June 12-15, 2019 (Part 2)

High Falls State Park, Jackson, GA

On our second trip into the Atlanta area we went to Stone Mountain Park to celebrate my birthday.  

 

Stone Mountain Park has a wide variety of family-friendly activities.  We purchased our tickets on-line in advance.  There are many options for tickets.  We chose the Adventure Bundle which included access to all attractions including the summit skyride, scenic railroad, mini golf, laser show with reserved seating and unlimited popcorn and beverage.  The pass is a VIP pass which allowed us front-of-the-line access to all attractions and it also included free pictures taken by park photographers at different attractions.

The top attraction at the park is the Summit Skyride, a high-speed Swiss cable car that provides a stunning view of the Confederate Memorial Carving as it transports guests more than 825 feet to the top of Stone Mountain.  There are amazing views of the Atlanta skyline.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At Camp Highlight Outpost, Monte challenged himself as he made his way through the rope course of SkyHike. 

 

 

 

 Closed-toe shoes were required so I could not do the course because I was wearing sandals.  (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it).

 

We had a good-natured rivalry as we puttered around the mini golf course. 

 We were following a large group so we were constantly waiting for our turn.  There was a large group of teenagers following us who didn’t wait their turn on several holes.  It was a little rude.

Monte wanted to rest his feet so he sat on a park bench while I toured Historic Square, a collection of original buildings from around the state of Georgia, built between 1793 and 1875.  Each structure was moved from its original site and restored.  I enjoyed going through the houses so much that I forgot to take pictures.

Another attraction that we really enjoyed was viewing Ice Age: No Time for Nuts in 4D.  Scrat, Ice Age’s resident nut-crazed squirrel travels through time battling a wonky time machine that zaps his beloved nut for a ride.

Even though Megabugs is more geared toward children we took a walk though the exhibit.  Some of the bugs come to life as they crawl, fly and dig.  Some of the megabugs included in the exhibit are a 15-foot Emperor Dragonfly, a 20-foot Hissing Cockroach, and a 50-foot Madagascan Fire Millipede.

 

The trip on the Scenic Railroad lasts 25 minutes and travels five-miles around the mountain in an open-air car.

 

 

The ZUZU African Acrobats are amazing athletes who perform high energy entertainment including limbo, contortion and pyramid building.

 

 

At lunchtime we ate a picnic lunch we had brought along with us. 

At dinnertime we chose to eat at Base Camp BBQ.  It was reasonably priced and delicious.

The evening was capped off with a spectacular laser show with state-of-the-art digital graphics that featured lights, music, lasers, fireworks, flame cannons and choreographed drone flights.

 

 

 

 

 

I had a great birthday with my sweetie.  The weather was perfect and having a VIP pass just made it that much more special.

On our final day at High Falls State Park we hiked the High Falls Trail. 

The trail descends a series of wooden platforms along the river, catching increasingly better views of the whitewater-filled waterfall.