Magnolia Springs State Park, Millen, Georgia

 

“Preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known,”

Carl Sagan

We turned into Magnolia Springs State Park and pulled up to the entrance booth, but found no one was there. So we drove straight to the visitors center where there is a collection box out front to get the envelopes for the $5 parking fee for a day. We filled it out, put our money in the envelope, and placed it in the box. If you were renting a campsite or a cabin, you would just go inside the visitors center to pay for your vacation spot of your choice. We decided to park near the visitors center and take a nice long walk since it was a gorgeous day.

First, we headed to the creek and saw the small but pretty waterfall. From there we headed along the banks of the creek where we saw many fish swimming, turtles sunning, as well as an alligator who was resting on the edge of the other side of the creek. He paid us no attention. There was a lot of growth in the creek and some was very beautiful. We headed to the attractive bridge that spans the creek. This is a great place to get a great view of the creek and to observe the fish and wildlife.

We came upon a boardwalk that spanned over the cool clear water. After passing a small shelter, the spring became visible. This is a gorgeous spring where an estimated 7 million gallons of water per day flow and is only about three feet deep. The water is crystal clear and you can actually see the water flowing as well as the aquatic life beneath the surface. This spring is beautiful at any time of the year especially when it hasn’t rained for a while. Today it was still gorgeous even though there was a thick growth surrounding it.

As we continued to walk, we spotted a group of turtles. They were enjoying sunning themselves including a baby who had wanted a better view and got up on its mother or fathers back. Now he had the best view and was king of the mountain.

We continued down the boardwalk, past a lovely covered shelter with benches with great views and onto the sandy trail. The woods were silent except for the call of the woodpecker above us. Tall trees enveloped us as we walked the natures path of Woodpecker’s trail. There was no wind and all was calm. We just followed the red painted squares on the tall pines and enjoyed some fall color while strolling through the woodland. There are many trails to walk and explore here. All along the paths, they have signs describing the wildlife and fauna.

We exited the trail and walked along the paved road past a couple of the cottages that you can rent. They looked amazing with screened porches and great views. There are nine cottages to rent at Magnolia State Park as well as a campground that has room for 26 tent, trailer, and RV campsites. They are nicely spread apart up under the tall trees. Some have great views of the lake. There is also a few walk in campsites and they even have a pioneer campground if you want to go rustic with outhouses, outdoor showers, large group fire pit, and screen rooms to sleep up to 75 people. It is nothing fancy but would be a fun place to rent with a group. There is also a 16 person Group Lodge that can be rented.

We headed past the cottages and came upon the 28 acre lake. There is no swimming there but it is a great place to fish, boat, or sit in one of the many benches along the banks and daydream. There is a lovely fishing dock where we saw a few young adults enjoying fishing for the day. The lake looked stunning that day with the blue skies and fall trees surrounding it.

Back near the visitors center is a splash park that is open for the children during the warmer months. There are also two playgrounds, a large turtle to visit, and 8 different picnic shelters for your use. This area of the park is shaded by trees draped with lovely Spanish Moss.

This gorgeous 1,070 acre state park was built by a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) project back in 1939 where they developed this 1070 acre area for recreational enjoyment. They did an excellent job and the park is very well maintained. This is a great place to come and enjoy the beauty and differences of each season.

This is not just a recreational area but also an historic site as during the Civil War, this area was known as Camp Lawton. A 42-acre area of this park had a 15 foot high stockade wall that at one time held more than 10,000 Union soldiers making this the largest prison in the world at that time. They choose this site as it had an abundance of fresh water. The Camp was built and used from August – September of 1864. It was abandoned then, only due to General William T. Sherman’s army as he closed in during the “March to the Sea”. The fort was only used as a prison for a few weeks. After the stockade was closed, the prisoners were relocated to other camps.

In 2010, Georgia Southern University archaeology teams found the stockade wall and various personal artifacts from the soldiers. These are on display at both the University and at the Camp Lawton Museum in the park. They continue to search for more finds.

Another interesting fact is that the land adjacent to the park was once the site of Millen National Fish Hatchery, later known as Bo Ginn National Fish Hatchery. There were 25 ponds that were feed by the spring at Magnolia State Park where they raised native and endangered fish. There was also an aquarium there were you could see the fish. The Federal Government closed the Hatchery in 2010.

Magnolia State Park is a great place to spend a day or a week. It is a peaceful, beautiful park and well worth your time. Come check it out.

Till next time. Bye for now.