Please note - At the time of this publishing, Rock Town is not found in Google Maps. The above map-link provides directions to the trailhead parking lot from downtown LaFayette, GA. Once in the parking lot, you can use this Trail Map to find the formations (although the trail is marked very well).

Overview
Rock Town is located in the Crockford/Pigeon Mountain Wildlife Management Area near LaFayette (pronounced luh-fay-ett) in northeast Georgia. Rock Town should not to be confused with nearby "Rock City," a popular tourist attraction near Chattanooga. Nope, Rock Town is just about as non-tourist as you can get, unless you are a rock climbing or spelunking enthusiast. Rock Town is off the beaten path, but it's well worth the extra effort.

The attraction to Rock Town varies based on the visitor. We love Rock Town because of the scenery, the hike, and small (safe) amounts of climbing. For many others, the towering formations present a free-face rock-climbing challenge. Don't worry, there are plenty of relatively easy and safe climbs, but be careful up on the enormous blocks of stone, especially with small children. Additionally, be smart about where you put your feet and fingers. There are snakes up on Pigeon Mountain. To me, that's one very good reason to go in cold weather when snakes are hibernating.

In order to enjoy Rock Town's beauty, you have to take a little hike. At two miles (round trip), it's not a long hard walk, but it can take a bit longer than you might expect. Various diversions such as scenic mountain views, local wildlife, and enormous rock formations tend to slow the progress in both directions. Don't worry, just make sure to reserve  enough daylight to make it back to the parking lot at the trail head.

On a side note, Pigeon Mountain has a secret it keeps hidden deep within, literally. It's a secret that draws people from all over the globe. Like most limestone ridges in this region, Pigeon Mountain is riddled with caves. Pettyjohn's cave provides almost 7 miles of mapped caving. The entrance is located just up the old dirt road from the DNR check-in station at the base of the mountain. Ellison's Cave, also located on/in Pigeon Mountain, features the almost 12 miles of passages and two of the deepest vertical drops in North America.

If you plan to visit Rock Town, go with someone and be very careful. It's very rugged country up there. Stick to the trails and you'll be just fine. Take a walking stick and good walking shoes. Have fun!


Adventure Journal
Entry Date:March 2007
Some very good friends came to visit from Michigan on this particular weekend, so we decided to give them a treat and visit Rock Town. Rock Town is an unusual collection of rock formations atop Pigeon Mountain in the Northwest corner of Georgia. The forecast was sunny and hot (87) which is very unusual for March, so we dressed as cool as possible for the two-mile round trip hike. 

We drove Homer (our RV) so we'd have a place to cool off and eat when we finished our adventure.  After a little talk about rattle snakes and bobcats, we started our hike. The kids loved climbing on the rocks, and we watched a demonstration of rock climbing from a guy that looked like he knew what he was doing. The surroundings at Rock Town are like something out of a science fiction movie. I took as many pictures as my memory stick would allow. We plan to go back to Pigeon Mountain to explore more in the future. Many caves can be found on the mountain including Pettijohn's cave and Ellison's cave which includes "Fantastic", a 586' deep pit (deepest "straight drop" cave in North America).
                         
The Richardson Tribe

 

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Features

Rating (1-10)

Description

Official website

*

There is no actual "official website" for Rock Town, but conducting an internet search for "Rock Town on Pigeon Mountain" will return a fair number of results.

Hiking and Mountain Biking on Pigeon Mountain - Trail Map (PDF)

10

There are many miles of trails in the 20,000 acre Crockford Pigeon Mountain Wildlife Management Area. The hike from the trailhead parking lot to the Rock Town formations is about a mile each way. Here's a link to the Trail Map (PDF).

Caving *
(10)
We have never been caving at Pigeon Mountain, but we have been told it's a 10. People from all over the world come here to explore this cave system. Pettyjohn's Cave and Ellison's Cave combined provide almost 20 miles of passages, including the two deepest vertical drops in North America.

Rock Climbing

*

We aren't serious rock climbers, but we have been told that Rock Town and the "Lost Wall" (nearby on Pigeon Mountain) are two very popular free-face climbing destinations.

Places to Camp near LaFayette and Rock Town - Pigeon Mountain 9 Primitive camping is available within the Crockford Pigeon Mountain WMA. Contact the Department of Natural Resources for more information. RV camping is limited in the immediate area. We like Cloudland Canyon State Park, Desoto State Park, and Chester Frost Park, all within a reasonable drive.

Local Attractions

10

Cloudland Canyon State Park, Lula Lake Land Trust, Chattanooga, TN, Chattanooga, Zoo Chester Frost Park, Desoto State Park (AL), etc.

*Note: We rate only the amenities we have personally reviewed.

No financial consideration or favor has been received for listing in PB&J Adventures' website. We are in no way affiliated with this facility or any other facility we review. Any paid advertising seen on this site was arranged after the destination was reviewed. You can trust the reviews to be unbiased.


April 2007