Mule Day - Calvary, Georgia

The first Saturday in November is the date of the annual Mule Day Festival in Calvary, Georgia. This was our first time and we were surprised about how big this event was. There were hundreds of booths with food and crafts, and thousands of people. There was a parade of mules pulling carts, mules being ridden, some horses and even a Brahma bull. There were cane grinding, cane syrup making, rope making exhibits. There was also displays of old boat motors and antique farm equipment and tractors. The weather was perfect and there was some great food. The only problem I saw was that this is a one day event so everyone had to come the same day and it was extremely crowded. This is not your usual small town fair. It was difficult to get around to all the booths and exhibits due to the large crowd. We will go back next year, but will bring some camp chairs. There was NO place to sit down to either eat or watch the parade. We would have stayed longer but I was in need of a place to rest my feet and a clean bathroom. I am not a fan of those portolets. A good suggestion would be for some seating to be added. The festival was free but we paid $5.00 to park. There were hundreds of motorhomes there. We thought next year we might look into taking the motorhome over the day before and dry camp. It would have been nice to have a place to go back to.

Reed Bingham State Park, Georgia

Location: This park in Adel, Georgia, in the southern part of Georgia, about 6 miles from I-75. The nearest shopping is in Adel. We saw a Piggly Wiggly grocery store. The nearest Walmart is in Moultrie. Interesting Info: The park is on 1613 acres and has a 375 acre lake for boating, fishing, canoeing, kayaking and water skiing. The "Little River" flows into the lake. You can rent small motorboats and canoe's from the state park concession. It looked like an interesting place to fish or explore because you can stay in the lake or go upriver. There are signs stating to watch out for alligators, but we didn't see any. This is a major area for the threatened Gopher Tortoise. We didn't see any, but did see many of their dens can be seen all around the park. The scientists have marked all the dens with different colored flags to indicate if it is a male/female, or has laid eggs. This park is also home to the rare Indigo snake. Trails: There are several well marked trails, one of which takes you along the river. There are a few nice boardwalk areas. There is the Upland Loop trail, the Birdwalk trail, the Little River Trail, the Turkey Oak Trail, the Gopher Tortoise bike loop, and several more proposed trails. The roads around the park are also excellent for walking and bicycling. Campground. The campground is very nice with 46 Rv and tent sites. Most of the campsites are fairly large so you don't have any trouble getting largers rigs into them. In Georgia you can make camping reservations, but not for a particular site. You pick your site out when you get there on a first come, first serve basis. This is not my favorite way to choose my campsite, but if you arrive during the week, you would probably have a good choice. In Florida all the sites would have been pretty well full by this time of the year, (the first week in November) but this camp ground was mostly vacant when we were on a Thursday. I'm sure the week-ends get full but at least you can get a campsite during the week. The number for reservations is 1-800-864-7275, or you can visit their website at gastateparks.org Favorite Camp Sites Most all of the campsites would do in a pinch but our favorites were: 11, 9, 33, 35, 30. We rated them as 5 star. Our next favorite sites with a a 4 star rating are: 31, 7. Our "okay in a pinch" sites are: 27, & 26. The rates for RV camping are $22 per night, with water, electric, and cable. We were told the cable is out and has been out of service for a few months, so we won't count on it. Things to do: We discovered a restaurant right by the entrance to the park. It's called Fullers Catfish House. The food was good, it was clean and the interior decorations were amazing. They are only open Thursday through Saturday, so plan ahead! We were pleasantly surprised on how nice this park was. We will definitely be back and it's very close to our home in Cairo, Georgia.