As pandemic restrictions ease, we’ve been exploring places closer to home and thankfully, the Georgia State Parks system provides plenty of outdoor activities. This week, we hiked at F.D. Roosevelt (FDR) State Park in Pine Mountain, GA.

Ths 9,000-acre park lies 90 miles southeast of Atlanta. And since it’s near Callaway Gardens (one of my favorite spots), you’d think I’d know this park inside and out. I don’t. Up until this trip, I’d only taken the scenic drive starting across Highway 27 from the Callaway Gardens Country Store.

The drive follows along the ridge of Pine Mountain, offering several small scenic overlooks of Callaway Gardens on the left and Pine Mountain Valley on the right. But the drive only scratches the surface of Georgia’s largest state park.