On April 28, 2012, I stumbled past a sign to a strawberry festival as I was heading towards Atlanta from Athens, Georgia. Having been to lots of festivals, but never a strawberry festival, I had to stop by.

At Washington Farms in Watkinsville, Georgia, the second annual strawberry festival was a small craft fair celebrating the harvest time for the farms strawberries fields. Overall we really didn’t see any crafts of any notoriety, but we had a great time seeing how the farm had made kiddie rides out of recycled farm supplies, enjoyed some good blue grass music, and some wonderful festival food.

In truth, this place would have been a perfect outing for a young family more so than just a young couple. fWhile the crafts section of the farms was pretty small, and probably not worth the $8 admission on their own, the big attractions to the fair were rides and attractions for the kids. I was particularly impressed that the rides had no charges other than the initial entry fee.

For the Kids

The farms had all sorts of make shift play areas, including a corn kernel “ball pit,” a cattle train made from painted feed barrels towed by a hauling ATV, several playgrounds with rotating PVC pipe slides, a small petting zoo, numerous inflatables and pedal powered go-carts.

They also have a jumping pillow, which for the uninitiated is something I recommend for child and adult alike, and a corn cob air cannon shooting at GT Jacket and Florida Gator targets.

For the Adults

One of the best parts of any craft fair is the awesome food, and in this case, the big highlight for us was the homemade strawberry ice cream.

The Festival also has some excellent blue grass music scheduled throughout the day.

The big highly for adults though, is actually outside of the “gated section” of the festival (so no admission required). Most of the adults we saw were paying a stand just outside the festival to hand pick and fill a bucket of strawberries. The bucket price was around $10. For those who have never had a straight off the vine strawberry, they taste completely different (read better) than the previously frozen ones you get at the store.

The Festival seems to be a one-day annual event, though the Farms themselves seem to open for various other events throughout the year, including pumpkin picking in the Fall and a Corn Maze.

For more information check at the Washington Farms web page.

Directions to the farm:

From Athens, GA:

1. Take 441 South for about 2 miles.

2. Take a right on Hog Mountain Road. (A RaceTrack gas station is on the right and the Stone Store is on the left.)

3. Go straight for 9 miles and the farm is on the left.

Great Falls National Park is a smaller recreational park located along a section of the Potomac River as it approaches Mather Gorge.The river, at this location approaches a large drop off containing numerous jagged rock formations, resulting in a increased amount of white water through the park.

The Great Falls National Park is actually made up of two separate locations, the Great Falls Visitor Center side contains several overlooks of the falls, and nearly all of the 15 miles of hiking trails. Along this side of the falls, visitors can also see ruins from the Patowmack Canal and the C&O canal from when traders relied on them to bypass this section of the very rough river and falls.

The second location in the park is at the Great Falls Tavern section. It contains only a few overlooks, all relatively the falls, and a wooden bridge to an even closer spot near the falls.

The primary trail running through park leaves from the visitors center and follows along the old Patowmack Canal, parallel to the falls and the Potomac, and brings hikers to several excellent wooden platforms with views of the falls. The trail then continues on to Matildaville, the location of several Canal ruins that remain intact. Hikers can loop around the ruins and return along the river trail, which provides a handful of locations between the park’s boulders down to the river.

Park Entry Fee: $5 per vehicle

Directions:

Directions for this Park can be complicated depending on the direction of the visitor. Visit the National Park’s Direction Site here.

This year the Georgia Renaissance Festival opens April 14th through June 2 on every Saturday, Sunday, as well as Memorial Day.

The Renaissance Festival is an annual celebration of turkey legs, dressing in armor, and sporting a fake British accent.

While not based entirely on the historical time period of the Renaissance, the festival takes place on an enclosed compound built an an old English Village and has patrons attending in “historical” costumes like pirates, fairies, elves, and armored knights, as well as families in jeans and t-shirts.

The Renaissance Festival is primarily centered around a variety of performances that take place throughout the day. Shows include dangerous juggling acts, acrobats, comedians like the always humorous Dead Bob Medieval Ventriloquist (sort of) Show, and culminates with a jousting tournament for the King and Queen.

In addition, the English village is packed with arts and crafts, costumes, and food unlike what can be found at any other festival, including the giant turkey legs.

Directions:

Following I-85 south from Atlanta:

1. Take Exit 61 Fairburn/Peachtree City

2. Turn right off the exit ramp and travel approximately 2 miles

3. The entrance to the festival will be on the right.

Distance: 0.8 miles one way

Difficulty: Easy

I grew up picnicking and playing at Sloppy Floyd Lake State Park for much of my childhood, and yet somehow I had never hiked the trail to the Marble Mine, a really nice short hike inside the park.

