Stone Mountain Park's main attraction is the carving on the face of the mountain. The carving depicts the three leaders of the Confederacy: President Jefferson Davis, General Robert E. Lee, and General Thomas J. Stonewall Jackson. I was so excited to go and see this. I have never seen Mount Rushmore and this carving claims to be bigger than its more famous competitor.

The Park itself is beautiful and doesn't belong anywhere near Atlanta. The trees are a lush green and there's a sense of tranquility that embraced me as soon as we drove through the park gates. I was upset that we had to pay money to pass through the gates, but you have to pay for everything in Atlanta.

We easily found the skylift only to find that it was closed for repair. So we swore a little and made our way down a hill of fake grass. It was mushy and gross, looked funny and smelled weird. Shielding our eyes from the slowly setting sun, we gazed upon the men who fought for slavery. What a disappointment. I was not impressed at all. The mountain looked like a fake piece of cement that someone took a cookie cutter to. I couldn't tell the difference between the men because they all looked the same. And it looked so new and fake.

We continued on down the hill to the left of the monument. There, in a little circle, stood a statue of a soldier. Around the circle were engravings of famous sayings from the Civil War. "Let Freedom Ring" stood near sayings made by the confederacy. There was also an engraving of Georgia detailing its succession.

We walked over to the train station and gift shop. The receptionist recommended that we ride the Riverboat because we would see more. She was wrong. We saw a boat under construction, trees, and a country club. The "captain" didn't narrate anything about the park or where we were going. It was just a boat ride on a lake.

We drove to the Antebellum Plantation which is also housed within the park. The last tour of the day was already underway so we just looked at it from the outside. On the other side of the parking lot was the same house, but rundown. I think that was the real house and the one that is "restored" was really just built as a look like the original. It was probably cheaper than conducting a real restoration.

Overall, I would say that Stone Mountain Park is something that I could have skipped on seeing. However, there is nothing else worthwhile in Atlanta. So, compared to sitting in our cramped hotel room, our little trip to the park was nice, but extremely disappointing.

Recommended: No

Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Mar - May