Hiking in Black Rock Mountain State Park: Georgia’s Highest State Park!

With great trails all around Georgia’s highest state park, here’s why you should spend some time hiking in Black Rock Mountain State Park.  

This lush, green state park is nestled in the mountains of northeast Georgia.  Right on the doorsteps of both North Carolina and South Carolina, this 1,700 acre state park boasts 11 miles of hiking trails and some spectacular views!

Whether you camp here, or stay nearby, this state park is definitely worth a stop!

Important Links: 

Black Rock Mountain State Park website

Black Rock Mountain Camping – Reserve Camping Here!

State Park Map 

Trail Map and Details

Camping in Black Rock Mountain State Park Post

Hiking Essentials Freebie

Location:

Located in Rabun county, 3 hours east of Chattanooga, TN, 2 hours northeast of Atlanta, GA, and 4 hours west of Charlotte, NC, Black Rock Mountain State Park is nestled into the northeast corner of Georgia.  

Fun fact, Rabun is pronounced Ray-bun.  

When I visited, I mispronounced the name more times than I’d like to admit.  Ra-boone may have been my pronunciation of choice.  Totally wrong and a little embarrassing, so don’t make my mistake.  But I digress.  

This quiet and isolated mountain park boasts the highest altitude of any Georgia State Park.  With several stunning overlooks, this park is worth a quick stop if nothing else.  However, I highly recommend hiking in Black Rock Mountain State Park if you have the time. 

To get here, simply type “Black Rock Mountain State Park” into your preferred maps app (Apple, Google, Waze) and follow that blue line.

Anyway, now that you know where the park is, let’s take a look at some history of this beautiful park.

History

As with most desirable areas in the United States, Native Americans occupied what is now Black Rock Mountain State Park.  Specifically the Cherokee tribe occupied these mountains hundreds of years before settlers came around.  

In the early 1800’s this area became a popular spot for settlers to live and after years of pressure from these settlers, this land was eventually acquired by the state of Georgia in 1819.  By the year 1820 the area became titled Rabun County, after William Rabun, the eleventh governor of Georgia.  But it wasn’t until 1930, when President Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act, that the federal government began forcing Native Americans off their land.  And by 1938 all Native Americans in Rabun county had been marched down the trail of tears to Oklahoma.  Yes, a sad reality, but it shouldn’t be ignored in my opinion.

State Park History

For years this area was considered for a state park by a man named John V. Arrendale.  Arrendale owned 70 acres of this area and proposed the area be protected and preserved.  Finally, in 1951 the governor of Georgia made his way up the unpaved roads to see Black Rock Mountain.  

He himself was impressed by the stunning views and decided to help achieve Arrendale’s dream.  A safer road was paved and the area officially became a state park in 1952.  

Since then the park has grown from the original 70 acres to over 1,700 acres.  Even as recently as 1995 when 300 acres were added to the park.  Thanks to these forward thinking men, this beautiful area will be preserved instead of used for personal gain of the rich.  

Time to Spend Here

My husband and I stayed here for a weekend.  We arrived early in the evening of a Friday in June and stayed until Sunday.  We hiked several of the trails in the park on Saturday and then hiked a nearby trail on Sunday before calling it a day and heading home.

If you plan to hike here, I would say a weekend is necessary.  

If you just plan to stop and see the views, this park can be enjoyed at the overlooks within a few hours.  

But if you are looking for a getaway with little to no cell phone service, then the sky’s the limit for staying in this peaceful campground.  

So it truly depends on your goal when staying here.  But for reference, here was our itinerary!

Our Itinerary

Friday: Arrived to Black Rock Mountain State Park by 7pm and set up camp at our reserved site.

Saturday:  Started our day early by hiking the ADA Hi Falls Trail straight from our campsite.  Then we hiked the Tennessee Rock Trail before driving to Black Rock Lake and hiking the trail that goes around the lake.  We also stopped at the Visitor’s Center and enjoyed the views from this overlook.

Sunday: We packed up camp and headed over to the trailhead for Rabun Bald.  This 3.4 mile trail has an overlook tower where layers and layers of blue mountains can be seen.  Finally we hiked back to the truck and headed home.

Now, you can copy our itinerary or choose to create your own.  We didn’t do the backcountry trail, so you could add that.  Or you could simply stop to enjoy the views at the overlooks and keep rolling through.  

Hopefully our itinerary helps you decide!