Beginning at the Pinhoti Trail Parking area, the Marble Mine Trail begins as a small dirt trail rolling between small gradual hills and flat spaces before becoming dividing into lollipop loop with one side being a slightly wider, somewhat rocky forest service road, and the other side climbing several small hills.

Our initial path took us along the service road with views of a recently controlled burned forest on both sides of the trail. As we began approaching the mine, however, the hill got a little steeper and the trickle of a small creek in the ridge below could be heard.

Just around the bend, the top of the marble mine can be seen, and the faint sound of a waterfall can start to be heard.

A small creek above the cave pours down into a clear blue reflection pond. Hikers can take the short boardwalk into the small mouth of the mine.

The trail past to the right of the cave splits again. Taking a right will complete the loop and return hikers back down to the service road below. To the left, the Pinhoti access trail brings hikers up the ridge above the cave (far above, and does not provide any views from the top of the cave without some steep bushwhacking).

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The loop trail returning back to the forest service road is slightly longer than simply turning around and following the road back, but does provide a less rocky path that brings hikers through more of the park’s forest.

Directions:

1. Followy Hwy. 27 North out of Rome (20.7 miles from Turner McCall Blvd.)

2. Turn left on to Sloppy Floyd Lake Road approximately 0.6 miles.

3. The Pinhoti Parking lot is on the left after passing the Sloppy Floyd Lake.

Fort Yargo Disc Golf Course is an 18 hole wooded course located in Fort Yargo State Park, just outside of Winder, Georgia.

The course, while located throughout a patch of forest in the state park, is not so densely wooded as to frustrate even the newest disc golfer.  In fact, the course provides an excellent mix of long range open shots through a few trees with several holes requiring a more finesse touch.

This course is actually one of my personal favorites, as playing it feels a lot like hiking while playing. The entire course meanders along a large hillside that approaches a lake at its base, and has a very popular mountain biking trail trekking though it. Besides the extra exercise one gets from hiking along hillsides, the course also provides several excellent views of the surrounding mountains and the lake.

The first several holes begin a slow descent towards the lake, and are not too technically difficult. Each hole is marked with a sign and concrete tee pad.

The middle holes play along the lake’s shoreline, and even cross over a small stream via a wooden bridge.

The last section of the course begins the descent back up the hillside, and initially includes several holes in wide open expanses before getting back into a slightly more dense area of tree growth.

Directions:

This 18 hole disc golf course  located in Chattanooga, TN is a heavily wooded course, and the location of frequent local tournaments. Unlike most other disc golf courses which are fit into a park or other recreation area where other forms of activity are occurring, the Sinks area seems to be solely for disc golf.  From the parking, a sign including a map and upcoming tournaments provides players with the information they need to get started.  To the left of the parking area is a “driving range” where players can practice their throws.

The course itself is highly technical. Getting the name “sinks” from the numerous sudden dips and bowls in the landscape, nearly every hole is a tight, narrow drive between the tree line. Every tee pad has a sign indicating the hole layout and concrete tee pads.

For more information on the sinks disc golf course, visit : The Sinks Disc Golf.

Directions:

From I-75:

1.Exit 4 to Hwy 153 North across the Chickamauga Dam.

2. Take 1st exit (#7 Access Rd.), go straight through 1st traffic circle into 2nd circle and a left on N. Access Rd.

3. Travel 1 mile along river to entrance of DuPont Park/N. River Soccer Complex.

4. Turn right into gravel lot. 1st tee by message board on right.

On this Valentine’s Day, I wanted to write an article discussing the enjoyment and benefits I get from hiking with my wife, and that others can get when sharing the outdoors with their significant others.

This summer the Ms. and I did a good bit of camping together on a couple of road trips and several weekend outings in the mountains. One of the things I started thinking about is the pleasures I get camping with my wife. While I do enjoy going camping with the guys on occasion, camping with one’s spouse seems to bring certain unique benefits that one doesn’t get from camping with your pals. As such, I thought I would make a list of some of these unique benefits, and see what you guys thought might be some benefits I missed.

1. Shared Chores- Anytime I go camping, the people I camp with split up some of the more common chores, you get the firewood, I’ll set up the fire pit, you get the food ready, I’ll set up the tent. Chore allocation is common, I believe, for all campers.

