NW Ga./SW NC/NE Tn. Trip Jan. 18-20

Some of us from the metro Atlanta area want to invite regional bus owners on a road trip in January. Since school is out for the MLK holiday we have a trip planned. This is a family, dog friendly group. There will be some young kids along.

We will leave Cartersville in NW Georgia at 9:00am Saturday January 18th, and head up US Hwy. 411 to Vonore Tn. We will then head south on US Hwy. 129 along the little Tennessee River/Chilhowee Lake to the notorious Dragon's Tail. Then on to the Cheoah Dam ( where the Fugitive Harrison Ford jumped off in the Movie of the same name) then along the Cheoah River to Santeela Lake and on to the Cherohala Skyway with its long views and mile high Blue Ridge Parkway like driving experience.
We plan to camp along the Upper Tellico River Saturday night and linger through the day Sunday and Sunday night. This will be primitive camping, merely a parking space at the river's edge for two nights. There will be a stretch of good graded gravel forest service road involved at the end of Saturday's drive. Anticipated driving time Saturday will be approximately 7 to 8 hours.

Monday morning we will drive out of the forest to Tellico Plains Tn. and south on Tn. Hwy 68 through Copper Hill and on down to Blue Ridge Ga. After a layover in Blue Ridge we will head down Ga. Hwy 515 through Ellijay, Canton and on back to the metro Atlanta area.

This time of year is typically cool in the daytime, 50 degrees or so and temps below freezing at night. Bring your propane and enough fire wood. There will be no opportunity for supplies in the area of the camp, so plan accordingly.