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4.2
5 votes

Stephen C. Foster State Park

17515 Hwy 177, Fargo, Georgia 31631 USA

  • Independent
  • Credit Cards
    Accepted
  • Pet Friendly
  • Wheelchair
    Accessible
  • Public
    Restrooms
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“in the heart of the Georgia swamplands!”

This remote park is a primary entrance to the legendary Okefenokee Swamp -- one of Georgia's seven natural wonders. Spanish moss-laced trees reflect off the black swamp waters, while cypress knees rise upward from the glass-like surface.  Here, paddlers and photographers will enjoy breathtaking scenery and abundant wildlife. Alligators, turtles, raccoons, black bears, deer, ibis, herons, wood storks, red-cockaded woodpeckers and numerous other creatures make their homes in the 402,000-acre refuge.  Stargazers will appreciate the particularly dark sky.  Astronomy programs with an 18" telescope are sometimes offered.   Park staff offer guided boat tours at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Same-day reservations are recommended. More adventurous visitors may wish to rent canoes, kayaks or jon boats for further exploration of the swamp, including a trip to historic Billy’s Island.  Fishing in the lake is excellent, particularly for warmouth, bluegill, catfish, chain pickerel and bowfin.  Boating is dependent upon water levels.  Overnight guests may stay in a shaded campground or fully equipped cabins. Because the state park is located within a National Wildlife Refuge, gates lock at closing and a refuge fee is charged. Perhaps the most famous inhabitant of the Okefenokee Swamp is the American Alligator.  Officials estimate that 12,000 of the country’s largest reptile live within the 402,000-acre refuge.  To safely view these creatures, visitors should admire them from a distance and keep hands and feet inside boats.  Pets are not allowed in boats, even privately owned vessels.  Children should not play near the water’s edge.  Feeding any wildlife is prohibited.  Following these guidelines will help visitors have a safe and entertaining experience in one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Georgia. At the park's Suwannee River Visitor Center in Fargo, visitors learn not only about the Okefenokee Swamp's ecosystem, but also how buildings can be made from recycled car parts. Located off Hwy. 441 at the Suwannee River bridge, the center mixes environmental education with engineering showmanship. Inside, visitors learn that tannic acid produced by decaying vegetation is what gives the river its tea color, and that unlike other reptiles, mother alligators actively care for their babies. A third of the building materials was made from recycled content, including a retaining wall made from old dashboards and electrical cables.  Call ahead to confirm hours of operation. Because Stephen C. Foster State Park is located within a National Wildlife Refuge, gate lock at closing and a $5 refuge fee is charged.

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Reviews of Stephen C. Foster State Park

32 people have reviewed this location

Ratings Summary

4.4 Access
4.5 Location
4.7 Cleanliness
4.6 Site Quality
4.9 Noise

Cell Coverage

Verizon 4G/5G

Confirmed by 9 users | Last reported on June 27, 2020

AT&T 4G/5G

Confirmed by 11 users | Last reported on December 24, 2022

T-Mobile 5G

Confirmed by 1 users | Last reported on January 19, 2023
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Reviewed by
kevinjahearn

  • 6 Reviews
  • 0 Helpful
April 21, 2020
Rated

My wife and I camped here at the end of March. The campground was clean, sites were private, and access the Okeefenokee Swamp was perfect. We rented a small skiff and spent a day wandering the waterways, enjoying the wildlife: gators, owls, heron galore. We walked the trails, road bikes, photographed the stars. This was the perfect place to social distance. We will definitely go back.

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kevinjahearn would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $37.00

Days Stayed: 3

Site Number: 46

5 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T 4G

Photo of Campendium

Reviewed by
Campendium

June 01, 2020
Rated

The park was ok, no cell service, the pic nick table and fire pit were were placed on the wrong side of the lot, probley because of previous campers, I managed moving the fire pit myself , seen 3 deer mozie right through my camp site, the yellow flies were extremely bad this time of year, it made it hard to enjoy the tripp, mosquitoes were bad also, I was instructed to go straight to the camp site, didn't have the opportunity to get a map of the place, that caused me to miss the dump station, it's not worth 35 bucks a night, 20 bucks, yes.

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Nightly Rate: $35.00

Days Stayed: 2

Site Number: 16

3 Access
3 Location
4 Cleanliness
4 Site Quality
3 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

Verizon 4G

Reviewed by
Shortsaler

  • 45 Reviews
  • 12 Helpful
June 27, 2020
Rated

huge disappointment— #59 is a pull thru site, quite a distance from the bath house. laundromat has washers, no dryers. the boat tours weren’t running & the visitor center wasn’t open...blamed it all on covid. no pool. nearest grocery is the Dollar General store, about 20 miles away. beer is at BP station. nearest restaurant (actually a gas station) is half hour drive, one way. the bugs were jurassic size. we saw deer, a black bear, turkey and a dead raccoon. there is a play area for the kiddos.

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Nightly Rate: $35.00

Days Stayed: 2

Site Number: 59

2 Access
2 Location
3 Cleanliness
4 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

Verizon

Photo of Campendium

Reviewed by
Campendium

April 15, 2021
Rated

This is a beautiful campground and State Park. The real draw here is the swamp and bayou. Rent a boat, get out on the waterways to see gators, turtles, egrets, herons, cypress trees, and lilies. We rented a 2-person kayak for the day at $30 (a bargain), and saw all of these. We saw the most gators in the area around Billy's Island, however, we saw them in many other locations too. We saw only a handful of others out in boats and really felt we had the bayous to ourselves. The campground is great too. The sites are relatively private with jungle foliage in between them. The bath house is the best I've ever seen. Use the handicap showers. They are huge, clean, and have nice benches for setting out your clothes and toiletries. Cell phone reception is very poor - no bars or bandwidth without a cell phone booster. With a booster, the bandwidth was still very low, but fine for messaging, email, and surfing the net, but not for streaming.

