Although the cold has kept some away, this year’s Apple Festival was an enormous success. Keeping with a low admission fee (still $5), The Ellijay Lions Club has generated an excellent following- 38 years later, this festival is still going strong! There was a great turnout for the antique car show and the parade was as “American-Apple Pie” as you can get. If you missed the festival, you still have time to enjoy the fall festivities. Several offshoots from the Apple Festival are still in full gear- Hillcrest Orchards has their Apple Pickin’ Jubilee, and Several Corn Mazes and Haunted Hay Rides have popped up along Hwy 52 between Ellijay and Dawsonville. The trees that lose their leaves first are just now turning colors, so the next few weekends should make for some spectacular colors. And to top if off, there’s a horror movie showing this week at the Drive-in in Blue Ridge… October can’t get much better!

Have you ever made the trip to Lake Conasauga in the Cohutta Wilderness?  This is a great day trip from Ellijay or Blue Ridge, as well as north Atlanta.  The Conasauga Recreation Area is about 3000 feet in elevation, which makes for a nice retreat from the summer heat of Atlanta.  There are some very clean picnic areas, a small boat ramp, and designated campgrounds surrounding one side of the 19 acres Lake Conasauga, as well as a nice platform and roped area for swimming.  The North Georgia Mountains has some of the cleanest water in the southeast, so feel free to dip a toe in (and for my Florida and south GA/AL  friends… no gators!).

Three popular hiking trails branch from Lake Conasauga- The Songbird Trail is a 1.7 mile loop.  The Lake Trail is a one mile loop (around the lake) and the Tower Trail is 2.1 miles one-way.   The Tower Trail climbs to nearly 3700 feet to the old fire tower on Grassy Mountain.

Although Summer is one of my favorite times to visit, Spring and Fall bring some special sites- bird migrations, leaf colors and less crowds