The National Water Trails System was created by the U.S. Department of the Interior to increase access to water-based outdoor recreation, encourage community stewardship of local waterways, and promote tourism.

[4] Cochran Shoals is the largest and most popular unit of the park, featuring a 3-mile (4.8 km) fitness trail, suitable for walking/jogging/biking, which is wheelchair-accessible and is excellent for bird- and wildlife-watching.

Steep rock cliffs rise from the river's flood plain in the East Palisades unit of the park.

Ivy Mill was destroyed by the Union Army in 1864, and the women factory workers were sent North for the duration of the war.

It is very popular in the summer months for visitors to rent tubes and float from Powers Island to Paces Mill.

Rangers enforce park regulations as well as Georgia criminal and traffic codes, and are authorized to carry firearms and make arrests.