Gilmer County is a dream come true for outdoor enthusiasts. It offers opportunities to wet a hook in a babbling stream, test your grit on a rugged mountain bike trail, cool off at the lake, perfect your golf game, explore on foot and relish in culinary delights close to the source.
Ready for an adventure? There is so much waiting to be discovered. Check out these ideas below for ways you can begin exploring all that the north Georgia mountains have to offer.
Hit the trail
The natural beauty of the southern Appalachians is one of the things that first draws people to visit or settle in Gilmer County. One of the best ways to enjoy an up-close-and-personal encounter with this alluring landscape of rugged mountainsides and clear streams is to explore one of many area trails by foot. From short, family-friendly paths to challenging multi-night explorations of the back country, Gilmer County and its environs provide a host of hiking trail options for all ability levels. So lace up your boots and check out these local hiking recommendations:
At Emery Creek, an out-and-back hike of 6.4 miles takes you to a series of five waterfalls ranging in height from 15 to 60 feet. This walk requires frequent stream crossings so choose your footwear for the trip carefully. To reach the trailhead, travel Highway 52 West out of Ellijay and take a right on Conasauga Lake Road. Continue to Forest Service Road 18 and park in the Holly Creek parking area.
Long Creek Falls is also sure to delight. This full-flowing cascade is found near the Appalachian Trail in the Three Forks region of the Chattahoochee National Forest and can be accessed by Forest Service Road 58. To reach the falls, visitors can walk about a mile on moderate terrain. The trail offers a good, family-friendly hike.
An additional outing kids will enjoy is a hike to the top of Springer Mountain, which serves as the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail that stretches from Georgia to Maine. A 0.9-mile stretch of trail connects a parking lot on Forest Service Road 42 to the summit. Once on the mountain, families can soak in long-range views, visit a hiker shelter and explore loop hike options by linking together the Appalachian Trail and Benton MacKaye Trail.
Another worthwhile outing is to follow Bear Creek Trail on Forest Service Road 241 off Gates Chapel Road west of Ellijay to visit Georgia’s largest tulip poplar. Known as the Gennett Poplar, it measures 100 feet in height and nearly 20 feet in circumference.
Those interested in challenging or more remote hiking and backpacking opportunities can venture into the Rich Mountain Wilderness Area and Chattahoochee National Forest. Likewise, the Cohutta Wilderness Area offers more than 120 miles of trails, including the popular Jacks River Trail, which has more than 40 stream crossings.
To the west of Ellijay is Fort Mountain State Park, which boasts of a rich and mysterious heritage. An ancient 855-foot-long rock wall stands on the top of Fort Mountain, which historians believe was constructed by Native Americans. The park is also home to more than 25 miles of hiking trails, including the 8-mile Gahuti loop, as well as 27 miles of mountain biking trails and over 25 miles of horse trails.
Mountain biking
With more than 100 miles of singletrack mountain biking trails that offer challenges for riders of all skill levels, it is little wonder that Gilmer County holds the distinction of being the Mountain Biking Capital of Georgia.
From steep uphills that will make your thighs burn with exhaustion to roaring downhills that will leave you breathless with the rush of speed, the area has much to offer for those wanting to explore on two wheels.
Mountain biking novices need not shy away as the region offers a variety of less strenuous trails.
One popular, family-friendly option is the 3.7-mile Amadahy Trail at Woodring Branch Recreation Area. Most of the gentle loop follows along the undeveloped shoreline of Carters Lake, and campsites near the midway point of the trail offer a great place to watch the full moon rise over the placid water.
Similarly, Carters Lake’s Ridgeway Recreation Area is home to a 2-mile novice trail called Smooth Operator, as well as a more technical trail challenge named Roots and Chutes.
Looking for a ride on the wild side that will get your legs, heart and adrenaline pumping?
The aforementioned Bear Creek is the jewel of the county’s mountain bike trail system. Bikers can tackle it as an out-and-back or loop outing. The route includes stream crossings, a mountain overlook and access to a nearby waterfall. The highlight of the area is the towering Gennett Poplar. Be aware the first portion of this route is particularly popular with hikers, so be prepared to share the trail.