With that said, there are certain chores that you simply wouldn’t want to ask anyone other than your spouse to do, perhaps more so if you’re a guy. I enjoy setting up a campfire, and there just seems to be something that is simply primal about starting a fire for warmth and cooking. Now, this primal act tends to be a desire for all guys I camp with, and so most of the time, we have three to four guys telling each one the best way to find kindling, set up the logs, and start the fire.

When camping with my wife, she has little to no interest in starting the fire. I’m proud to say she can and does, and I’ve seen her successfully start fires in near downpours, but while I’m starting the fire, she often turns to arranging the interiors of the tent, including laying out sleeping pads, bags and pillows. This is always a nice treat, as my style would be to pull the bag out around midnight when I go to sleep, and try to arrange it all in the dark and cold.

Similarly, we split packing responsibilities for going camping, and when leaving the camp site. She can pack up the sleeping bags while I gladly take any garbage out, and do general cleanup around the camp site.

2. Cheap Mini-vacation – Where I work, I often hear some of my co-workers complain that they never get to go anywhere because they can’t afford it. I find that discussing my weekend camping trips often brings on some a little jealous to the workplace. Camping with my spouse allows us both to be able to get away into nature a lot more often than we would if we had to pay for expensive hotels, and is often much more relaxing than that type of vacation. While sleeping on the ground may not be for everybody, I think most have never tried it, and convincing one’s spouse to give it a try may be worth a shot.

3.Sex- Not sure what else needs to be said here, but being in the great outdoors can add some spice and romance to the love life. Just make sure you’re in a closed tent, and in a private location. Not a bad added benefit to camping with the spouse, but you don’t want to disturb any neighbors or cause them to have awkward conversations with their children.

4. Better meals- When not backpacking, I find that my wife and I often eat better meals when camping than I do when camping with friends. The problem, I believe arises in the additional planning that is required to cook more complex meals. Camping with other guys, no one wants to plan these meals. Most of the time we settle for some basic dogs on a stick, marshmallows, stew, and/or some breakfast food. This prevents the possibility of a meal failure in the woods.

With my wife, we can plan out a menu while in the grocery store together, and if it is a complete failure, we can always drive to the nearest town for some hotdogs and buns.

5. Conversation or Not – Another pleasure I get from camping I often find is the quiet and solitude of the woods. When camping with friends, there is often some expectation of maintaining a conversation. While I love being able to have real conversations around a campfire, and have found that some of my most in depth discussions with my buddies have occurred when there’s no TV, and only a fire to distract, I believe that camping with friends can cause one to miss out on the silence.

With a spouse, the expectations of conversations are different. A couple that has been together long enough usually doesn’t feel the need to be constantly speaking to each other. Conversation is comfortable, but silence is too. Camping with a spouse brings the unique qualities of wonderful fireside chats, while simultaneously providing the opportunity to simply listen to nature’s sounds and silence.

6. Shared Memories of a Lifetime – Many of the friends I camp with live a good distance away, and we use camping to reconnect. As such, camping trips provide a great time to enjoy and embrace the present and some time in nature.

With a spouse, those same benefits exist, but certain memories can be shared and remembered for years down the road. I can’t remember everytime I’ve been camping, or all the places I’ve been, but I do remember every trip I have taken with my wife. The experiences we have we get to talk about often, and relate other life experiences to them. A little over a year ago we had our first close encounter with a black bear while hiking. We were accidentally got only a few feet away from her when we  spooked her.

This intense moment is one we retell at get-togethers  and a unique memory we share together.

7. Leave When You Want - We’ve all been camping on one of those weekends when the weather just sucked all of the joy out of camping. When camping with pals, I generally will tough it out. With the wife, we’ve been known to camp in some bad weather, but if the weather lasts more than a night or so, I find I am much more willing to ask her if she wants to leave. Camping with a spouse avoids the always awkward decision-making/compromising process of trying to take charge while avoiding being bossy. That dialogue is simply not necessary in a relationship.

8.Split the load – Finally, when backpacking, I have found that it is much easier to split our loads of equipment. We are much more willing to share equipment with each other and carry each others stuff than we would be if hiking with others. I would never ask for someone to carry any of my stuff, but my wife and I can split the weight more evenly (meaning I can volunteer to carry more without her having to feel bad for asking).

What do you all think? Are there any other benefits to camping with a spouse over other friends. Anyone see any benefits in the opposite, or camping alone?

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY EVERYONE, and don’t forget to tell your significant others how much they mean.

