Reynolds Lake Oconee this past fall added a seventh golf course – the Tom Fazio-designed Richland. Now the Greensboro, GA., resort community has two more new amenities – an aerial adventure course and a falconry experience – at Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds.
The Aerial Adventure course features 24 unique challenges and elements, and allows guests to “choose their own adventure” from beginner, intermediate, and advanced routes. All platforms and ropes are attached to existing trees on the course, which covers 3.75 acres with 6,300 feet of cable. The course was designed by Bonsai Design, a leader in building aerial adventure courses throughout the country.
Access to the Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds and these new activities is available to Platinum Members of Reynolds Lake Oconee and resort guests staying in a cottage or at The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee. Each group is accompanied by an experienced guide.
The Falconry Experience is under the direction of Linda Spence, a Master Falconer of birds of prey for over 15 years. Guided by Linda, Members and resort guests can interact with and experience the thrill of handling trained birds of prey, including an Aplomado Falcon, two Harris Hawks, and a Eurasian Eagle Owl. She explains the program as “take a hawk for a walk,” with guests receiving an introduction to the ancient sport of falconry before taking to the trails along the lake at Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds. During the walk, the birds look for prey and do what comes naturally as they hunt for food. Linda will also demonstrate the talents of these birds and their native instincts along the walk.
Each offering is ideal for meeting groups, team building, family excursions, and other gatherings.
“These new programs take our outdoor amenities to even higher levels,” said Tim Hong, Chief Operating Officer of Reynolds Lake Oconee. “Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds is already recognized among the finest facilities in the U.S., and with the aerial adventure course and falconry additions, it ascends to world-class status.”
Resort Outfitters, which operates similar experiences at several top-level U.S. resorts, including The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, The Greenbrier, Boar’s Head Resort, Garden of the Gods Resort and Club, and The Omni Homestead, has partnered with Reynolds, and will manage these new amenities.
Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds, which opened in 2017, offers a 20-station sporting clays course designed by Justin Jones, director of the facility, who created the course to bring the traditions and authenticity of his native Britain to this Southern destination. Other activities available at the 100-acre sporting grounds include an air rifle range, five- stands, archery, fishing, and off-roading.
The hub of the facility is the historic Sandy Creek Barn, which was built in the early 1800s and relocated from Pennsylvania to Reynolds Lake Oconee in 2007. It also serves as a one-of-a-kind event venue for parties, meeting groups, concerts, and other special events.
Located between Atlanta and Augusta and surrounded by more than 350 miles of majestic shoreline on Georgia’s Lake Oconee, the golf resort community of Reynolds Lake Oconee is home to more than 4,000 families, with homes and homesites available for purchase. Among the community’s numerous amenities are the seven golf courses designed by the game’s most notable architects and The Kingdom at Reynolds Lake Oconee, a world-class instructional and TaylorMade club fitting facility.
In addition to Sandy Creek Sporting Grounds, Reynolds Lake Oconee features award-winning tennis and pickleball centers, swimming pools, pedestrian trails, wellness campuses, full-service marinas to facilitate watersports, and a multitude of culinary, social and cultural events are available to members and their guests.
Visitors may choose private accommodations that include luxury resort condominiums and cottages, or The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee, a 257-room lakefront resort and spa.
Dining is available at eleven distinctive culinary venues. Reynolds Lake Oconee, established in 1988, is located roughly 90 miles from Atlanta’s Hartsfield–Jackson International Airport.
Photos Courtesy of Reynolds Lake Oconee