# Chatooga River



## Jighead (Aug 15, 2009)

Are there any places to camp close to the river without being in a designated campground,or any of the tributaries that would hold trout would work also. Never been on the Chattooga, need help.


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## Cornelia_Hiker (Aug 16, 2009)

Yep...I don't know of any "designated campgrounds" on the Chatooga in Ga. But there are two places I know of where you can drive directly to the river. Folks camp there for convenience but I wouldn't call them "designated campgrounds." You could park there and then backpack your stuff further up or down the river....but that's a lot of work.

Direct access all the way to river is Sandy Ford and Earl's Ford, both off of Warwoman road going east right out of downtown Clayton.

Another site that gets you close and is more isolated is called Water Gauge road. Water Gauge rd is off of Camp Creek Road which comes east off of hwy 441 a couple of miles north of Tallulah Gorge. It is a Forest Service road that goes ALMOST all the way to the river. Ends in a parking lot and leaves you a 5 minute walk to the river. So again, you'd have to tote your camp stuff from the parking lot to the river. Lot's of great places there. Is site of closed/obsolete water gauge. Really nice there. Where the trail from parking lot meets the river you can go a pretty good distance either up or down river.

Just find all these roads/spots on any map.

Enjoy!


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## Jighead (Aug 16, 2009)

Thanks CH, rode up there yesterday evening, think we'll camp on Warwoman Cr. ,that water suits the kids better.I'll sneak off early morning to fish the Chattooga by myself one morning.


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## Miguel Cervantes (Aug 16, 2009)

Cornelia_Hiker said:


> Yep...I don't know of any "designated campgrounds" on the Chatooga in Ga. But there are two places I know of where you can drive directly to the river. Folks camp there for convenience but I wouldn't call them "designated campgrounds." You could park there and then backpack your stuff further up or down the river....but that's a lot of work.
> 
> Direct access all the way to river is Sandy Ford and Earl's Ford, both off of Warwoman road going east right out of downtown Clayton.
> 
> ...


 

Make sure you check the weather forecast before you cross WarWoman Dell for camping. That creek gets up and you're not coming out til' it goes back down.


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## Jighead (Aug 16, 2009)

Thanks for the advice Scooter


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## westcobbdog (Aug 16, 2009)

I used to camp at Earls Ford, I think was the proper name. 
Had to drive thru a sizable creek to get to what appeared to be a
remote spot. Between campers from S Carolina appearing across the river and horseback riders en mass, we figured out it wasn't so remote. Thanks for the tip Cornelia about water gauge rd, gonna have to camp there soon.


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## Cornelia_Hiker (Aug 16, 2009)

Yeah no prob. Water Gauge road is a killer place for day hikes, walking a dog ect....The camping would be a pain with having to tote your stuff back and forth plus you'll be leaving your vehicle out of sight and unattended  while down at the river.

Earl's & Sandy's are nice places to visit and fish but they are HIGHLY popular with the direct drive-right-to-the-river access. So there's no privacy and if you try and camp there with possibly aggressive dogs....the dogs will drive you crazy with all the other folks coming in and out. Unless you have  highly obedient and docile dogs or can tie them up....leave the dogs at home for camping.


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## Doug B. (Aug 25, 2009)

scooter1 said:


> Make sure you check the weather forecast before you cross WarWoman Dell for camping. That creek gets up and you're not coming out til' it goes back down.



Warwoman Dell is not on the river. It is on Warwoman Road, and has picnic tables. It is not for camping.




Cornelia_Hiker said:


> Another site that gets you close and is more isolated is called Water Gauge road. Enjoy!



Water Guage is probably a longer drive to get to the river, but it still gets a lot of people....most all places on the river does.

You can camp most anywhere on the river. Look at a map and see where a road goes closest to the river and go check it out. The river is nice no matter where you are at on it. If you want to get away from other people, you will have to do some walking.


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## whateverjones (Aug 26, 2009)

It isn't on the chatooga but sarah's creek is good for dids,camping and fish for the whole family. Its out warwoman on the left.


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