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This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $38.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: 2

5 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T

Photo of Campendium

Reviewed by
Campendium

May 10, 2021
Rated

My family and I tent camped here over Mother’s Day weekend, hoping to get a glimpse of the Milky Way. This is a certified deep sky viewing site, but if you’re looking to see the galactic core of the Milky Way, it’s not always visible. I didn’t realize there was a difference between seeing the Milky Way and seeing the galactic core of it. You have to come in August or September to see that. Just something to keep in mind if that’s what you’re coming for.

The sites were very clean, and the bathrooms are individually locking rooms with showers. I like that much better than the stalls at other campgrounds.

There’s no stores nearby, but the office sells some basic supplies. The closest other store is 18 miles away, so come very prepared!

I wish there had been more boardwalk trails than just the one. The land trails had way too many bugs constantly attacking us, even with high DEET spray.

Be VERY bear safe at your campsite. We had a visitor around 3AM, which was unnerving. The Okefenokee has a third of Georgia’s black bear population.

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This reviewer would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $35.00

Days Stayed: 3

Site Number: 44

5 Access
4 Location
5 Cleanliness
4 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T 4G

Photo of Campendium

Reviewed by
Campendium

May 17, 2021
Rated

It can be tough to find a clear view of the sky. There is a open field that works for astrophotograhy. Trouble here is, you are locked in all night. Once they lock the gate you don't get out until the morning. They advertise this as a dark sky park , but like so many other dark sky parks they make it almost impossible to gain access. You must buy a camping spot to enjoy or photograph the night sky. Its swamp, so lots of bugs, etc. I will not return to photograph the night sky at this park. They should make the park accessable at night if they are going to promote it as a dark sky park.

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Nightly Rate: $35.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: -

1 Access
1 Location
3 Cleanliness
2 Site Quality
4 Noise
  • 80 Reviews
  • 0 Helpful
October 20, 2021
Rated

We have camped here many times mostly in the winter. The sites are well separated with foliage and are Florida sandy level. There is much to do and can all be reached walking from the camping sites. Avoid festival timing throughout the year.

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roadtripper7632402 would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $20.00

Days Stayed: 1

Site Number: 25

5 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T 4G

Photo of Campendium

Reviewed by
Campendium

December 24, 2022
Rated

I love this park. Friendly staff, privacy and lots to do. This place would be heaven on earth if it had cell service. ATT was nonexistent.

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Nightly Rate: -

Days Stayed: 2

Site Number: 11

5 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

AT&T 5G

  • 2 Reviews
  • 0 Helpful
January 19, 2023
Rated

Such an awesome park. The facilities and amenities were great. Peaceful, quiet and lots of nature to explore. The trails are beautiful. The staff is incredible. Can’t wait to come back again.
We are always looking for great places to dock and this is one that makes our top 10 list.
As far as internet & cell service, we have T-Mobile and Starlink. Starlink was not very reliable or consistent but I was able to work using our T-Mobile home internet router. Cellphone reception was pleasantly unavailable which was enjoyable for me. To not be bothered by annoying scam/spam calls was great.

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roadtripper7960641 would stay here again

Nightly Rate: -

Days Stayed: 6

Site Number: 32

5 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

Cell Coverage Rating

T-Mobile 5G

  • 2 Reviews
  • 0 Helpful
January 26, 2023
Rated

We stayed 3 nights in January in a 22 ft class B. 30amp service and water at the site. No Verizon service but free wifi at the camp store. We rented kayaks for 2 hours and saw more alligators than we could count but probably should have rented for another hour so we could explore more. On the next visit we'll rent a small John boat with a motor so we can cover more area.

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roadtripper6146692 would stay here again

Nightly Rate: $36.00

Days Stayed: 3

Site Number: 29

4 Access
5 Location
5 Cleanliness
5 Site Quality
5 Noise

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Stephen C. Foster State Park

17515 Hwy 177
Fargo, Georgia
31631 USA
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Hours

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  • Unavailable
    Parking
  • Check
    Pets Allowed
  • Check
    Restrooms
  • Unknown
    Wifi
  • Check
    Wheelchair Accessible
  • Check
    Credit Cards Accepted
Affiliation
State park or forest
Back In RV Sites Count
30
Last Nightly Rate
16.0
Longest Vehicle Length Reported
38.0
Lowest Nightly Rate
16.0
Max Length
50ft
Max Stay
14
Pull Through RV Sites Count
8
Sites Count
64
  • Unavailable
    Paved Sites
  • Check
    Fifty Amp
  • Unavailable
    Full Hookup
  • Check
    Rec Facilities
  • Check
    Pull Through
  • Check
    Tent Sites
  • Check
    Dump Station
  • Check
    Big Rigs
  • Unavailable
    Open Seasonally
  • Unavailable
    Age Restricted
  • Check
    Back In RV Sites
  • Unavailable
    Boondock
  • Check
    Cabin Sites
  • Unavailable
    Dispersed Sites
  • Unavailable
    Firewood
  • Unavailable
    Fulltime Residents
  • Unavailable
    Group Tent Sites
  • Unavailable
    Laundry
  • Unavailable
    Mobile Homes
  • Unavailable
    Permit Required
  • Check
    Potable Water
  • Unavailable
    Propane
  • Check
    Public Water
  • Check
    Pull Through RV Sites
  • Check
    Reservations
  • Unavailable
    Sewer Hookup
  • Check
    Showers
  • Check
    Sites
  • Check
    Slide Outs
  • Check
    Standard Tent Sites
  • Unavailable
    Vehicle Wash Permitted
  • Check
    Water Hookup
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