In Georgia, just off U.S. Highway 441 — the main route between Atlanta and the Great Smoky
Mountains — sits a state park that no one visiting the area should miss. Tallulah Gorge
State Park features a chasm that is two miles long and nearly 1,000 feet deep. The Tallulah
River cascades down the quartzite, creating five major waterfalls in the nearly 3,000-acre
park. Various overlooks provide breathtaking views, and visitors with strong lungs and legs
can descend the approximately 600 steps, called the Hurricane Falls Staircase.
The views
along the way are spectacular, but travelers should pace themselves on the long trip up and
out of the gorge. Guests who prefer to stay on level ground can while away an afternoon in
the first-rate Interpretive Center, where the gorge’s boom-bust cycle is explained. Then
they can set out on the hiking and biking trails, or choose to head upstream to Tallulah
Falls Lake to fish for brim, bass and catfish. The on-site Terrora Campground provides a
pleasant, convenient place to stay. As they admire the depths of the gorge, campers may
gasp at the fact that Karl Wallenda once walked across it on a wire.
For more information,
go to http://gastateparks.org or
contact the office at (706) 754-7970. For camping, call (706) 754-7979.
