Georgia's Unicoi State Park

This park is located near Helen, GA, in the middle of the North Georgia Mountains. This was the one experience that was somewhat disapointing, but we need to tell the whole story.

At one time, Georgia had three "Convention and Resort" parks, those being Unicoi, Red Top Mountain, and Amicalola Falls. The facilities in these parks were actually operated by an outside contractor, which is no longer true (not sure why, but we saw it as a good thing!). We had chosen Unicoi because it had a restaurant, which means we didn't have to cook, and we could go with a lodge room instead of a cabin (I don't remember what prompted that). It turns out that we payed more for a nondescript motel room than we ever paid for a cabin in any park up till that time. It was a clean, adequate room, yes, but there was no scenery, no seclusion, and it had an inside entrance up one and a half stories worth of stairs, with two doors, that made unloading and loading (remember we don't know how to travel light) a real pain in the butt! And the restaurant had a very limited menu during the off season (a buffet only, maybe?) that was not that good.

So, the accomodations were a big disappointment, but the park itself was nice. It was from there we made our Fontana Dam Quest, and discovered the Tapoco Project. That was kind of a stretch, but we just all of a sudden decided we wanted to see Fontana, so off we went.

Also at the park, but operated by the US Forest Service, is Anna Ruby Falls. Well worth the short hike.

So, we should give them a second chance, especially since the Park Service runs it now. It still looks to be a little pricier than some of the other parks, but we have to stay in a cabin to give it a fair shake: The motel rooms still look over-priced.

And of the nearby attractions: most folks rave about Helen. We're sorry, but if we wanted to deal with traffic like that, we could have stayed home! If you want to visit an "authentic German Alpine Village" then of course check it out. We'll pass.