About Fort Yargo

Located in sleepy Winder, Georgia about 45 minutes northeast of Atlanta, Fort Yargo is one of those places that you’re both surprised and delighted that it is not more popular. Spanning over 1,800 acres of forests, trails, and facilities which surround a placid 260-acre lake. The park’s namesake is the old fort building which dates back to 1793 and remains standing today.

Recent renovations at Fort Yargo State Park have given the entrance a fresh and modern appeal. The visitors center is clean and welcoming and the staff are incredibly kind and helpful as we have grown to expect from our numerous visits to the Georgia State Park System.

The camping grounds

Fort Yargo has a total of 46 campsites suited for RVs. These vary in size and appointment and are spread across two main loops (cleverly named campgrounds 1 and 2). The quality of the sites vary a bit with most being fine, a few which seem a bit to cramped, and some which are just gorgeous. The photo in the top of this page was taken from site #40 where we stayed last time. Beautiful stuff.

The camp host was incredibly nice and helpful. He chatted with us for a bit while we were buying some firewood and told us a bit about the park, the grounds, and his family. He then proceeded us help us carry our firewood to our site and wished us a pleasant stay. Gracious, helpful hosts seem to be a common experience in all of the Georgia State Parks we’ve visted, and we’re very grateful to them.

In addition to the RV sites, there are also cottages, yurts, and walk-in primative campsites as well which we’ve heard were nice, but have no experience with.

What to do

Our low-key camping style doesn’t normally require there to be a whole heck of a lot going on at our destinations for us to enjoy them. For the most part we just want to get out into the outdoors and unwind as a family with a bit of easy hiking and maybe try to catch a few fish before relaixing by the fire. That said, it’s always nice to have a few activities available if we’re feeling like doing something additional, and Fort Yargo definitely has a fair amount of activities to keep folks busy for a few days, including:

  • Seasonal boat rental (kayaks, canoes, paddleboats)
  • Fishing
  • Over 20 miles of great hiking trails
  • Geocaching
  • Disc Golf
  • Minature Golf
  • And, of course seeing the historic Fort Yargo structure

Bottom Line

Each visit to Fort Yargo is treat for the whole family. There’s a real location bias here I’m sure given that this wonderful park is a mere 30 minutes from our home base, but even apart from that the park has a lot of charm that I feel sets it apart.

We give Fort Yargo State Park a resounding 5 stars out of 5 for being so consistently delightful.