Rocky Face Ridge Park - History Hike

Join me for a history hike at Rocky Face Ridge, the site of a Civil War battle fought in May, 1864.  Rocky Face Ridge Park was developed by Whitfield County on land that encompasses the battlefield, as a hike and bike park, totaling over 1000 acres of land. 

Our hike will start at the main parking lot off Crow Valley Road.  We will traverse a  variety of terrain, including large open fields, wooded hilly areas, some rocky trails that climb the ridge itself, passing rocky cliffs on the way to a couple mile ridge walk which passes along an amazing stone wall built by confederate soldiers nearly 170 years ago to defend nearby Mill Gap during the May, 1864 battle.  This stone wall will be our companion for approximately one mile of our ridge walk.

Approximately half way through our hike, we will arrive at Buzzards Roost, the highest point of the property and the site of a former Fire Watch Tower.  The knob has amazing 360 degree views of Crow Valley to the East and Houston Valley to the West. We will take a 20 minute break here for lunch and to enjoy the views.  I have hiked this trail in the spring and it has some amazing wildflowers, especially on the north end of the park.  

The terrain we will cover is not easy, and you should be comfortable hiking on rocky trails with some steep ascents and descents.  The ridge trail portion of the hike, although relatively flat, is very rocky (rocky enough that bikes are not allowed on it), and requires stepping up (or down) natural rocks, a few feet high. Although much of the trails are well graded, a few we will traverse may present difficult footing for some hikers.  This is not a beginners hike and if you don't has strong D-3 hikes on our record, the TL may reach out to you to make sure you will be comfortable with this hike.  

The park is an easy drive up I-75, approximately 1 hour north of Kennesaw.  There is no organized carpool for this hike, but feel free to reach out to other participants to share a ride.  

Take I-75 North to Exit 336 - Dalton

At the bottom of the ramp, turn left and follow signs for US 41 N. Drive about 0.6 miles on US 41 North and Turn Right onto Willowdale Road

Drive 0.3 miles and turn Left onto Crow Valley Road.  Drive 1.8 miles.  The park should be on your left in a big field.

Address is: 2217 Crow Valley Road, Dalton GA 30720.

Google Maps recognizes Rocky Face Ridge Park