweat, a LOT. Isn't that why you came? To overcome this mountain challenge??! Bring water. If your dog is strong enough to climb, other than that this can be challenging for their paws and your back, if you have to carry. Make sure your shoes are tied on tight. There are a lot of roots and loose rocks that can make a day go bad if you are not paying attention. Tightly tied shoes will alleviate the shift in the ground. Most importantly. Take your time, pause, reflect. Love, appreciate. Sweat. Have a good time...

When a friend asked if I wanted to do some hiking at pine mountain, I said sure! I made my way…read morethere and after 20 minutes of looking I thought to myself, this place is big! It also didn't help that my friend was waiting at the west loop trail and I was near Allatoona dam. After getting myself situated, parking at the lot located off of komatsu drive se (access komatsu via E. Main Street right off of 75), we made our way up the west loop trail to get to the David G. Archer overlook. Don't get me wrong, there are miles of trails here at pine mountain, but from the parking lot to the overlook is just under 2 miles. It breaks down from the parking lot as follows (taken from the pine mountain Rec area trail system map): West trail head/parking to west loop - 0.18 mi West loop to summit overlook- 1.57 mi Summit overlook to David G. Archer summit - 0.16 mi The view at the top gives you a beautiful look at expansive greenery, with Allatoona lake visible (although more visible in the fall). During clear days you're able to see Atlanta and its skyline in the distance (keep in mind Atlanta is easily less than 50 miles away. From here, we turned around and went back to our cars, although if you want, you can continue on past the summit and hike down to the East trail. Trails are marked very well with blazes so you have to try to get lost (see photos for blaze colors). There's forest, outcrops, easy and huff/puff portions of the trails, but I don't think it's a hard hike by any means. Pet friendly hike that leads to a great view with as much trail as you're interested in challenging. Do yourself a favor and give pine mountain (not to be confused with pine mountain near Columbus, GA) a chance! I know I'll be back!

This is an interesting park that you can find at the foot of the Allatoona Lake damn on the Etowah…read moreriver. It's also the on the edge of the former town of Etowah and the home of Cooper's Furnace - a huge truncated-pyramid of stacked, mortared stone originally used to smelt iron ore. The furnace is still standing but now cordoned off - also, while it's apparent that visitors could at one time get closer to the Allatoona Damn, on this day the road and access to that part of the park was blocked-off with no trespassing signs (it's unclear if on other days the area is accessible or not, we visited on the day after Thanksgiving). The area is lush with vegetation and includes a pavilion, play-area with one of those crazy jungle gyms, bathrooms, fixed barbecue boxes and picnic tables. It's a surprisingly large park that's only open for day visits so no camping. It's also a bit weird to access - you get off of i85 South of the park then travel first West, then North to get under the highway. Next you travel a road alongside the Etowah river to get to the park itself with is East of i85. Once in the park make sure you checkout the trails and overlook - we were just scoping it out and plan a return to walk the trails - on this day we weren't in the right shoes or clothing. It's apparently a pretty good fishing spot too so make use you bring your pole.

A cool spot owned by the US Army. There were people there back packing, camping, flying kites,…read morewalking with their pets, playing on the playground, and cooking out. It's something for everyone. Out kids enjoyed the park and wanted to play on the playground. We would have let them but there were tons of gnats in swarms everywhere. Also the playground equipment was super dirty. There is an old iron works as soon as you enter the park but it's fenced off to prevent people from going all the way over to it.

This place is AWESOME. It's a great park not far from downtown Cartersville. It's very well…read moremaintained and they have huge dog park areas for both small and large dogs. The people of the area can be proud to call this their local park. There are baseball fields, football fields, tennis and pickleball courts, soccer pitches, a club house and pool, several bathrooms and lots of walking paths and tons of parking. I love coming here with my dog!

My son and I chose a beautiful Saturday in October to explore the Etowah Indian Mounds on the…read morescenic north end of the Etowah River near Cartersville, Georgia. The site is an easy drive about an hour north of Atlanta, with plenty of free parking in a lot at the Visitor Center. The Visitor Center has restrooms and a small gift shop. The fee for adults to enter the 54-acre archeological site is only $6 per person. Built and occupied in three phases, from 1000-1550 CE, the prehistoric site is tranquil and calm. One can almost hear whispers of Native Americans as the breeze ripples through the tall grasses. There are three mounds (A, B, and C), that are accessible by wooden steps and hand rails. The mounds are well maintained and there were families picnicking on blankets at the summit of Mound A. Several picnic tables are also available near the river. The nature trail is tidy with signs educating the public on native woodland creatures and birds in the area. We saw many bluebirds and a couple Monarch butterflies lingering towards the end of fall. Definitely worth a peaceful morning or afternoon exploration and historical hike. The grounds are open 7am-5pm. Note: Plenty of dining options in Bartow County. We had brunch at the popular Doug's Place (about a 10 minute drive.)

The best of a historical site…read more Easy to navigate. Specific and interesting signs and small museum. A piece of Georgia history work seeing. Bring some water. The mounds expose you to the sun with no shade. The river walk is all shade. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I'll never forget bringing my friend from out of town to visit.

Cauble Park sits in the heart of Acworth and is a sprawling park that features all the standard…read moreofferings of a park from grill areas, gazebos, walking paths, playgrounds, restrooms and a few other public spaces that are first come first serve...but what makes Cauble Park so special is the beach...yup, the beach in the middle of Acworth! A portion of the park is dedicated to Acworth Beach, which is a fairly good sized sandy beach along side Lake Acworth. The beach is well kept, clean and normally packed during the summer months, as you would expect. They do have buoys in the water noting distance parameters, but the beach does not have active lifeguards, so very much "swim at your own risk". As with other beaches, they offer restrooms and showers adjacent to the beach. While Cauble Park features all the good stuff of a park, it is also a residential neighborhood. To access you either have to live in the city limits of Acworth, and have your respective car tag, or pay a per-car fee to enter. It ranges from $10 - $20, depending on the season. Parking is plentiful, but can be tough on summer weekend days or during special events such as July 4th. Something else I enjoyed about this park is the wooden walkway that took you over Lake Acworth and gave great views of the park, lake and beach. This trail leads into a wooden trail, and while I enjoy paved trails a bit more, I get the preservation of the woods and leaving the trail paved/dirt. This trail is not very long, and dead ends into another residential street. Overall, Cauble Park at Acworth Beach is a well know, but hidden gem in the community! My best friend lives in Acworth, so every time I visit, we make sure to swing by the park at least once.

gorgeous park, but they keep raising the price of parking so now it costs $20!!! that is absolutely…read moreinsanely priced. avoid it from April - September, parking is free in the other months.