Length:  1.2 miles one way

Difficulty: Strenuous

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield is the site of the beginning of the Atlanta Campaign during the Civil War.  Fighting began here June 19, 1864 and lasted until July 2. It is from this location that Sherman continued his March to the Sea burning miles wide of property from Atlanta to Savannah. One of three battlefields within the Park sits just in front of the visitors and Kennesaw Mountain, and on many weekends Civil War reenactments and demonstrations can be seen here.

The Trail:

While visitors can pay $2 for a shuttle to the top of Kennesaw Mountain, hikers will enjoy the rugged hike so close to Atlanta. The hike up Kennesaw Mountain begins behind the visitor center on a well marked path.

Kennesaw Mountain is 1808 feet above sea level. It is approximately a 700 foot incline from the Visitor Center to the mountain’s summit. The hike does not involve any technical difficulties, but is somewhat steep. The wide dirt path alternates between steep inclines and slow gradual climbs up the incline.

On weekends, the park can become very crowded with hikers, dog walkers, and trail runners, but the trail is so wide and spacious that the crowds don’t seem to be a big nuisance.

From the top of the trail, hikers will be treated to distant views of the Atlanta skyline. On a clear day, Stone Mountain can be seen in the distance just to the left of the Atlanta skyscrapers.

Directions:

From Barrett Parkway at the I-75 exit:

1.  Travel approximately 3 miles toward and past Hwy. 41.

2. Turn left onto Old Hwy. 41.

3. At the next light, turn right onto Stilesboro Road., the Visitor Center is on the left

Note: On nice Saturday and Sundays, the parking area at the visitor center can be full, and visitors will need to parallel park along the roadside prior to the visitors center.

Lafayette, Georgia

Distance: 1.0 miles

Difficulty: Easy

Blaze: Brownish Pink

Just outside of Lafayette, Georgia is a little known wildlife management area known as Crockford-Pigeon Mountain. Pigeon Mountain extends along the northwestern corner of Georgia crossing over into Alabama. The wildlife management area itself is packed with numerous miles of trails that are difficult to find. Most of the area is open to horseback riders, mountain bikers, and rock climbers.

The exception to this, is the area we recently visited, known as Rocktown. Rocktown is a day use only area for hikers and rock climbers. The area is known by most rock climbers in the south for its unique sandstone formations, and numerous climbing routes available for beginners and experts alike.

The most unique aspect of Rocktown’s geological formations are the sandstone hoodoos that dot the mountain top plateau. Hoodoos are tall thin spires of rock protruding out of the ground, and appear to be unconnected to any larger rock formations. There are several of these hidden among the bluffs and boulders of Rocktown, each of varying shape and height.

The trail to the Rocktown village is easier to hike than the drive up to it. Once atop Pigeon Mountain, the ugly brownish pink blazes bring hikers along an almost entirely flat one mile trail.

As hikers leave the parking area, the trail immediately crosses a bridge, and an old building foundation to the right. After this, the trail makes a very gradual climb along the sandy trail. Not long after the trail tops the small hill, one of several forks appear. Rocktown is covered in these trails that carry climbers out to numerous boulders that are scattered throughout the area. If one keeps left at the first fork, and follows the pink blazes, the major rock village area appears.

The first real signs of the major climbing area are two large bluffs that appear to surround both sides of the trail. A large boulder ceiling hovers over the trail in the area. Just past this point, the trail really ends, and hikers are left to explore and scramble around the hundreds of different rock formations in the area. Climbers could easily spend days exploring the sandstone formations, and still miss some of them. One of the most photographed formations in the area seems to be the Champagne Flute Hoodoo (larger Picture Above). While it is more fun to simply stumble around the area until its found, its GPS location is marked in the trail map below.

Even if rock climbing is not your thing, the top of most of these bluffs can be accessed with some simply scurrying somewhere. On the last day we visited, we didn’t do any real rock climbing, but were able to access several very tall bluffs to look off. Just be careful with the crevices that often cut these rocks in half. It would be easy to misjudge a leap over one, and suffer severe injuries. Of course, one could always go the other way, and explore under these crevices, just look out for snakes, spiders, and other wildlife. I recently read about one climber who scared a bobcat in one of the rock’s holes.

Rocktown is one of only a handful of places to explore on Pigeon Mountain. We plan to explore it all in the upcoming months, and leave details about other, lesser known trails.

Hood Overlook

It should be noted, that one of the best views in the area, can be had approximately two miles away from the Rocktown parking area. The Hood Overlook (pictured at top of article) provides an open view of the towns of Lafayette, Trion, Summerville, and even Johns Mountain and Taylor’s Ridge in the distance.

