Black Rock Mountain State Park is located in Mountain City, GA just north of Clayton.  It tries to hide on a random side street in town (the next left after the gourd shop!).  I would have never guessed going up the road 2 more miles was a gorgeous state park!  Once near the top of the mountain we were presented with a Y in the road….to the left is the campground and to the right is the Visitor’s Center and cottages.  We went left.  We approached the Trading Post to check in.  There is a small parking lot right in front of the Trading Post that we pulled into.  Since it was Thursday afternoon it was empty and we just pulled over.  Another camper in front of us just stopped in the middle of the road and checked in.  I’m not totally sure what the etiquette here is.  Check in was easy and we were to pick any spot we wanted.

 

 

We drove in circles 3x before deciding to pick the very last spot at the very back of the campground.  It was a very private campsite with one side all woods and the other side was another campsite but had some decent bushes and trees between.  Site 48 was not a very deep site but Mattie (16’) just fit with the truck parked diagonally in front of it.  There are sites of all sizes from very small sites to very large 5th wheel sites.  None of them can be reserved but some of the sites have signage on them asking folks to reserve them for the larger RVs.

 

 

There are 2 sets of facilities and are both an easy walk from the majority of the campsites.  Each one is located next to a campground host which was site 14 and 35. Facilities include bathrooms with 2 showers, laundry with 2 washers and 2 dryers and a garbage building.  The dump station is located right next to site 14.

 

 

We didn’t see much of the hosts at site 35 however the hosts at site 14 were always driving around on their golf cart checking out the campground and making sure that everyone had what they needed.  We got the feeling when we parked that they were policing us to make sure we had our camp card and that we had checked in.  Our dogs were not a fan of the hosts and they made sure to bark at them every time they drove by which was approximately 10 times a day.  It was definitely an annoying part of our visit here.

Each site has water, 30 amp and 50 amp electricity, cable, a picnic table, fire pit with grill top and one of those hook thingy-ma-jigs to hang your trash on.

We really like this campground.  It is well maintained and not too big.  Plenty of shade.  There is a GORGEOUS overlook off the middle loop (look at a map and you’ll see what I mean).  Sunsets are the main event each night as the sun dipped below the mountains off in the distance.

Do NOT leave trash outside your camper or tent.  Bears are very active at Black Rock and we were told numerous times to make sure you either keep trash inside or take it to the Trash building near the bathrooms.

Activities

• The Trading Post hosted several group hikes during our stay both during the day and at sunset.
• Hiking! 
  • We did 2 hikes.  One to Ada-hi Falls which is just a quick walk from the Trading Post down the main road. The falls are several flights of stairs down….no problem right?  But you have to go back up!  Not 604 stairs bad but still, if you have knee issues you may need to skip this one.  The waterfall itself is pretty and tranquil.  Not the best I’ve ever seen but since it’s right next to the campground it’s worth a look.

• The second hike was Tennessee Rock Trail.  This ended up being one of the toughest we’ve done because of the elevation changes.  Pack water!  This trail will take you to the summit of the actual Black Rock Mountain which has an elevation of 3640 feet.  You can get to the trailhead by way of Springhouse Trail which has an entrance right behind the trading post near the amphitheater or you can drive to the trailhead.  There is ample parking.  The trail is about 4 miles long and has some gorgeous views of the mountains.  We ate a picnic lunch about halfway up on a set of large boulders before making our way back down the mountain.  Scott and the dogs ended up with ticks on them so be sure to use a bug spray with deet.  Stay on the path…which gets narrow at times…poison ivy was everywhere!

 

 

• Fishing.  We did a hiking trip to Black Rock Lake Trail.  We do not recommend this for hiking.  The Lake is not that impressive and it was very high so the trails were very wet.  If you fish though, you might enjoy it.  There was a small bridge and there were a few fishermen on the day we went.

 

 

• Visitor’s Center – We took a ride up to the Visitor’s Center and cottages.  The views up there were spectacular and you can see all of Clayton and the surrounding mountains.  It is a must-do.  The day we went up there a group was decorating a pavilion for a wedding.  What a gorgeous natural backdrop!
• Shopping in Downtown Clayton.   Such a cute downtown!  We went on a mission to go to Wander, an ‘artisanal’ outdoor shop in Clayton that has really cute merchandise and a great Instagram page.  I walked out with a t-shirt, tank, and a trucker hat.  What’s great about Wander and a few other stores downtown is you can bring your dogs in!  Frankie and Griff had a ball ‘shopping’.    

 

 

We highly recommend this campsite.  It is definitely in our top 3 so far.  The weather was perfect in June, not too hot and the mountain views can’t be beat!