Sky Valley, Georgia

I have gone on yet another vacation. This has been the summer of travel. We returned this weekend to a cabin in North Georgia where we stayed last summer and had a wonderful time. On Friday we hiked a 1.6 mile trail that took took us 1000 feet up to the second highest point in Georgia - 4,600 ft. elevation. Needless to say, the air was thin and we are not in the greatest shape for hiking!! It felt like we would never make it and I seriously considered giving up several times...it didn't help that I had just heard on the news about those poor people being mauled by a bear, so I was scared too. But we trudged on. I started singing about halfway up and after a while, Chris said, "Can you think of any songs that aren't about death?" I really wanted to make it to the top because we had been told that you had a 360 degree view of the mountains from the summit. But, I kept thinking, can it be THAT great? Finally we rounded the final corner and to my surprise, I was suddenly in view of a twenty foot high rock tower with a platform on top. It was just incredible. The view was better than I am able to describe. It was breathtaking. All I could think is, this is what it will be like at the end of my life...when I see what's "on the other side." It will be so much more incredible than what I can imagine and so worth the journey.
The next day we went to a COOL (I mean temperature) waterfall and swimming hole and swam. I swam up to the waterfall and stood on an underwater ledge and leaned back against the wall and let the waterfall spill over me. Another incredible experience.
The last day we went to the Ocoee River and watched as the water was released from the dam for the rafters - yes you read that right, the water in this long stretch of river is about 2 feet deep until 10 am when the water is released and suddenly, as you watch, a rush of water fills up the once empty stream and becomes a challenging run of rapids for hundreds of thrill seekers.

Go to North Georgia. It is breathtakingly beautiful and very much like a verdant playground!!