MOULTRIE – A little over an hour north of Colquitt County, Georgia Veterans State Park is nestled up next to Lake Blackshear, a man-made 8,700 acre lake connected to the Flint River.

The state park was established in 1946 as a memorial to U.S. veterans, which means anyone who shows a DD-214 or active military badge can enter the park for $3.75 instead of the standard $5.

The park is 1,308 acres and offers a large variety of amenities and activities.

As with the other state parks, there are nature trails, picnic shelters, group shelters, boat ramps, fishing docks, playgrounds, beach volleyball, outdoor fitness equipment, court and both RV and pioneer camping.

Georgia Veterans State Park also offers an 18-hole golf course, complete with a clubhouse.

}But, there were also a lot of unique features about this state park that really impressed me.

The first was the separation between the day users and the campers.

Georgia Veterans has 76 RV campsites, two pioneer campsites and six safari tents for glamping.

There was a gate that would open with a code the overnight guests were given so that day users, like myself, couldn’t intrude on those relaxing at their campsites.

}Their section of the park includes its own playground, nature trail, picnic shelters, group shelter and fishing dock so that they could get the primary amenities without having to wander too far.

Those who chose to stay in one of the 10 lakeside cabins, however, do not have their own section of the park, and, though it was closed for renovations while I was there, a lodge for those who want a hotel-level stay is also typically available.

No matter which form of overnight stay is chosen or if you’re just there for a day trip, all three boat ramps throughout the state park are available for everybody.

The primary boat launch is located by the marina.

Yes, this state park has a marina. A pretty big one too that includes the Cypress Grill, several docks, a swimming beach and a bathhouse with a connected pavilion.

Additionally, for those who don’t own their own boat, the Lake Blackshear Marina offers several types of boat rentals, including the standard kayak or canoe, but they also offer pontoon boat rentals that can hold up to 12 people.

There are several other unique items to this particular state park, including, a model airplane flying zone, archery and air rifle range, 18-hole disc golf course and a free indoor museum with an outside exhibit at the visitors center about the U.S. military history.

I had been looking forward to playing a new disc-golf course ever since I drew Georgia Veterans State Park from my jar, until I realized after arriving at the park that I had left my discs at home.

I walked through the course for a minute to get a feel for it, and it would be a good course for beginners as the holes are shorter and not as many turns to reach the basket.

I will be going back to play this disc-golf course at some point.

After wandering around the disc golf course for a while I was getting sweaty and uncomfortable so I took a break from the heat and went to the visitors center where the museum was.

I found it incredibly interesting.

here were many pieces of history displayed there I have never seen anywhere else.

When visiting this park, I would highly recommend going into the museum and then wandering around the outdoor exhibit to see larger military equipment.

The other unique aspect of this park is the historic SAM Shortline Railroad, which was established 1888 by Samuel Hugh Hawkins.

}The Savannah, Americus and Montgomery Railroad (SAM) created the second railroad boom for Americus and allowed them to maintain their dominance and prosperity following the Civil War.

}Today, the railroad uses trains from the late 1940’s so passengers can feel like they are going back in time.

There are several different types of excursions the train provides, including a special event for most major holidays, Thomas the Train days, murder mystery dinners and wine and cheese nights.

This is something else I am very interested in coming back and experiencing.

The question is, which type of train ride do I want to do first? A holiday edition, or trying to figure out who the murderer is.

After I finished exploring, I found a nice shady spot and sat down to read for a while. I didn’t stay for a terrible amount of time as it was in the high 90’s and was blazing hot, but I did really enjoy the peaceful sounds of the lake while I got lost in my book for a couple chapters.

After about an hour I got tired of every pore of my body sweating, so I packed it up and drove back to Moultrie.

But, given the closer proximity to Colquitt County compared to the majority of the other state parks, and by the overwhelming amount of activities,, this park will definitely become a regular day trip for the family.