Tallulah Gorge State Park: Inspiration Loop (Blog Hike #457)

Trail: Inspiration Loop Trail

Hike Location: Tallulah Gorge State Park

Geographic Location: north of Tallulah Falls, GA (34.74199, -83.38934)

Length: 1.3 miles

Difficulty: 5/10 (Moderate)

Dates Hiked: February 2014, July 2023

Overview: A rolling loop hike on the north rim of Tallulah Gorge.

Park Information: http://gastateparks.org/TallulahGorge

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=941373
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video:

Directions to the trailhead: In northeast Georgia, the state park entrance is located on US 441 just north of Tallulah Falls.  A large sign and traffic light at Jane Hurt Yarn Road mark the entrance.  If you are heading northbound, turn right (east) to enter the park.  Pay the nominal entrance fee and park in the large blacktop parking lot in front of the Interpretive Center at the end of the road.

The hike: For my general comments on Tallulah Gorge, see the Hurricane Falls Loop blog entry.  The Inspiration Loop Trail described here takes you to the park’s newest gorge overlook, an overlook located away from the developed park area.  Although US 441 remains within earshot for most of the loop, the first half of this loop is officially located in the park’s backcountry area.  Therefore, by the letter of the law you need to obtain a free permit from the Interpretive Center to hike this trail.  Obtaining the permit was a quick and easy process I completed in less than 2 minutes.

Trailhead area

            With the legalities out of the way, start by walking uphill across the parking lot and back out the park entrance road.  Look for the mulched trailhead area with carsonite post and information kiosk, which is located to the right of the road just before you reach the gatehouse.  The first leg of this loop follows the Stoneplace Trail, a 5 mile one-way out-and-back that goes down to the shore of Tallulah Lake on the Georgia-South Carolina state line.

            The Stoneplace Trail appears to follow an old road as it maintains a nearly constant elevation on the hillside, which rises to the left and falls to the right.  The forest is mostly young, scrubby broadleaf forest with a few pines and a few patches of mountain laurel.  After crossing one small creek, the trail makes a slightly rocky descent to cross a larger one.  The park map indicates the existence of an old cemetery near here, but I could not see it from the trail.

Descending on the Stoneplace Trail

            After climbing away from the creek, an old road exits left to leave the park.  At 0.6 miles, you reach a trail junction with the High Bluff Trail.  Angle softly right to leave the Stoneplace Trail and begin the High Bluff Trail.  A sign for Inspiration Point Overlook also marks this turn.

Turning right on High Bluff Trail

            The trail descends slightly as you pass two backcountry campsites, each with a fire ring and small shelter, on the right.  Where the High Bluff Trail turns left, continue straight to remain on the Inspiration Loop.  You are now on the newest trail at Tallulah Gorge State Park: I could still see impressions in the dirt made by the small bulldozer that built this trail.

            At 0.8 miles, you arrive at this trail’s main attraction, Inspiration Point, an overlook with two benches and a metal railing.  The view is inspiring indeed.  In the belly of the gorge directly below you lies Oceana Falls, one of the gorge’s main waterfalls.  You can also see the suspension bridge and some of the steps on the Hurricane Falls Trail, but Hurricane Falls itself is shielded by a cliff.  US 441 can be seen heading southbound, and the Interpretive Center can be seen below you and along the rim.  This overlook is the highlight of the hike, so take some time to see what you can see.

View from Inspiration Point

Oceana Falls, as seen from Inspiration Point

            Past the overlook, the trail descends steeply at first and then more moderately as it loses over 200 feet of elevation in 0.4 miles to reach Overlook #1.  Obviously the overlook numbering system pre-dates the construction of the Inspiration Point overlook.  Overlook #1 provides a view similar to the one at Inspiration Point, but its lower elevation on the rim ensures that you cannot see quite as much.  Your arrival at Overlook #1 also marks your return to the developed part of the park, so you likely will not be alone here.

North Wallenda Tower ruins

            Right beside Overlook #1 lie the ruins of the North Wallenda Tower, an edifice used by the famed tight-rope walker Karl Wallenda when he crossed the gorge via high wire in 1970.  The last segment of the hike takes on a developed feel as wooden steps and then a mulched path form the treadway.  You can ascend the steps to the right that lead to the Interpretive Center at 1.2 miles, or you can stay on the mulch to meet a rubber-surfaced trail that accomplishes the same end but via a more gradual climb at 1.3 miles.  Your return to the Interpretive Center marks the end of the hike.

General Coffee State Park: West River Swamp and Gopher Loop Trails (Blog Hike #456)

Trails: West River Swamp and Gopher Loop Trails

Hike Location: General Coffee State Park

Geographic Location: east of Douglas, GA (31.51262, -82.75788)

Length: 4.3 miles

Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy/Moderate)

Date Hiked: December 2013

Overview: A lollipop loop featuring a river swamp and a sand hill.

