Sitting about an hour west of Augusta, A.H. Stephens State Park spans 1,177 acres and features three stunning lakes. While this Georgia state park is best known for its excellent equestrian facilities and significant historic sites, A.H. Stephens State Park also offers a range of activities for visitors of all interests, making it an ideal choice for your next RV adventure.
With 21 miles of horse trails and a designated equestrian campground, A.H. Stephens State Park is a horseback rider’s paradise, as they can ride through miles of trails by day and retreat to a well-equipped campground at night. History buffs will find this Georgia park similarly stimulating, as the park is named after Alexander Hamilton Stephens, the vice president of the Confederacy and governor of Georgia from 1882 to 1883. Visitors can learn more about the area and its history by checking out the park’s museum, which features one of the finest collections of Civil War artifacts in Georgia, as well as Stephen’s home, Liberty Hall. Hikers can meanwhile explore four miles of trails, anglers can take advantage of the park’s three lakes, and boaters can enjoy paddling or using an electric motor boat on the park’s waters, with the park even offering a range of boat rentals for visitors.
A.H. Stephens State Park features two campgrounds, one offering tents, trailers, and RV sites, and the other offering equestrian sites and stables. The general campground offers 25 tent, trailer, and RV campsites, while the equestrian area offers 20 horse campsites and 30 horse stables. Given its southern location, this park enjoys mostly warm weather year-round, so the campground is open all throughout the year. Visitors can reserve sites ahead of time, so those eager to claim a spot at this Georgia state park should plan accordingly.
Situated about 60 miles west of August and 100 miles east of Atlanta, A.H. Stephens State Park is conveniently located just a few miles off of I-20, so it is fairly easy to access by car or RV. This Georgia state park is just down the road from the town of Crawfordville, but visitors in large rigs should be aware that one route to the park from town takes visitors underneath railroad tracks, with a height limit of 12 feet, 6 inches.
Once inside the park, visitors should make sure to follow the park signs into the campground, as GPS can be unreliable in this area. Visitors can find parking for their rig either at their campsite or in various designated areas throughout the park, including near the equestrian area for horse trail day use, near the southeastern end of Lake Buncombe, near the park office, and near the lily pool by the park entrance. Both the RV campground and equestrian campground are able to accommodate rigs of up to 50 feet in length, and feature a mix of back-in and pull-through sites.
For supplies and other needs, visitors can find bike and boat rentals within the park, but can head into the nearby town of Crawfordville for more extensive supply needs. Just outside the park entrance, visitors can find gas stations, convenience stores, a restaurant, and other small shops right in town.
Visitors who want to enjoy A.H. Stephens State Park with their horses can take advantage of the park’s designated equestrian area, located on the northwest side of Federal Lake. The equestrian area features 20 horse campsites and 30 horse stables for visitors to choose from. The 20 campsites in the equestrian area feature water and electric hookups and can accommodate rigs of up to 50 feet in length. Only the campground host sites provide sewer hookups, but visitors can take advantage of the dump station and comfort station located in the RV campground nearby. Guests in the equestrian campground can also enjoy easy access to a number of horse trails from right within the campground, including trails that will lead horseback riders past Lake Buncombe and past Federal Lake. The equestrian area offers a mix of back-in and pull-through sites, and the sites can be reserved online.
A.H. Stephens State Park has two campgrounds to offer, one made up of tent, trailer, and RV sites, and the other suited to equestrian visitors and their horses. The tent, trailer, and RV campground offers 25 campsites featuring water and electric hookups, a picnic table, fire ring, and convenient access to a comfort station and laundry facilities. The two host sites in the campground—which are available to volunteer campground hosts—offer sewer hookups, but the rest of the sites available in the campground do not offer sewer hookups. Visitors can make use of the dump station conveniently located near the campground entrance.
The campground can accommodate rigs of up to 50 feet in length and offers a mix of back-in and pull-through sites. Guests staying in the A.H. Stephens State Park campground can also enjoy easy access to hiking trails from within the campground, including one that leads visitors on a short walk down to nearby Lake Buncombe. These campsites can be reserved online and are available year-round. It is worth noting for larger groups that the park also offers one group camp area located near Federal Lake that can sleep up to 150 people.
Those looking for a different way to relax and enjoy this Georgia state park can also take advantage of the park’s many games and sports areas available for use. Families with young kids can enjoy the park’s playground, while groups can enjoy a game of volleyball on the park’s volleyball court or a game of horseshoe at the park’s horseshoe pit. Visitors of all interests can then cap off the day with a relaxing meal in one of the park’s many picnic areas, located near Lake Liberty, near the Nature Trail, and near Lake Buncombe.
A.H. Stephens State Park is also home to a rich history worth exploring during any visit to this Georgia park. The park was named after A.H. Stephens, vice president of the Confederacy and 50th governor of Georgia from 1882 to 1883. Visitors interested in diving deeper into the area’s history can check out the park’s Confederate museum, which features one of the finest collections of Civil War artifacts in Georgia, as well as Stephen’s home, Liberty Hall, which has been renovated to its 1875 style and is fully furnished and open for tours.
Visitors eager to explore this 1,177-acre park on two wheels or two feet will be happy to hear that the park also has miles of hiking and biking trails for visitors to wander through. In particular, hikers can take advantage of the park’s four miles of hiking trails, which wind from Lake Liberty up to the campground, from the campground up to Lake Buncombe, and more. Hikers can also hop on the horse trails anytime from Monday through Thursday, giving them an additional 21 miles of trails to explore. Visitors who would prefer to explore this park by bike can either bring their own or rent a bike from the park.
Given the park’s many water features, A.H. Stephens State Park is also a great destination for visitors interested in fishing. Anglers can enjoy fishing throughout the park, but should check out the pier on Federal Lake for an especially great fishing spot. A.H. Stephens State Park also takes part in the Fishing Tackle Loaner Program, which allows visitors to check out rods, reels, and tackle box equipment for a day, to allow budding anglers to try fishing without having to purchase any equipment.
Boaters will also have plenty to keep them busy during a visit to A.H. Stephens State Park, as the park is home to three lakes. Lake Buncombe sits in the northwestern area of the park, Federal Lake sits in the northeastern area, and Lake Liberty sits in the southern area next to the park office. Private boats are allowed in the park, but only electric motors and human-powered vessels are permitted, so the park is especially well-suited for paddlers. To make boating even more accessible to visitors, A.H. Stephens State Park offers seasonal rentals of jon boats, kayaks, canoes, paddleboards, and pedal boats.
One of the major draws to A.H. Stephens State Park is its excellent equestrian facilities. This Georgia state park is an equestrian’s dream: it boasts 21 miles of horse trails and features a designated equestrian campground with 20 horse campsites and 30 horse stables. Visitors eager to explore this park on horseback can take their horse for a ride along the park’s miles of trails that wind around Lake Buncombe, down near the museum, around the group camping area, and past Federal Lake.
