MORGAN COUNTY, Ga. — All across Georgia, you will find around 50 state parks for people to visit and explore. It is a great way to have a summer vacation and is budget-friendly.
This includes Hard Labor Creek State Park in Morgan County. The campsites include walking trails, a lakeside beach, 17 miles of riding trails, and even a mini-golf course.
For those looking to do a little fishing, the lake is stocked by the Department of Natural Resources with catfish, bass, and crappie.
There are 20 cottages and various campsites, including 12 equestrian campsites with 30 stalls for people to camp alongside their horses.
“All of our cottages have been renovated in the last five years, so they've been upgraded to stone countertops,” Hard Labor Creek State Park Manager Carol Sanchez said. “You get a high-end feel. It feels more like a hotel than a cabin.”
Jessica Seagrist said her family loves to come to the lakeside beach as it has the soft sand of a Florida vacation spot.
“They come out here and clean it frequently, so there's not trash everywhere,” Seagrist said. “There's not a bunch of sticks and stones around. It's easy for the kids to play in.”
Back in the 1930’s Uncle Sam bought up to 6-thousand acres of exhausted farmland. So they set about planting hardwoods and turned it over to the state of Georgia in 1941.
Sanchez said the name isn’t from a prison work camp or anything sinister, but it is, in fact, named for the creek which once flowed through the area.
Speaking of sinister, there is a dock on the lake where Jason Voorhees once rose from the water in one of Friday the 13th movies, the sixth to be exact. Sanchez said this had sparked everything from screening parties to a Friday the 13th-themed wedding.
From creepy to peaceful, rustic to luxurious, Hard Labor is the perfect place to "work" on enjoying your summer.
For additional resources and maps, check here.
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