Richard B. Russell State Park - Elberton, GA

Trail Guide:

Lake Russell State Park offers bike and walking trails for all ages.   There are a total of 4.94 miles of beautiful nature trails, which connect most of the facilities on the park.

You may take the connecting trail between the beach area and cottage area.   Most of the trail is flat and runs close to the main road.  The woods are a mixture of hardwoods and pines.  This trail is 1.55 miles in length, offers viewing of some wildlife during different times of the year, has a steel bridge near the main road and is open to bicycle or foot traffic (Easy).

Our Cottage Loop Trail, which begins near cottage1, takes you along the connecting trail for a ways and then veers off to the left down a hill.  This loop is a little hilly, provides a steel bridge in the back of one cove and offers outstanding lake scenery along the banks across from the cottage area.  The loop is only 1.29 miles, but seems longer and meets with the connecting trail.  turn right to return to the cottage area, go straight for a longer walk to our campground area, or left to go to the beach area (Moderate).

If camping here, there are two trails that begin or end above campsite #28.  The graveled trail goes to the connecting trail, thus you can ride a bike or walk to the cottage area, cottage loop trail, or via long way to the beach (Easy).   The other trail is more natural, but hilly.  It leads over to the picnic area where it becomes asphalt all the way to the beach.  A .5 mile was measured from the start of this trail to where the beach begins (Easy).

Another trail well marked is near the rear of the beach parking lot.   This trail is called the Blackwell Bridge Trail.  It has recently been widened in the first section to the bridge.  It begins with an asphalt trail wide enough for wheelchair goers to the first bridge.  The loop starts and ends here so there is a sign to continue to the right where you follow the shoreline a little ways (.5 miles).   You will come up at an old road bed and see a new building which was constructed recently (Group Shelter) for reunions, meetings, receptions, etc.  The trail continues to the big steel bridge (where easy stops).  There is a sign telling about the bridge and a pretty view of the lake on Vans Creek.  You may continue over the bridge along the old road and follow the trail back around this cove and up a hill and back down to the first little bridge where the loop first began.  The entire loop is around 1.6 miles even though the signage says 2.2 miles (Moderate).  Along this trail are some old and young forests with more wildlife as you get back further in the woods.  

Basic Trail Rules:

Please leave your footprints only.
Please don't pick any plants or flowers.
Do advise of any safety hazards; trees down, etc.
Animals may be taken on trails with a leash.
Don't harass the wildlife.

Some information has been provided by GA State Parks Dept.