12/23/21 Countdown to Christmas: Our Travel Tree & Georgia State Parks

For this blog category, “Countdown to Christmas: Our Travel Tree & Georgia State Parks,” each day between December 1 and 25, I take a pic of a state park ornament on our Travel Tree and briefly highlight that park.

Smithgall Woods State Park, near Helen in North Georgia, was acquired by the state in 1994 as a gift-purchase ((for half its value) from Charles A. Smithgall, Jr., a noted conservationist, publisher and philanthropist.

Such beautiful vistas.

“The history of Smithgall Woods speaks of ruin and a new beginning. When first located by gold miners back in 1829, the area was full of wildlife and lush forest. Along Dukes Creek, small towns were crafted to house the miners. For the next few years, the miners feverishly panned for gold. Then, in the 1850s, the gold miners introduced the use of hydraulic mining. With this new technique, the landscape soon transformed from bountiful to desert-like. Due to its destructive nature, hydraulic mining was finally halted.

In the 1940s, a local radio station owner by the name of Charles Smithgall became interested in the land. With the profits from the sale of his media properties, he purchased 5,500 acres and spent over $20 million of his money to help with the restoration. Later, in 1994 he donated the land to the state of Georgia. Since then, the State has concentrated their efforts to preserve and protect the property. This land is known today as the Smithgall Woods Conservation Area.” (Cedar Creek Cabins website)

We really do love hiking our terrific Georgia State Parks. Nature is indeed a joyful medicine.

See you tomorrow. Our countdown hike to Christmas is nearly there.