Stone Mountain Park: A family fun getaway

Stone Mountain Park is 3,200 acres of history, recreation, and nature located in the Atlanta, Georgia metro area.  The predominant feature of the park is the world’s largest piece of exposed granite towering more than 800 feet above the surrounding terrain.

There is a nominal fee of $10 to enter the park where you can fish in Stone Mountain Lake, play golf at Stone Mountain Golf Club, hike miles of trails, or simply enjoy a family picnic away from the hustle and bustle of the city.  That’s not all there is to do here, though.

One thing you can do is head to the Crossroads area of the park.  For a reasonable fee you can participate in numerous adventures including…

Yogi Bear 4-D Adventure…

The all new Geyser Towers (be prepared to get wet)…

SkyHike family adventure course and Camp Highland Outpost…

Scenic Railroad that circles the 5 mile circumference of Stone Mountain…

The Great Barn with slides and foam ball fun…

…and more.  From this area you can also watch the Lasershow Spectacular with state-of-the-art graphics and effects using Stone Mountain itself as the screen.  On the side of Stone Mountain is a sight that is hard to miss.  It is a carving of three Confederate Civil War heroes:  Confederate President Jefferson Davis, General Robert E. Lee, and Lt. General Thomas ‘Stonewall’ Jackson.  This imposing carving measures three acres.

While there is a hiking trail to the top of Stone Mountain for the adventurous, many others catch a ride to the top on the Summit Skyride.  The ride lasts about 2 1/2 minutes and carries you over 800 feet up to the peak.

While at the top of Stone Mountain, you can relax and enjoy the great views.

The Atlanta Skyline can be seen from up here far off in the distance.

While I mentioned the major attractions in the Crossroads Area, there is also plenty to do with numerous entertainment venues including storytelling in Campfire Corner.

If you’re hungry there are various concession stands with all kinds of food you would expect like BBQ, burgers, hot dots, and funnel cakes.  We took the opportunity to have a sit down dinner at Miss Katie’s Full Service Restaurant.  While our service started out slow our waitress finally caught up and gave us a good experience overall.  The food is southern home cooking with free appetizers including fried pickles, onion petals, and seasoned sweet potato fries.  The price is average for a sit down restaurant and we found the quality of the food good and the portions just the right size.

Not to be forgotten are the numerous shops, some of which have demonstrations of how they make their wares like the Candy Kitchen and Glass Shop.

“What did the pirate pay to get his ears pierced?  A buccaneer.“

This was our first greeting when we entered the Crossroads Area by one of the friendly workers.  He also made sure we had everything we needed, aware that we were newcomers to the park by our intense studying of the park map.

We felt welcome long before entering the park while waiting in line to process our tickets.  Another worker was making some of the largest bubbles that I have ever seen, interacting with guests, distracting them from the ticket queue line and making waiting in line pleasurable.

Stone Mountain Park has many festivals and events throughout the year.  We were here during the Pumpkin Festival.  We enjoyed the creative displays and additional activities that were offered.

I even dressed up my own pumpkin guy with the help of my awesome wife.

Crossing the street, you will come to the Antebellum Plantation and Farmyard.  This collection of historical buildings were built around various parts of Georgia between 1783 and 1875.  They have been moved to Stone Mountain Park and restored.  Most of them are open allowing you a glimpse into the past history of Georgia.

That is still not all that Stone Mountain has to offer. Not far from the Crossroads Area is Carillon.  This is a 732 bell tower that is played by an organ type keyboard station.  Originally created for the Cola-Cola Company at the New York World’s Fair of 1964-1965, it given to the State of Georgia and erected at Stone Mountain Park.  Live concerts are still performed at select times on Weekends.

A short drive down the road is a grist mill and covered bridge.  This bridge was originally constructed in Clarke County in 1891 and moved to its present location in 1965.  The Grist Mill located near the bridge was also moved here in 1965 from its original location near Ellijay, Georgia.

Our accommodations for this trip were at Stone Mountain Park Campground.  You can read about our experience with the campground here.  If camping isn’t your thing, there are two hotels conveniently located inside the park.

For more pictures and details on our travels, check out our Facebook page.

Happy camping!