Historic Mountain Region

The Historic Mountain Region covers the northern third of Georgia, the Appalachian foothills and ridges that climb from the Piedmont up to the North Carolina and Tennessee lines. Elevations rise above 4,000 feet at Brasstown Bald (the highest point in the state), with hardwood forest, mountain laurel, and a chain of TVA reservoirs filling the river valleys. Thirty-four counties cover the region — too many to list — with anchor towns at Dahlonega, Helen, Blue Ridge, Ellijay, Cleveland, Hiawassee, Clayton, Rome, Cartersville, Dalton, Gainesville, and Cumming. Lake Allatoona, Lake Lanier, Lake Hartwell, Carters Lake, and Blue Ridge Lake handle the major water recreation. The Chattahoochee–Oconee National Forest covers most of the mountain public lands; the Appalachian Trail starts at Springer Mountain in Fannin County. Most trips here are mountain-and-cabin focused. Dahlonega handles the gold-rush history (the country’s first gold rush, 1828) and a small wine region; Helen runs its Bavarian-themed downtown; Blue Ridge and Ellijay anchor cabin-rental and apple-orchard country; Etowah Indian Mounds at Cartersville and Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park near the Tennessee line carry the deeper history. Fall foliage is the strongest single season.