Camping in Black Rock Mountain State Park

In late June, we camped in Black Rock State Park.  There are several methods of camping here, from backcountry sites, to walk-in sites and then tent/trailer/RV sites.  The camper/RV sites come in a few different sizes.  The smaller sites can accommodate up to 20 foot campers and the largest sites offer space for up to a 50 foot camper/RV.  

And for those who prefer a little glamor, there are 10 cottages!  

The cottages are on a different loop, but offer stunning views from a covered porch, as well as have multiple bedrooms.  Be mindful that only 3 of these cottages are dog friendly, so book as soon as you can if you’re bringing your 4-legged friend!

There are 

• 10 cottages – book here
• 4 backcountry campsites – book here
• 44 tent/camper/RV campsites – book here
• 12 walk-in tent campsites – book here

In other words, there’s a campsite for just about everyone at this peaceful campground.  

For a more detailed camping in Black Rock Mountain State Park post, check out my post here!

Our Camping Experience

We camped in our tent at site 23, which can accommodate up to a 20 foot camper/RV.  This site is dog friendly, and is nearly perfectly flat for a tent or a camper alike.  We were also within only a short walk from the bath house.  

Showers are a must-have item for me when it comes to our hiking trips.  I sweat a lot and like to go to bed feeling clean, not grimy. 

And just so you know, there is very little phone service here.  I have AT&T and my husband has Verizon and neither of us had more than a bar or 2 when we were in this state park.  For some that’s a huge plus, but to others it’s a drawback.  Either way, you’ve been warned!

I will say the roads in this area are narrow and each side of the road has a swale for water runoff.  This definitely would make backing in a camper interesting, but more power to you.  Again, we don’t have a camper (yet) but the roads were definitely narrow, so tread lightly!

A huge highlight for us is there are trails that are very close to the campsites.  We were able to walk to most of the trails in the park right from our tent!  There were also trails that you will need to drive to.  So if hiking is on your agenda, you can choose to walk from your site or drive to your desired trailhead.  

Now, the fun part!  Let’s discuss the trails!

Hiking Trails in Black Rock Mountain State Park

There are over 11 miles of trails to consider hiking in Black Rock Mountain State Park.  They vary in difficulty and length, so here are the details.

• James E. Edmond Backcountry Trail – 7.2 miles – Elevation Gain: 2,000 feet
• Black Rock Lake Trail – 0.85 miles – Elevation Gain: 35 feet
• ADA Hi Falls Trail – 0.4 miles – Elevation Gain: 190 feet
• Norma Cambell Cove Trail – 0.3 miles – Elevation Gain: 100 feet
• Tennessee Rock Trail – 2.2 miles – Elevation Gain: 560 feet

Our Hikes

ADA Hi Falls Trail – 0.4 miles – Elevation Gain 190 feet

Right next to the welcome center, this trail is mostly stairs.  Down you go, stair after stair, the trail brings you around the cliff you are descending and leads you to a small waterfall.  

Actually, small isn’t truly what we saw.  A trickle would be a better word.  Yes, a trickle of a waterfall led us down these stairs.  Truly there was nothing but damp rock when we were here.  

My recommendation with this trail is to only bother climbing down if there has been rain recently.  Otherwise you too will be tricked into taking the stairs to view a damp rock.  

And while going down the stairs is optional, climbing back up is not.  

Trudging back up the stairs we went, slowly but surely.  Eventually we got back to the welcome center and hiked back to our campsite.  

Black Rock Lake Trail – 0.85 mile loop trail – Elevation gain 35 feet

The lake trail is accessible by driving all the way through Black Rock Mountain State Park, or by hiking the backcountry trail, which passes the lake.  

We decided to drive to the lake.  About 10 minutes later, we turned down a gravel road and parked by the lake.  There are multiple parking lots where you can park, but we parked in the first spot we saw.

As you can imagine, there were several families enjoying the area with picnics.  And even with the crowding, and Luna stopping to stare at some ducks in the small lake, we hiked this trail in under 30 minutes.

There are a few boardwalk sections of this trail, but it is primarily a dirt path around the lake.  The views of the mountains from across the lake are beautiful and definitely worth the quick jaunt of this lake trail.

After about 30 minutes, we were back in the truck and decided to stop at the visitor’s center and enjoy the views from the Black Rock Overlook.  

Tennessee Rock Trail – 2.2 mile loop trail – Elevation Gain 560 feet

Starting at a small parking lot just a quick drive from the campground/welcome center, this 2.2 mile loop has about 560 feet of elevation gain and some incredible views at the top.  