Park Information: http://gastateparks.org/GeneralCoffee

Hike Route Map: http://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=240351
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: From downtown Douglas, take SR 32 east 5.9 miles to the state park entrance on the left.  Turn left to enter the park.  Drive 0.4 miles past the park entrance station and turn right on the access road for picnic shelters #1-4.  Park in the first parking area on the left.

The hike: Located in south-central Georgia four counties north of the Florida line, General Coffee State Park consists of 1511 acres of river swamp and sand hills.  The park and surrounding Coffee County are named for John E. Coffee, a general in the Georgia State Militia in the early 1800’s (not to be confused with his more famous cousin General John Coffee, a Tennessee state militia general during the War of 1812).  The Georgia general’s most famous accomplishment was the construction of Old Coffee Road, which ran from Jacksonville, GA to Tallahassee, FL.  Designed to carry munitions to Florida during the Creek War, General Coffee’s road no longer exists today, but you drove across its route if you drove to this park from I-75.

            General Coffee State Park was established in 1970 when Coffee County donated its county park to the state.  At that time, the park had only a small campground and day use area, but today the park has 50 campsites, 6 cottages, a lodge, and 7 picnic shelters.  The park also has 12 miles of horse trails and three hiker-only trails: the 1.4 mile one-way West River Swamp Trail, the 1.4 mile Gopher Loop, and the 0.75 mile one-way East River Swamp Trail.  This hike uses the first two of these hiker-only trails, the park’s two oldest trails, to form an interesting lollipop loop along a river swamp and over sand hills.

South trailhead: West River Swamp Trail

            Pick up the West River Swamp Trail as it leaves the north end of the picnic area at a large red trail sign and blue carsonite post.  The trail meanders north in a tight strip of land between the park road uphill to your left and Seventeen Mile River swamp downhill to your right.  Loblolly pines form the bulk of the forest near the river swamp, but some Spanish moss-draped live oaks also live here.  Clusters of palmettos live in the understory.

Palmetto cluster

            After crossing a wooden bridge over a wet area, you reach the edge of a parking area where the treadway becomes harder to discern.  Follow the blue paint blazes to stay on the trail.  At 0.4 miles, the East River Swamp Trail exits across a boardwalk to the right.  The boardwalk immediately crosses the river swamp, so a quick detour to the right will reward you with the park’s best swamp views before continuing on the West River Swamp Trail.

Boardwalk view of river swamp

            The West River Swamp Trail continues its northward course, sometimes right beside the river swamp and sometimes a few feet uphill.  The elevation difference between high and low points is only about 10 feet, so the going is quite easy except for a large number of exposed roots in the treadway.  At 1.2 miles, you pass a red carsonite post seemingly in the middle of nowhere as the park’s campground comes into view through the trees to the left.

Intersection with Gopher Loop

            1.4 miles into the hike, you reach the north end of the West River Swamp Trail at its intersection with the Gopher Loop, which goes straight and left.  This description will continue straight here and use the trail going left as the return route, thus hiking the loop counterclockwise.  Notice a brown metal sign that says “Nature Trail” with an arrow pointing straight and remember it for later reference.

            The trail heads northwest with the sand hill rising to your left and the river swamp out of sight to your right.  Green metal posts mark the Gopher Loop, but some green paint blazes appear as well.  At 1.6 miles, you cross a dirt park maintenance road just before the trail curves left to climb the sand hill.  This sand hill is no Brasstown Bald, but the trail gains 50 feet of elevation in the next 0.4 miles, a large elevation change for this part of the state.

Hiking the Gopher Loop

            The Gopher Loop is named for the gopher tortoise, a common reptile that lives in sand hill burrows.  The top of the sand hill is much drier than the area beside the river swamp, and therefore the forest has shorter trees with less dense understory.  This area is also a longleaf pine restoration area.  Longleaf pines used to cover large areas of the southeast, but most of them were commercially harvested for their long, straight trunks.  This area is still in the early stages of restoration, as most of the longleaf pine trees here are only 10-15 feet tall.  Longleaf pines are highly resistant to fire, so controlled burns are conducted up here on a periodic basis to destroy the invasive species and allow the longleaf pines to thrive.  You may see black marks on the ground from a recent burn.

Hiking atop the sand hill

            At 2.1 miles, a spur trail to the primitive camping area exits to the right.  Another brown metal sign marks this junction.  The remainder of the Gopher Loop stays near the campground as it meanders its way over the sandy soil of the sand hill.  At 2.9 miles, you close the Gopher Loop.  Do not follow the arrow on the brown “Nature Trail” sign here, or else you will start a second trip around the Gopher Loop (as I almost did until I realized where I was).  Instead, turn right and retrace your steps 1.4 miles along the West River Swamp trail to complete the hike.

            Before leaving the park, there is one more place that is worth a visit.  Whereas this hike left the north side of the picnic area, directly south of the picnic area lies the park’s award-winning heritage farm.  The heritage farm exhibits agriculture history via cabins, a corn crib, a tobacco barn, and other structures.  The farm also has the requisite farm animals, and the farm’s ponds are known to attract wildlife.  The farm makes an interesting end to an excellent half-day of hiking.