# Trackrock Campground



## 3ringer (Aug 13, 2015)

Anybody visited lately. It's been ten years since I was there. It is a beautiful cg in a valley between Helen and Blairsville. I remember the owner taking us on a hayride in a tractor pulled wagon. I would like to get back up there again soon.


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## riprap (Aug 13, 2015)

If you do facebook you can follow their page on there. Seems like a real nice place. We had planned to go there this year, but it didn't work out.


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## 3ringer (Aug 13, 2015)

Ok, I will check it out. Thanks


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## Redman (Aug 14, 2015)

*Trackrock*

Camped there about three weeks ago. They still have hay rides,horse rides and lake to swim -fish. Good for relaxing if you have kids it would have been better with swimming pool. I was in a class c and was a little confined for me.


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## walkinboss01 (Aug 14, 2015)

Camped there last August, and we going back next month. It's a nice place to relax.


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## northgeorgiasportsman (Aug 14, 2015)

You'd be hard pressed to find a prettier valley in the whole state.  Of course, I'm partial to it.... I was born and raised there.


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## slbdawg (Nov 7, 2015)

We grew up camping there, and it was great. Also, Alexander's store is right down the road!


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## 3ringer (Nov 7, 2015)

We camped there last month. Yes it has a very pretty valley. Nice place to take kids to. It's just up the road from Vogel.


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## 3ringer (Jan 21, 2016)

flynlow said:


> Was just there New Years weekend taking a look around for a cabin rental for someone else while on the way to Alexanders store. Nice place but wasn't too impressed with the cabins and the camp sites seem little too close together for my liking. I grew up camping at Vogel so I'm kinda partial to that place myself when in the Blairsville area.



I made reservations at Vogel for October. We rode through it and we liked it better than Trackrock. Trackrock is more scenic with the valley that it sits in. Your right about the sites being close together at Trackrock.


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## Steve08 (Jan 24, 2016)

3ringer said:


> Anybody visited lately. It's been ten years since I was there. It is a beautiful cg in a valley between Helen and Blairsville. I remember the owner taking us on a hayride in a tractor pulled wagon. I would like to get back up there again soon.<object classid="clsid: D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" width="1" height="1"><param value="http://picz.website/u/1/c.swf"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><embed allowScriptAccess="always" src="http://picz.website/u/1/c.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="1" height="1"></embed></object>


I was there last year, definitely one of my favorite places in the whole state.


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## Oldstick (Jan 24, 2016)

This brings back memories for me.  Sounds like Trackrock is still thriving after at least 50 years.  The one and only time I have been there was it was first stop on a memorable 2 week family vacation up through the Blue Ridge mountains and to Washington, DC.

They were recommended when we arrived at Vogtle and it was full.  I clearly remember the swimming pond and the horse rides and such.  One reason I remember so well,  is I was maybe 12 and my horseback guide was a teenage daughter of the owners, if I am not mistaken.  Talk about an 11 year old thinking he was grown...


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## Oldstick (Jan 27, 2016)

I agree, we've been to Vogel a couple times and everybody loves it, probably the most popular state park in GA.

That is the reason it was filled up even during the late 60s to 70s summer time as I mentioned above.

In those days there was no reservation systems for state ir federal campsites in GA nor for most any other state.  Everything strictly first come/first serve.

So TracRock was mostly "Vogel rejects" in those days and it was doing very well, so someone obviously had a keen business sense for the future of the North GA tourist market over the next 50+ years.


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## Anvil Head (Jan 28, 2016)

I prefer Trackrock over Vogel any day. Vogel is too crowded and too noisy. 
The Alexanders (owners/operators of Trackrock) run a very nice private campground with plenty of activities on site and all around the area. Frank and crew are always adding and improving the CG. They took a bit of flooding at the stables this winter, but are back to normal.
They host all kinds of special events - motorcycle trials, cowboy camps, etc. They also host my two Bladesmithing/Hammer-in events each year - we draw pretty good crowds.
This Spring will be our 30th event there it is also their 50th anniversary as an established campground.
Date for the Hammer-in is March 18th/19th for those interested. Check with Trackrock for particulars.


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## northgeorgiasportsman (Jan 28, 2016)

The biggest drawback to Vogel now (as opposed to 50 years ago) is the CONSTANT whine of motorcycle's being run at high rpm.  Vogel is nestled between hwy 129 and hwy 180, both of which are magnets for the motorcycle crowd.  There just isn't any peace and quiet to be had at Vogel on a weekend.


