Hikes Of Georgia

Directions Website Contact the business

Hikes Of Georgia 🥾| Guided Hikes | Fungi Education🍄
📊| Nature Conservation & Data Innovation (EDA) 🌳
🌿| Explore. Connect. Forage. Thrive. 🍂

Hikes Of Georgia connects people to nature through guided hikes, fungi forays, and environmental education. We explore the rich biodiversity of Georgia’s ecosystems and are now leading data-driven initiatives through our Ecological Data Alliance division.

🎥 Subscribe for hiking adventures, mushroom content, and ecological data insights.

10/15/2026

You ever hear someone describe a forest like it’s just waiting for something to be built there?

It has a 70-year-old oak-hickory canopy, intact soil microbiology, native pollinators, and a creek filtering water for the entire watershed... but sure, "nothing’s there yet." 🙃

A forest isn’t waiting around to become useful. It’s already doing the heavy lifting.

What’s a phrase you’ve heard that made you realize someone sees nature very differently than you do?

10/14/2026

Imagine living in the same neighborhood for 200+ years, only for somebody to call your home “undeveloped land.” 😭🌳🍄

The trees: just minding their business.
The fungi: running the ORIGINAL underground network.
The wildlife: “Wait… when was the zoning meeting??” 💀

As Georgia’s AI data center boom continues, there’s plenty of conversation about jobs, electricity, water, and economic development. But what about the plants, fungi, and wildlife already calling these places home?

As a park ranger and data scientist, I see the incredible potential of these technologies. But innovation and conservation should never have to be enemies. Where we build, what we disturb, and what we protect matters. 🌱

Georgia, what’s one forest, creek, or natural area near you that you’d hate to see disappear? 👀

Send this to your friend who would show up to a county meeting to represent the frogs. 😭🐸

Lovejoy, Georgia just banned data centers. Here’s what happened this week across the state.A developer proposed a $1 bil...
10/12/2026

Lovejoy, Georgia just banned data centers.

Here’s what happened this week across the state.

A developer proposed a $1 billion, 15-building campus next to two schools.

The community said no.

The city made it permanent.

Marietta approved a data center despite public outcry, then paused all new projects.

DeKalb County rejected zoning 7-0. Stephens County extended its moratorium. 42 local restrictions have been enacted statewide.

Meanwhile, officials are still signing NDAs that hide power and water data from the public.

Two transparency bills failed this year.

QTS launched a 132-acre forest restoration at Towaliga Preserve. It’s real work, but it doesn’t offset an industry building across hundreds of thousands of acres.

Last week’s post hit 81,000 views because Georgians recognized what was happening.

This week, communities are responding with action.





Should Georgia require full environmental transparency before any data center breaks ground?

Tell us below.

10/12/2026

Georgia is growing. But what are we protecting along the way? 🌿🏔️

The HOG team and I recently visited the Blue Ridge Mountains to scout a potential workshop location, and naturally, I couldn’t go very far without stopping for fungi! 😂🍄

From Chicken of the Woods, fascinating coral fungi, to flowing creeks, and even mountainsides glowing with goldenrod, this place was full of life.

But there’s a bigger picture here.

As a data scientist and naturalist, I’m supportive of helpful community-driven technology and innovations. However, with Georgia’s growing infrastructure demands, I believe it’s more important than ever to keep conservation in the conversation.

These ecosystems aren’t just beautiful landscapes. They’re interconnected communities of organisms that deserve our attention, appreciation, and protection.

🌎 Progress and conservation don’t have to be enemies. We should be planning for both.

🐸 Part 2 is coming! And let’s just say the mushrooms weren’t our only fascinating discovery out there.

What Georgia species or habitat do you want future generations to experience? 💚

Little explorers. Big mushroom curiosity. 🍄This Saturday, I’m bringing some fungi fun to Sandy Springs Library!Helping p...
10/09/2026

Little explorers. Big mushroom curiosity. 🍄

This Saturday, I’m bringing some fungi fun to Sandy Springs Library!

Helping people get curious about nature is at the heart of Hikes of Georgia, and that curiosity can start early. 🌱

Join me for Introduction to Mushrooms & Fungi with Ranger Darling:

📅 Saturday, October 10
🕥 10:30 a.m.
📍 Sandy Springs Library
395 Mount Vernon Hwy., Sandy Springs
👨‍👩‍👧 For parents and caregivers of children ages 0–5

Share this with a family who would love a little mushroom magic. I’m excited to see you there!

10/09/2026

So I took your comments and my mushroom microphone, to the top of Mountain.⛰️

Water. Power. Internet. Wildlife. You brought experiences, pushback, and plenty of great perspectives.

What should responsible development look like for the communities and ecosystems already here?

The frogs can’t leave a comment, so I’m bringing them into the conversation, too. 🐸

Let’s stay curious, hear each other out, and bring sources we can examine together.

Drop a 🍄 if you want part two!

Georgia just became America’s #1 data center construction market. Here’s what that means for our water, land, and energ...
09/28/2026

Georgia just became America’s #1 data center construction market. Here’s what that means for our water, land, and energy.

119 new data centers are planned. Demand could reach 58 gigawatts. One facility drained 29 million gallons of water while neighbors were told to conserve during a drought.

Communities across Georgia are responding with moratoriums, zoning changes, and new regulations. Meanwhile, OpenAI is planning a $20 billion campus in Effingham County.

This is happening in our backyard.

Drawdown Georgia also just released a free toolkit to help residents understand data center development and know what questions to ask.

We’re going to keep breaking down the biggest AI and data center developments in Georgia through a nature, conservation, and community lens.

Follow for next week’s Brief.

09/27/2026

OpenAI recently announced Project Camellia, a planned $20 billion AI data center in Effingham County. The project could receive up to 3.2 gigawatts of electricity once fully phased in. OpenAI says it will use a closed-loop water system designed to recirculate water, while Georgia Power says the company will cover the infrastructure costs required to serve the facility.

AI is already doing some incredible things, and as someone who works in data science and conservation, I’m fascinated by what comes next. But Georgia communities are also having very real conversations about the infrastructure, resources, and environmental considerations that come with this growth.

If a new AI data center was proposed in your town, what would be the FIRST thing you’d want to know? 👀

Weekend Fungi Finds 🍄🌿A few recent favorites from around Georgia.If you’re heading outside this weekend, keep an eye on ...
09/26/2026

Weekend Fungi Finds 🍄🌿

A few recent favorites from around Georgia.

If you’re heading outside this weekend, keep an eye on the logs, leaf litter, and forest floor, you never know what might be fruiting.

What are you hoping to find this weekend?

09/25/2026

Jokes aside, the paradox is real. Between massive data centers, rising power demands, and water usage for cooling infrastructure, artificial intelligence carries a tangible physical footprint on our natural resources and local watersheds.

At the same time, these tools are helping researchers model climate patterns, monitor biodiversity, detect illegal deforestation, and process ecological data faster than ever before.

AI isn't going anywhere, it’s here to stay. But as we integrate it into our daily work and research, the conversation shouldn't just be about what these models can build, but how responsibly we build and power them.

Where do you land on the balance between technological progress and environmental stewardship⁉️

Let’s talk about it 🤔

Address

Atlanta, GA

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Hikes Of Georgia posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Hikes Of Georgia:

Shortcuts

Share