The trailhead starts in the same spot that the James E. Edmond Backcountry Trail starts.  There is a clear sign of which way to go, so start by going left, or you’ll end up with a much longer and much harder hike than you signed up for.

After you’ve gone left at the fork, avoiding the backcountry trail, there will be another split right away.  You can go left or right, but we went to the right.  By going right (counter clockwise) on this trail, you have a more gradual incline to the top.  But if you want nearly all of your ascent right away, then go left.  As usual, the choice is yours.

But like I said, we hiked counter clockwise and this trail begins with a quick 100 feet of elevation.  Some would call this a rude awakening, but then the trail continues gradually downhill for the next 0.8 miles. At around the 1 mile mark, you find the bulk of the elevation.  The next half mile you will be stepping up over 400 feet of stairs and inclined paths. 

Top of the Mountain

You will then come to this carved rock to indicate the summit of Black Rock Mountain.  

Now that’s quite the summit marker if you ask me!

Keep following the trail at this point and you will eventually find this gorgeous view.  

We sat and took in the views, saw a few other people while we rested, and then continued on the trail.  

Taking you right by the road, this trail continues for another 0.4 miles in a downward fashion, leading you right back to the parking lot where you started.  This easy descent is another reason we hiked this trail counterclockwise.  

This trail was the highlight of the park for myself and my husband.  The weather wasn’t the best, but we truly enjoyed this hike.  And despite a few steep spots, this trail was definitely worth the views at the top.

Outside of the Park

Outside of Black Rock Mountain State Park, there is a really great hike that we did called Rabun (yes, this is still pronounced Ray-Bun) Bald.  Here is the All-Trails link to this moderate 3.4 mile trail.  If you don’t have the All Trails App I highly recommend it to my hiker friends!

So without further ado, here is my account of this quick hike.

Rabun Bald – 3.4 miles out and back – Elevation Gain: 1100 Feet

Rabun Bald is a great moderate hike.  Some might say that it’s challenging, while others might say that it’s fairly tame.  But from my perspective, this was a moderate hike.  

We started by parking at the trailhead.  Be aware, this is at the end of a small road and there aren’t many places to park, so I suggest starting early!  (Trailhead can be found on the All-Trails app or in the link above).

This trail starts out covered in Mountain Laurel bushes and has an incline right from the very beginning.  You start hiking up and truly never stop until you turn around and begin your descent.  On the bright side, the grade of this trail isn’t very steep.  

The parts of the trail that are a little steeper used rock staircases, making the incline a little more bearable. 

Once you are out of the mountain laurel, this is a very nice and shaded hike in the woods.  This trail actually parallels another trail.  So if you want to switch it up, you can take this other trail back.  But we decided to just hike in and hike out the same trail.  

Up you go until you reach a sign that reads Rabun Bald 1mi and this is where the parallel trails converge and become one.  From there you continue hiking up and winding around with a few switchbacks as you climb the 1100 feet of elevation.  

As the trail begins to level out, you will reach the old fire tower.  You can climb this tower (beware of the narrow steps) to see a few great views of the surrounding Rabun County.  Unfortunately, the large trees that surround the fire tower block parts of the view, so don’t expect a 360 degree view when you get there.  We actually found that we enjoyed the view a little further back down the trail.  There is an outcrop where we were able to see more mountains.

Descent

We enjoyed a quick lunch up on the fire tower, talked to a few other hikers who joined us, and one crazy trail runner who had run 16 miles to this spot (yes, CrAzY!) before we climbed down the skinny steps and hiked back down towards the truck.

Down was quick and easy until we saw some sort of snake along the trail.  We were still about a mile from the truck when this happened so we hiked the rest of the way a little more gingerly, especially because we had our dog Luna with us. 

We all managed to get back to the truck safely and easily before driving back to our home in Tennessee.

Conclusion:

Looking for an array of hiking trails in the north Georgia area?  Then look no further!  Hiking in Black Rock Mountain State Park is a must!  With trails anywhere from 0.25 miles to 7.5 miles, Black Rock Mountain offers some solid hiking options for all levels of hiker.

Plus, the campground in Black Rock Mountain State Park is a peaceful, unplugged place where you can get away from the hustle and bustle and get back to nature.  Check out my post on camping in Black Rock Mountain State Park here if you are also interested in camping here like we did!

Overall, we definitely enjoyed our stay and the hiking in Black Rock Mountain State Park.  We stayed a weekend but you could easily stay longer or even just a few hours to get what you want out of this park.  

Happy Hiking!