Red Top Mountain Sweet Gum Trail Red Top Mountain State Park, GA
miles
LENGTH 3.1 MILES
DIFFICULTY 3 Easy
DURATION 1-2 hours
ELEVATION GAIN
440
feet
TRAIL TYPE
Loop
Red Top Mountain Sweet Gum Trail

There are many ways you can explore the trails at Red Top Mountain State Park. This loop describes hiking the Sweet Gum Trail, the southern half of the Homestead Trail and taking the White Tail Trail out to views of Allatoona Lake. An easy 3-mile hike great for kids and dogs.

The red-blazed Sweet Gum Trail is mostly a connecting trail, joining with the Homestead Trail twice, crossing through the Visitor Center parking lot and stretching to the Trading Post. This page will describe beginning at the Trading Post, heading up to the Visitor Center, taking the White Tail trail, and looping back down the Homestead Trail. You can park at either location but the Visitor Center has significantly more parking. Both have restrooms and maps available.

From the Trading Post, look for the trailhead in the corner of the parking lot near the tennis court. Follow the red-blazed Sweet Gum Trail north, connecting with the yellow-blazed Homestead Trail for a short while before leaving and coming to a split. Left reconnects with the Homestead and right heads up to the Visitor Center so hang right.

Walk through the Visitor Center parking lot to the continuation of the Sweet Gum trail on the other side. Almost immediately the white-blazed White Tail Trail branches off to the right. Follow this for less than half a mile for some excellent views of Allatoona Lake. Backtrack to the Sweet Gum Trail and continue to the next intersection with the Homestead Trail next to the road crossing.

Certainly if you want to make a larger loop you could continue north and add the 3.3 mile Homestead Loop but for this route, turn left, crossing the road. You can just continue to follow the red blazes, but you've hiked all but a short section already so to keep it fresh, follow the yellow blazes at the next few intersections to end in front of the Trading Post, completing your hike.

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Elevation Map Length (miles) by Elevation (feet)
Slope Breakdown
Elevation Gain
Elevation Range
Grade Range
Length
Elevation Gain
0 - 250 ft/mi
~ 0 - 5 %
0.9 mi
110 ft
250 - 500 ft/mi
~ 5 - 10 %
0.5 mi
168 ft
500 - 750 ft/mi
~ 10 - 15 %
0.2 mi
112 ft
750 - 1000 ft/mi
~ 15 - 20 %
379 ft
64 ft
1000+ ft/mi
~ 20+ %
80 ft
17 ft
Elevation Loss
Elevation Range
Grade Range
Length
Elevation Loss
0 - 250 ft/mi
~ 0 - 5 %
0.7 mi
97 ft
250 - 500 ft/mi
~ 5 - 10 %
0.5 mi
170 ft
500 - 750 ft/mi
~ 10 - 15 %
0.2 mi
144 ft
750 - 1000 ft/mi
~ 15 - 20 %
252 ft
39 ft
1000+ ft/mi
~ 20+ %
91 ft
30 ft
Terrain Map Click to control map
Details
length3.1 miles
difficulty3 Easy
duration1 - 2 hours
features Dog Friendly  Lake 
trail typeLoop
blazeRed (Sweet Gum), White (White Tail), Yellow (Homestead)
elevation gain440 ft.
state Georgia 
park/forestRed Top Mountain State Park
visitor infoVisitor Center
50 Lodge Road SE
Acworth, GA 30102
770-975-0055 (Park), 770-975-4226 (Visitor Center)
hours7am - Dark (Park), 8am - 5pm (Office)
parking fee$5/Day, $50 Annual Pass
trailhead coordinates 34.147943, -84.706678 (Degree Decimal, DegDec)
N 34°8.88, W 84°42.4 (Degree Minutes, MinDec)
N 34°8'53'', N 34°8'53'' (Degree Minutes Seconds, DMS)
Trailhead Directions
34.147943, -84.706678 (Degree Decimal, DegDec)
N 34°8.88, W 84°42.4 most GPS units use this one
N 34°8'53'', N 34°8'53'' (Degree Minutes Seconds, DMS)
Google Map It
If the parking lot at the Trading Post is full, head to the Visitor Center (34.154669, -84.703077). Turn right out of the parking lot and then right on Park Marina Road, following signs to the Visitor Center.
Parking Capacity
30 parking spots at the Trading Post lot, 100+ at the Visitor Center.
Notes
Watch for traffic when crossing the road.
Nearby Hikes
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Reviews / Comments
Average Review Rating
4 (1)
hikethesouth-4 years ago
Hike All the Trails
Staying on the red Sweet Gum trail really doesn't go anywhere, it just connects to all the other trails, so that's how you hike this. Use the Homestead trail to form this longer loop but make sure to add the White Tail trail for lake views and pick up the loop part of the Homestead trail for a longer 6.4 mile hike. But really you can use this trail to just explore around the park any way you want.
Easy | Hiked Summer 2020
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