Smithgall Woods

I came here to see the covered bridge, but discovered they have so much more.
THE SCENE
Smithgall Woods may not be someplace Georgians are familiar with, unless you are an avid hunter or trout fisherman. It was once private property that was gifted to the state by conservationist Charles A. Smithgall Jr. in 1994. A large section still remains private property for the Smithgall family, but what was gifted is a treasure trove of beautiful mountains, streams, meadow fields and wetlands.
I began my solo hike around 12:15pm from the Visitors Center. There I was given a map and a few brief highlights of points of interest, like the waterfalls and gold mine. I then set off one what turned out to be a 4.5 hour adventure. Probably not the smartest of ideas since I had surgery just three weeks ago. But I was tired of resting around the house and desperately wanted to get out and do something. Besides, nature brings a calmness to my inner being and allows me to relax my mind in ways I just can’t at home. It was a perfect day with perfect temperatures for hiking. In my entire time there, I only ran across one other human.
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THE HIKE
Inside the Visitor’s Center is a gift shop and small wildlife museum of the nature plants and animals. I walked down the paved Tsalaki Trail towards the Cathy Ellis Trail (approximately 2.6 mile away). The trail starts off as a fairly steep incline. Along the way I saw a sign saying «caution — bees». I thought that was a curious warning until I noticed the white honey bee houses in the woods nearby.
Next came the wetlands with a one mile looping trail and a boardwalk into the marshes. Here you have a strong possibility of seeing a beaver at work on a dam. I decided to save this area for my return hike and I’m glad I did. My energy on the return leg was running very low and I needed the benches here for a nice long rest.
I reached the covered bridge about 37 minutes after leaving the visitors center. It was a real beauty made in the simple Town Lattice style. The memorial plaque at the entrance was titled «Bay’s Bridge In loving memory of ‘Bay’ Elizabeth Smithgall Watts», whom died the year the land for the state park was gifted. It crosses the amazing mountain stream known as Duke’s Creek. The creek from here will be a large part of your journey. The trail turns to gravel just past the bridge.
MARTIN’S MINE was one of the first Gold mines in Georgia. Most of the mining occurred from 1829 to 1935. By the 1840’s most of the easy gold was gone and hard mining began. Miners dug tunnels and shafts to remove ore from deep underground. You can still see some of the entrances and shafts. The trail is well marked with numbers, so be sure to pick up the Mining Trail brochure at the Visitor’s Center to help you decode the locations. There is a spur trail off the Martin’s Mine loop that takes you to a waterfall used for hydraulic mining, which began in the 1850’s. It is an uphill hike, but the waterfall is very nice.
Back on the main trail I traveled another ½ mile to Cathy Ellis Trail. This ½ mile trail starts off uphill, but once you reach the shelter it’s all downhill from there. The trail ends at the beautiful Chunannee waterfall (which means friendship). Lots of vegetation on this portion of the hike. This land was once the home of Lucy Bryant, a Cherokee Indian widow whom was granted this 640 acre parcel in the Treaty of 1817. But by 1839 the Trail of Tear forced all Cherokee Indians off their land to relocate in Oklahoma. They curiously chose to name the trail after a 19 year old girl who fell over a waterfall in a different county altogether instead of the Indian widow Lucy. I don’t get that, but whatever.
The waterfall here is beautiful. I sat here about 25 minutes resting and admiring its beauty and feeling sad for the ancient Cherokee Indian nation. I arrived here approx. 2.5 hours after I began my journey from the visitors center. NOTE: Prior to arriving at the Cathy Ellis trail there is another steep incline, similar to the one near the Visitor’s Center.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
In total I hiked approximately 7.5 miles today. I would normally have done this in probably 3 hours, but I tried to go at an easier pace since I’m still recovering from surgery. I allowed myself plenty of places to sit and rest, the most enjoyable of them being the waterfall on the Cathy Ellis Trail. Smithgall Woods State Park is indeed a wonderful place for those who love nature and peaceful hiking venues. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND giving them a visit.

One of my favorite State park in Helen (there is also Unicoi in Helen), many trails here, one of my favorite is the Martin Mine trail, holes in the ground where they mined for gold, and also in the back is a nice cascading waterfall, much larger than the waterfall on Cathy Ellis trail.
Every time I come here I always bought a jar of honey, they have honey bees at Smithgall Woods, it’s the wildflower honey.
The staff here is always been friendly (most remembers who I am, haha) and helpful.

Women for The Woods
Weekend outdoor exploration for women.
This is the highlight of the Fall season for me: getting out of the city and into one of the most beautiful parks in the Southeast.
There are an assortment of classes: archery, tree climbing, shooting, cooking over a fire, medicinal herb class, mushroom class, stream ecology. The classes are different every year.
You choose three that interest you and participate on Saturday. There is a campfire and dinner that night then camping on the grounds. This year we had an interesting night hike.
Sunday we went birdwatching early and had a Yoga class to get the kinks out before leaving this peaceful place.
Great instructors! Wonderful Ranger and instructor Johnna Tuttle! New friends! Peace

Great State Park that you have to explore on foot or by bicycle. Scenic Dukes Creek flows through the park. Cars not allowed beyond the parking lot. Moderate hills to be climbed throughout the park.
We were there for Pioneer Days, and there was live music and vendors set up with wares and demonstrations including blacksmithing, apple cider pressing, woodworking, etc. It was a beautiful day in one of our favorite parks.

This park is beautiful. There is no driving through, you have to park at the visitor center and walk on one of their many hiking trails. This is a definate plus.
Pick up the interpretive guide at the center, and learn about the history of gold mining. Martin’s Mine trail has an interpretive guide that tells you all about it.
This park also offers up some of the best trout fishing in the area. Dukes Creek flows through the state grounds.
Don’t miss this glorious piece of nature.