Galavanting through Georgia

A free week with nothing to do? Okay, it wasn't free (we worked the whole time), but who needs a reason to run off on a camping trip!? Certainly not us! This time, the Camera Couple is off to Georgia for another whirlwind adventure.

We love the corner where North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia meet. It's all mountains, woods, and (more importantly) not too many people. It's the perfect place to relax and recharge — just the way camping should be. ​

Gainesville, GA

Our first stop on this trip was Bolding Mill Campground in Gainesville, Georgia. The claim to fame for this campground is that it was within 25 minutes to Dawsonville. For anyone who doesn't know NASCAR, that's the hometown of Rose's favorite driver, Chase Elliott!

Every time Chase wins a race, they sound a siren at the famous pool hall right in town. So naturally, we planned a day trip into Dawsonville to see this amazing sight. We checked the website for hours, picked the day, and headed out.

Wouldn't you know it, the pool hall just happened to be closed that day, and they forgot to update the hours on the website... We snapped some pictures anyway, and wandered around the rest of the town. While we didn't get a hotdog at the pool hall, we did get some great food and "soda" (of course) at a little restaurant in town.

This campground was also great for skootz, so there was plenty of skateboarding before we moved on to the next stop down the road.

Blue Ridge, GA

On the way to the next campground in Morganton, Georgia, we were driving down the road and passed a little building that said "Expedition Bigfoot: The Sasquatch Museum." To say I "turned around" was an understatement. It looked like Fast and Furious, trailer and all!

To make things even better, I was wearing my Skatesquatch shirt and bigfoot socks! Nobody in the museum really seemed to appreciate my wardrobe choice, but I got a kick out of it — and that's all that matters.

The museum was super interesting. They had all sorts of "footprints" and "evidence" and "true stories." There was even a "bonafide" bigfoot poop on display! (I can't help myself with the quotes...)

Following our bigfoot expedition, we finally made our way to the campground. It was nestled way back in the woods right on a lake. I did have some work to get done, so we didn't venture out too much. Work always seems to get in the way... However, we did manage to get out one of the afternoons to check out downtown Blue Ridge, GA.

Blue Ridge is a super-cute little town right in, as you might have guessed, the Blue Ridge Mountains. We found a nice spot for a few "sodas" and some killer soft pretzels before heading off to our next destination on the voyage.

Fontana Dam, NC

We didn't know much about Fontana Dam before we got there. It was just a cool-looking campground in the mountains on our way back home from Georgia. Little did we expect it to be one of the most memorable stops we've ever been to! 

Cresting the mountains, we started down a long and winding road down into a valley. And by long and winding, I mean it was more than 20 miles of downhill grades and dozens of hairpin turns. It would have been fun if I had a motorcycle (please, Rose....?), but we were in big ol' Eugene with a 25-foot trailer. It was an interesting drive. 

While I might have had white knuckles the whole time, it was gorgeous. The views through the valleys with the lake below was amazing! We were getting excited for the weekend.

Our campsite was directly under the impressive Fontana Dam, towering a whopping 480 feet above us! It's so tall that they call it the Miracle in the Wilderness! It's officially the tallest dam east of the Rockies. 

While you might think a dam that impressive would draw a crowd, there was absolutely nothing in the area and no cell service for miles. There was one gas station, two restaurants, and a resort that catered almost exclusively to hikers and car enthusiasts.

Why hikers and car enthusiasts you ask? Well, Fontana Dam is a part of the Appalachian Trail! They call it the Hilton of the Trail because it has some of the nicest free bathrooms and showers on the trail. Hikers love it. They all come in to freshen up, grab a bite and a drink, and move on. We hiked a bit just to say we did, but I doubt we even made it a mile...

As for car enthusiasts, Fontana Dam is also right at the base of the Tail of the Dragon. With over 318 curves over the course of 11 miles, it's one of the windiest roads in the country and draws sports car drivers and motorcyclists from all over! We didn't drive on the Tail of the Dragon (Eugene wouldn't be able to keep up with the little speedsters), but it's definitely on our list for when I get my motorcycle (again, please, Rose....?)

With another memorable adventure in the books, the Camera Couple headed back north to their home in Concord to plan the next trip — and the next one was sure to be a doozie, so stay tuned!