Southern Highroads Trail

We found this 360-mile trail in the Friends of GA State Park magazine and decided to take off in June 2018 to see what we could find. 

Our trip began in Habersham County taking Hwy 441 to Cornelia GA. We visited the Train Museum, had lunch at Bigg Daddy’s and walked the City Walking Trail. We then drove to Mount Airy, GA and camped at Lake Russell Recreation Area. The last stop in Habersham County is Clarkesville GA and we stopped for lunch at Batesville General Store. The next county is Rabun County to visit the Goats On The Roof in Tiger GA. 

We crossed the Chattooga River to SC on Hwy 76 and camped at Chau Ram River County Park. We stopped in Walhalla SC to visit the Oconee History Center, but it was closed.

Our next stop is Jackson County in NC and we stopped at Gorges State Park for the views and drove through Lake Toxaway. We stopped next in Cashiers NC for lunch and drove through busy Highlands NC. We spent the night just outside of Highlands NC boondocking in Van Hook Glade Forestry Campground. 

The next county is Macon County and we walked around Franklin NC and on to Clay County. This was Sunday and we drove leisurely through Hayesville NC and on to Cherokee County. We stayed two nights in Murphy NC at our first KOA Park. Harrah’s Cherokee Valley River Casino was less than a mile away.

Polk County is next and we drove through Ducktown TN and to Thunder Rock Recreation Area in Benton on the Ocoee River.  This is the site of the 1996 Olympics Whitewater Rafting competition. We left TN and headed back into GA and Murray County. We stayed at Fort Mountain State Park in Chatsworth, GA. The ride to the park was beautiful and a little steep.

Gilmer County is next and we drove through Ellijay GA. Carters Lake is a great camping area in Ellijay. We drove through Blue Ridge GA and one day will return to take the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway drive. We drove on down to Blairsville GA, which is in Union County to have lunch, and visited the Byron Herbert Reece Farm & Heritage Center. Vogel State Park is a mile away and we snagged the last spot for the night.
 
Towns County is next on the list with Hiawassee being a big attraction but we were ready to head home. This was a great driving tour and very relaxing.
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