Pickett’s Mill Historic Site

I recently visited Pickett’s Mill Battlefield Historic Site, to attend a wedding that was at the group shelter. Be aware that the shelter is not where the main entrance is! The shelter is actually off Highway 92, on the east side of the park.
The shelter’s just like a private cabin in the woods; it’s set away from the road so you don’t hear any vehicular traffic. There’s plenty of parking and even a playground for the kiddies. The shelter sports windows on all sides and even a fireplace at one end. Wooden beams give it a barn effect (not that I know much about barns, but that’s how I picture barns). The open kitchen is a good size too. The bathroom facilities are right outside the main space, and they were very clean and well taken care of. So yes, a nice woodsy spot for you and your group to gather and enjoy yourselves.
The only drawback was that technically the shelter was air conditioned, but the number of units inside needed to be increased. Every guest sported a sweaty sheen, and inexpensive ice-​cold watery American beer never tasted so refreshing. Adding more cooling machines might be a smart idea.
The actual hiking and historical stuff sounded nifty as well, so if I’m back in the Dallas area, I hope to check all that out.

Pickett’s Mill boasts several, interconnected and well defined hiking trails. None of them are strenuous although there are some elevation changes. I hiked all four defined trails (red, blue, white, Brand House) in about two hours.
Very pleasant hiking/​walking but there are lots of annoying gnats near the creeks.
All the trials are uni-​directionally marked (red, blue, white paint on one side of the trees only), not visible if you’re walking the other direction. Not sure why. This isn’t much of a problem in terms of navigation except one spot on the white trail where I had to take one fork and look behind me to see if there were white markings on the trees. Of course, if you walk the trails in the correct direction, it’s not a problem at all.
There are no historical markers at all on the trails. There are some posts recently installed along the trails that are ready for informational placards but, according to the guys in the office, that’s not in the works any time soon.
Brand House trail has little evidence of a house. And by ‘little’, I mean none. In fact, there is little evidence of anything historical on any of the trails except some earthwork fortifications (unmarked). It’s essentially like hiking in any of the other state parks in the area. Mind you, I walked without benefit of the trail handouts, which might point out things. I forgot to check whether they did when I returned to the visitor center. But if you don’t have them with you, you will learn nothing about the history of Pickett’s Mill.
I didn’t check out the museum.

Great place! Get some exercise and get some education!

Went here in May 2012 with some other folks. I think we got a good 3 – 4 miles of hiking in, given the hilly trails and meandering paths there. Bring water and good shoes!!!

Lots of beatiful trails and a nice creek…
I’ve been here twice and have had a nice experience both times. The last time I went was to get a geocache with my family.
There a a couple of negatives that I will mention:
First, they charge for admission for essentially the same type of trails you can hike for free nearby at places like Redtop Mountain or Mt. Tabor Park. However, if you are a Civil War buff then it’s probably worth the price of admission.
Second, limited park hours. They are only open Thursday-​Saturday 9am-​5pm. It took us weeks to have the time to go because our Saturday’s are filled and our son has afterschool activities on both Thursday’s and Friday’s.
We finally had time one Thursday afternoon and arrived around 3:30pm. Because time was limited we didn’t have time to go through the Civil War museum.
After hiking a little over an hour we realized that the park was going in about 15 minutes and we were on the opposite side of the park. My wife had to make a mad dash towards the parking lot where our car was (or else it would get locked in) and my son and I used our GPS to guide us to the front gate. It’s a long drive from the front gate to the parking lot.
My wife arrived at the office/​parking lot at 4:59 and they told her she had better hurry, because they were locking the gates. They don’t mess around with closing time. She drove out just as they were closing the gates, and a few minutes later we met her parked outside the gate.
But, it’s a beautiful place. If you have the time and don’t mind paying for admission then it’s worth going to at least once. Just allow yourself enough time to get back to your car before 5:00pm or be prepared to call a taxi.

Don’t be shocked if you hear gunfire at the state historic site.
In addition to miles of beautiful walking trails, picturesque meadows, and a surprising amount of wildlife, Pickett’s Mill also hosts the occasional Civil War Re-​enactment, which was the impetus for my visit. My natural loving self loved exploring the many acres of natural forest, and my history geek side loved watching some seriously costumed Civil War buffs fire gun powder rifles, stalk the opponents’ camp, and even fire a huge cannon (twice!). What was even better was seeing the looks on visitors’ faces who didn’t know a re-​enactment was going on when a rifle-​bearing Confederate emerged from the woods. Comedic gold, I tell you.
It’s five bucks admission for adults, or free if you’re a friend of the Georgia State Parks and totally worth it. Make it a Saturday morning to remember by stopping by my favorite breakfast place (Stilesboro Biscuits) just a couple of miles away on your way in.

Outstanding. If you love Civil War history, outdoors and nature. This is one you have to visit. Kept in it’s natural state that it would have been most like at the time of the battle. You can imagine just how tough this fight would have been. You can still see the trenches throughout the land.