Directions From Downtown Lafayette, Georgia:

VEHICLES WITH HIGH CLEARANCE ARE RECOMMENDED

1. Turn onto Highway 193 and follow for 2.7 miles.

2. Turn left onto Chamberlain Road (a brown sign with an arrow indicates this is the direction to Crockford-Pigeon Mountain WMA).

3. Turn right in 3.3 miles onto a gravel road, marked with the entrance sign.

4. Pass the Visitor’s Center, and follow the gravel road up Pigeon Mountain. Follow the road over a series of switchbacks, until there a a junction with a brown sign.

5. To the left is the Hood Overlook. Turn right towards Rocktown Junction.

6. In 1.3 miles, turn left on a dirt road marked with a Dead End sign. This road ends at the parking area (really a muddy cul-de-sac) for Rocktown. The trail is on the right corner of the parking area.

Bahia Honda Key/, Big Pine Key, Florida   Bahia Honda State Park is a small Florida state park, but has the unique claim (like most things in the keys) of being Florida’s southernmost state park. Inside the park, visitors will find a number of beautiful, white sand beaches, hiking trails, a nature center, some local history surrounding railroad magnate Henry Flagler. Entrance Fee for the Park is $3.50 for single occupant vehicles, $6.00 for double-occupant, and an additional $0.50 for each additional occupant.

Sandspur Beach & Camping Area Once entering the park, visitors can turn left and heads towards Sandspur Beach and the Camping locations that are actually on the beach (for tent and popups only). Continuing left, visitors will find a one way road leading to the camping area on the right, and then a large parking area leading to one of the first beaches. Continue past this beach, and you will eventually reach a second parking area on the beach, as well as one of the two major hiking trails in Bahia Honda State Park. This trail, the Silver Palm Nature Trail forms a loop through, a hammock, mangrove area, and dune along the beach.     Loggerhead Beach & Butterfly Garden Some of the most beautiful parts of Bahia Honda State Park, however, are back in the other direction. If visitors were to take a right at the intersection after the entrance, heading south towards Loggerhead Beaches, they would soon find a park area on the left. This parking area provides a great location to visit the rest of the park, and is also where the kayaks are stationed for kayak rentals. Just past this parking area is a butterfly garden and a long winding trail that runs between Loggerhead beach and the ridge that Old Bahia Honda Bridge sits atop. Hike down this trail to see a number of Florida’s 2600 species of butterflies. Continue down this trail, and you will get wonderful glimpses of the beach before crossing under Old Bahia Honda Bridge.    After crossing under the bridge, you will notice an even more serene, beautiful beach called Calusa Beach. This beach has still, very blue green water, perfect swimming. To left will be a replica of Flagler’s Rambler. Continue walking down beach, and on the right you will see the sign for the trail head of Old Bahia Honda Bridge Trail (the other major hiking trail in Bahia Honda). Old Bahia Honda Bridge The Old Bahia Honda Bridge Trail begins climbing a dune from the above beach. The hike very short at than 0.2 miles. Hiking up the dune provides several overlooks over both sides of the island before reaching the bridge. Returning down the same path, and continuing along the beach, one will reach the Sand and Sea Nature Center, the Main Marina, and will be back to the parking area next to the butterfly garden. Buttonwood Camping Area The other major camping area in Bahia Honda is not far from the nature center. Buttonwood Camping area’s camp sites sit along the Camper’s Marina, and many provide excellent views of the marina and water. This camping area is more developed than the one on Sandspur, and allows RV’s as well as tents. These sites, however, are not on a beach. Camping Fees:

$31.49 for Campsites $136.30 for Cabins

Entry Fees: $3.50 single person vehicular access, $6 for double occupancy vehicle, $0.50 for each additional person up to 8. Activites in Bahia Honda Other than Hiking and beach going, Bahia Honda State Park offers a number of other activities.

Kayaking - Visitors can rent sea kayaks and depart ocean side from Loggerhead beach, or gulfside from the boat ramp by the marinas. Kayaks can be rented starting at $10 per hour to $30 for a half day.

Snorkeling – boat tours with snorkeling are available from Bahia Honda. Daily departures from the park leave at 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Snorkelers travel to Looe Key Reef. Snorkelers should have about 1.5 hours of snorkeling. Prices begin at $29.95, plus an additional $8 for equipment rentals.

Fishing: Fishing is allowed at Bahia Honda, and the area attracts anglers trying to catch the feisty and large Tarpon. Other fish, such as grouper, snapper, bonefish and barracuda can also be caught at various areas in the park.

Directions: 1. From Key Largo, follow Highway 1 to Big Pine Key at Mile Mark 37. 2. The State Park Entrance is located on the left.