Snowy Range Pass

Snowy Range Pass

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Georgia mountain high



We have spent the last three days exploring the area around Blairsville, GA.  This a fast growing resort and residential area in the Blue Ridge Mountains just south of the North Carolina border.  It is a rugged and beautiful area with lots of things to do.  We are staying at a resort designed to be all owner occupied. Unfortunately, the first operator went broke and I am not sure about the second. It is a beautiful spot but they have not done much with it.  We would not consider buying here with the current conditions, but is had been a fine place to spend a few days.

Our first outing consisted of a loop trip through the mountains enjoying the views and getting a feel for the area.  Certainly, one of the more unique towns was Helen.  It is made to look like a Bavarian town with that fun tourist trap feeling.  With some imagination you could see yourself at a Oktoberfest in Germany. When we checked the history of the town, what was really interesting was; that there is no real German heritage in the town.  It seems that in 1968 the town was having severe financial problems and a local artist, who was stationed in Germany, came up with the idea of completely redoing the town in the Bavarian motif.  So the whole town was redecorated to look as it does today to attract tourists and it seems that it was a very good plan!  I thought of Judy when I saw one of the items for sale in a gift store.









Very near Helen is the Anna Ruby Falls. Unfortunately, even though it is accessed via a state park, the falls sits in a federal forest and was closed. 

So we opted to tour one of the oldest Georgia State Parks-Vogel.  It consists of a recreational lake, hiking trails and a campground.  We enjoyed a hike around the lake and toured the campground.  The campground is very tight but has many level sites.  If arriving in a big rig, be prepared for a few squeaky spots. 




Today, we paid a second visit to Vogel State Park and then visited with Karen and Al at their park.  We had a great visit with them, and solved all the world problems.  We hope to be back in this area in the new future and may be able to stay at this private owner park.  If we time it right, we may even get to use one of their spots.  Once again, I failed to get any pictures of our visit.  This is getting to be a bad habit.

Next stop is time for a family visit.

18 comments:

Wanderin' said...

We visited that area quite a few years ago. We thought it was beautiful then and it certainly looks like it still is.

Sherry said...

The pictures you did get are wonderful. That is quite a stein of beer. Love the mug. Judy definitely needs one. Sorry we don't get to see you and Karen and Al together. Next time! :-)

Jim and Sandie said...

Do you really think Judy should be drinking all that beer? lol Gorgeous pictures.

Gypsy said...

I do love those bit mugs of German beer! Helen is a town close to the Appalachian Trail, and is where many hikers get off to send their excess gear & clothing home. It's not far from the southern terminus of the trail (Springer Mtn, near Dahlonega). I like that part of Georgia.

Paul and Marsha Weaver OCT. 17, 2009 said...

That little "German" town looks delightful.

I didn't see much color change in the trees. Very surprised at that.

Bob said...

I had one of those huge beers one time when we were in Paris, just before getting on a tour boat. No toilets on the boat. *sigh*
We still laugh about that. I guess I was thirsty and ordered "une grande bière ."
Idiot.
Cute village. The roofing material is asphalt shingles. You won't see that in Bavaria.
Good effort though.

Paul and Marti Dahl said...

Wow, what an interesting town. They all worked together to transform the place into something worth visiting. Maybe they should give lessons to Congress?

Great find on those mugs, Judy will certainly have to get one. :c)

Gail Houle said...

We've been reading a lot about that area recently. Looks spectacular!

Kevin and Tracy (a.k.a. kcgaz) said...

Wonderful pictures and that beer sure looks great!

Karen and Al said...

We really enjoyed meeting you two yesterday, and hope to see you again soon.

I LOVE that mug and definitely would have thought of Judy as well. Uf-Dah, Y'all.....how Georgia!

Travels with Emma said...

That mug would work for me. Especially when I'm in Texas. ;)

Roadrunner Chronicles said...

Looks like a nice area. Fun to visit friends!

Rick said...

Uff-da! So, it really is a saying not just something Judy made up - ha, ha.

Nice looking little town!

Ray and Cindy Warner said...

Just to let you know, we paid $3.619 for diesel in Portland.
Ray

Big EZ Travels said...

How fun you were able to meet Karen and Al. We are also learning a lot about that area through their blog and are curious to check it out.

Interesting idea about the town of Helen reinventing itself as a German theme town. Never heard of such a thing, but it sounds like it worked.

Jeff said...

Now you understand why folks like us and others enjoy this NE Georgia area so much. Helen is a unique area to visit for sure.

Peter said...

I really hope you didn't find those
"UFF DA"-mugs in that Bavarian town, cause "Uff Da" is a Norwegian expression if a person is perplexed and disappointed. Some places have a problem with keeping those European Nations apart.

Laura said...

Love little Bavaria! One of the restaurants we frequent is a kitchy bavarian theme. It always makes me smile.