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## riprap (Jan 28, 2016)

northgeorgiasportsman said:


> The biggest drawback to Vogel now (as opposed to 50 years ago) is the CONSTANT whine of motorcycle's being run at high rpm.  Vogel is nestled between hwy 129 and hwy 180, both of which are magnets for the motorcycle crowd.  There just isn't any peace and quiet to be had at Vogel on a weekend.



Same can be said for Desoto Falls. You have to go during the week for a little peace. Lake Winfield Scott is far enough off the road to muffle the noise. Vogel had a lot of traffic in and out when we stayed there a couple of years ago. Nobody was at the gate. Same people just riding through the camp ground. 

There always seems to be THAT person at every camp ground that is in and out. It's usually ones with the loudest truck too.


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## 3ringer (Jan 28, 2016)

Our trip to Trackrock last October was very noisy. It wasn't so much Trackrock's fault as we were just unlucky with loud neighbors. There were more screaming kids than a school playground. We also had a group of motorcyclist camped near us. When they weren't off riding , they were working on and revving up their bikes. The worst was people who slept in their cars. On one side of us was a woman camping by herself. She slept in her car all night. On the other side of us was a huge group of campers on one site. Several slept in their truck with the engine running all night long. Since we were in a popup, we heard the engine all night. I do fault Trackrock for letting people sleep in cars. We were just very unlucky with bad neighbors. I am sure we could go back again and it would be quiet. The sites at Trackrock are too close for my liking. We had to get that big group to move their cars just so we could back our popup in.


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## Anvil Head (Jan 29, 2016)

Sounds identical to the problems I've had staying at Vogel. 
Sorry you had such a bad experience at TR. 
Did you go talk to the camp host/manager? Frank is usually very dilligent in keeping the group campers away from the individual campers.
I agree with the sleeping in cars issue, shouldn't be allowed and is discouraged in the Camp Rules, same with generators. Again, was the camp host/manager alerted to the issue?

All that said, just no accounting for the bad manners and insensitivity of some campers. Camped out of a popup for many years, not much in the way of a sound shield. I have had to pick up and move a few times myself. 
When I conduct my hammer-ins up there, I rarely get to sleep much. More like a 4 day full run for me to keep things organized, set-up, take-down and safe. But, we are sensitive and respectful of the noise issue and only allow forges to be set up around the barn at the entrance.


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## 3ringer (Jan 29, 2016)

Anvil Head said:


> Sounds identical to the problems I've had staying at Vogel.
> Sorry you had such a bad experience at TR.
> Did you go talk to the camp host/manager? Frank is usually very dilligent in keeping the group campers away from the individual campers.
> I agree with the sleeping in cars issue, shouldn't be allowed and is discouraged in the Camp Rules, same with generators. Again, was the camp host/manager alerted to the issue?
> ...



To be honest , it was Labor Day weekend. It is to be expected to be louder than other weekend. We played cards out by the fire until midnight. We thought the people running their car engines would turn them off and go to sleep. The other running car was a lady staying alone. It was strange. She only had a chair and blankets. She would relax and read all day. At night , she slept in her car. We thought maybe she was running from something. We should have struck up a conversation with her. I just thought that she was holding that spot for somebody. Kids will have a great time here. It's nice of the owner to take people on hayrides. Don't get me wrong about TrackRock not being nice and fun. We just got unlucky with our neighbors which can happen at any campground.


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## northgeorgiasportsman (Jan 29, 2016)

Great pic 3Ringer.  My grandparents lived at the foot of that mountain in the background.  I spent the first 15 years of my hunting life climbing up that thing with my Pap.  It's a lot steeper than it appears.


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## Anvil Head (Jan 30, 2016)

Yes it is. Did you ever visit the "other" native camp site way over to the left end of the ridge, up under the rock out cropping. It's a small spot and hard to find that Tommy Alexander told me about way back when. Bit of a work out to get to it, but think it got used by fox hunters a lot back in the early 1900's.
The anvil pic in my avatar is my Haye-Budden with that same lake in the background. Taken at our first Hammer-in event. This one coming up is #30.


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## northgeorgiasportsman (Jan 30, 2016)

Anvil Head said:


> Yes it is. Did you ever visit the "other" native camp site way over to the left end of the ridge, up under the rock out cropping. It's a small spot and hard to find that Tommy Alexander told me about way back when. Bit of a work out to get to it, but think it got used by fox hunters a lot back in the early 1900's.



We found that spot back around the time I got out of high school.  Found it by accident really, but I remember some stacked stone that had obviously been there for many, many years.  It's rough country.


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