The Bear Creek area also provides access to the Pinhoti Trail, a long-distance trail that stretches 335 miles from Flagg Mountain in Alabama to a juncture with the Benton MacKaye Trail just north of Gilmer County. Much of the Georgia section of the trail is open to mountain biking, and the part through Gilmer County offers bikers a challenging, fast ride through some rugged and pristine sections of forest.
Hundreds of miles of gravel forest service roads also offer many opportunities for enjoying the beauty of the mountains.
Paddle sports and tubing
Nestled in the beautiful southern Appalachian Mountains, Gilmer County is home to several pleasant waterways, including the Ellijay, Cartecay and Coosawattee rivers, which present numerous opportunities for fun-filled outdoor exploration.
On a hot summer day, novice and intermediate paddlers alike will delight in feeling the spray of cold mountain water as they navigate the exciting Class II – III rapids of the upper Cartecay. If paddling is not your style, try renting a tube and taking a leisurely float along a stretch of the river.
Trout fishing
Unlike most fish stories, which grow with each additional telling, it’s no exaggeration to say that Georgia has about 4,000 miles of trout streams. Gilmer County and its neighbor to the north, Fannin County, are home to hundreds of miles of prime fishing waters and annually attract anglers from all over the country.
Popular fishing areas include the Cartecay River, Coosawattee River, Owltown Creek, Mountaintown Creek, Conasauga River, Holly Creek and Little Amicalola Creek.
Fishermen can also visit the 19-acre spring-fed Lake Conasauga near Grassy Mountain, which is the highest lake in Georgia. Camping is available at the 35-unit Lake Conasauga Campground.
Gilmer also offers access to Carters Lake, which has several public use boat ramps, day-use areas, a public beach, hiking and biking trails and campsites. The deep waters of the 3,200-acre reservoir are managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Found in the waters are a variety of bass species, crappie, walleye, bream and catfish. Sites for swift water fishing in the Coosawattee River can be found below the Carters Lake reregulation dam.
Golfing
Tucked among the mountains 5 miles north of Ellijay, Whitepath Golf Club offers a challenging and picturesque destination for golf enthusiasts. Surrounding the 18-hole course is a postcard-worthy setting that includes views of rolling peaks, cool forests, 8-acre Whitepath Lake and the Ellijay River.
Geocaching
Geocaching is a high-tech, outdoor treasure hunt in which participants use GPS equipment to locate hidden containers called geocaches. Depending on surrounding buildings and trees, a GPS will lead you to within a few feet of a cache. From there the search depends on clues provided by the cache owner and sharp eyes. Geocaches can be hidden in a wide variety of places, such as under bushes and in hollow stumps.
The website www.geocaching.com, a repository of geocache information and coordinates, lists nearly 200 caches within a 20-mile radius of downtown Ellijay.
The flavors of the mountains
Not all adventures in and explorations of north Georgia require you to break out in a sweat. The Gilmer County area also beckons for people to explore with their taste buds.
Ellijay and Gilmer County are perhaps best known as the Apple Capital of Georgia. Take a bite of a locally-grown fruit, and you’ll know why people have been clamoring for the community’s speciality for more than a century. While most people associate the area’s apple harvest with the Georgia Apple Festival, held in Ellijay the second and third weekends of October each year, early varieties begin to be picked as early as June.
Drive down what locals call Apple Alley on Highway 52 East to see rolling orchards and shop at family-run apple houses. In addition to apples, these farm markets sell fresh vegetables, apple butter, savory jams and jellies and fried apple pies. Several area orchards give you the opportunity to pick your own fruit.
Apples are not the only delicious agricultural product found in Ellijay. The community also boasts “16 wineries and vineyards, distilleries, cideries and breweries ... to treat your taste buds,” according to the website for the Gilmer Chamber of Commerce.
“These north Georgia wineries offer homegrown hospitality with premier food experiences, each with their own unique atmosphere. Many of these tasting rooms offer live music and food trucks on the weekends,” the Chamber adds.
Written by Whitney Sherill for Times-Courier's 2025 Information Please Magazine