Sweetwater Creek (White and Red Trails) - Dog Friendly

This hike was originally posted for the Yellow and Orange trails. The bridge across the creek is currently closed for repairs so we have changed the hike to the White and Red trails.

 This will be a moderately paced hike at Sweetwater Creek State Park. This is a fun and scenic hike very close to town. This hike includes some areas where we will scramble across rocks and tree roots. Good balance and comfort crossing rocky terrain is a must for this hike. We will start on the White trail and go counter clock wise until we come to the intersection with the Red trail. We will then follow the Red trail along Sweetwater Creek and past the ruins of the old Manchester Thread Mill.  

White Trail: 3 miles one way. Blazed white. Rated moderate to difficult. 

The White Trail passes through some of the most remote areas of the park west of Sweetwater Creek. It connects to the end of the Red trail following the rapids as they continue down the creek. The trail then turns west and follows Jack’s Branch upstream to Jack’s Lake. 

Red Trail:  1 mile one way.  Blazed red. Rated easy to difficult.  

The Red Trail, after half a mile, takes you to the impressive New Manchester mill ruins alongside the white-water rapids of Sweetwater Creek and is the recommended hike for first-time visitors. New Manchester was a mid- nineteenth century mill town which met its demise during the Civil War.  The second half mile of the Red Trail, downstream of the mill, continues to follow the rapids to the Sweetwater Falls area and is considerably more strenuous because of the very rocky terrain.

Use your favorite nav to find Sweetwater Creek State Park  and hit Go! Chances are, it will bring you to the main parking lot near the Visitor Center. If it does not, once you get to the Park, follow the signs to the Visitor Center, and after the hike, get a new nav! We'll meet in the parking lot near the walkway to the Visitor Center.

Sweetwater Creek State Park hiking trail parking lot near the Visitor Center: Take I-20 west from Atlanta, exit #44 at Thornton Road, turn left and go 1/4 mile. Turn right on Blairs Bridge Road, go 2 miles and turn left on Mount Vernon Road. Travel a couple more miles and into the park. Just after crossing over the lake turn left onto Factory Shoals Rd. You will see the gate with the small ticket booth. Continue straight to the end of the road to the parking area.

GPS Coordinates
N 33.753783 | W -084.639000

If you need old-school directions, please call Chris at 404-725-4045.

Only AOC members who have signed their annual waiver may sign up for, and participate in, this event. Please, no guests and +Ones!

There is no cost to participate in this event, however there is a $5 parking fee to enter the State Park, unless you have a GA Park Pass, in which case you're in!

If Life happens, and you cannot participate in this event, please go to the AOC website and unregister by the registration cut off on the day of the event.

If after the deadline, text 404-725-4045 and let me know.