Visiting Wine and Gold Country: Dahlonega Georgia Guide
On our recent January 2019 trip to Tennessee we wanted to explore a little beyond our normal places. We decided to drive across the state line to check out the gold country of northern Georgia. We spent the night in the small town of Dahlonega Georgia. This is our Dahlonega Georgia Guide.
Dahlonega is at the southern end of the Appalachian Mountains. It is about an hour outside of Atlanta. The southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail is nearby.
WEBSITE: http://dahlonega.org/
Booking.com
We came to Dahlonega after spending the night in Chattanooga. We took the scenic route on Highway 64 along the Ocoee River. We stopped at the Ocoee Whitewater Center. It was closed this time of year, but in the summer, it is packed with adventure seekers. The 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics held whitewater events here. There are some great hiking trails around. You can also see how after the gold rush prospectors found copper.
We also stopped on the Appalachian Trail at Neels Gap. This is home to the Walasi-Yi Interpretive Center and the Mountain Crossings outdoor supply store. Mountain Crossings has all kinds of supplies for hiking the Appalachian Trail. Outside you can see a tree where hikers have thrown away their worn boots.
This is also prime day hiking area on trails leading to Blood Mountain. See some family hiking guides here.
As you get close to Dahlonega you start to see signs of the Georgia Gold Rush. The gold rush started in 1829 and ran until the 1840s when gold started to dry up (and they found gold in California).
Way back in 1977 I had written a history paper on the Georgia gold rush and its impact on the Cherokees. The discovery of gold led to the eventual removal of much of the Cherokee tribe to Oklahoma. This became known as the Trail of Tears as many died along the way.
Around Dahlonega you will see both gold mines you can tour and signs marking the Trail of Tears. It was a cold and rainy January, so we focused on staying in the downtown historic district of Dahlonega.
Dahlonega is a perfect historic town. The center of town is a square with the old courthouse in the middle. The courthouse is now a museum, the Dahlonega Gold Museum in the 1836 courthouse. This is a short visit that gives a great overview of the Georgia Gold Rush. There is also a nice view of downtown Dahlongea.
I also wanted to visit the graveyard on the edge of town. I had a direct great+ grandfather who moved to Dahlonega in his 90s during the gold rush. He is one of two Revolutionary War veterans buried in the cemetery.
There are all kinds of outdoor adventures you can do in Dahlonega. However, this time of year we focused on the cozy downtown area. We stayed downtown in the Old Storehouse Inn. This building dates from 1884 and has 5 guest rooms. Our room was the Piano Room which had a piano featured as the headboard of the king-size bed.
Dahlonega is also the center of Georgia wine country. There are vineyards in the outskirts of town. Downtown you will find several tasting rooms in the center square. We stopped at several tasting rooms including tasting some mead from Etowah Meadery. You can see a full list of all the wine tasting places here.
There is plenty of shopping and eating opportunities in downtown Dahlonega. This includes antique stores, gift shops and even a hippie store, Grateful Days.
In our short time in Dahlonega we got to try out quite a few restaurants. Unfortunately, this include done of our worst travel dining experiences ever.
Places we tried included:
Connie’s Ice Cream Parlor and Sandwich Shop: This unpretentious parlor was exactly the type of classic place that reminds you of old town main street before it was gentrified. In addition to ice cream they had a wide range of grilled sandwich and burgers for only about $6.
Shenanigan’s Irish Pub: We came here after our awful dinner experience. We ended up getting a Philly cheesesteak of all things. It was amazingly good. This place is voted one of the bets Irish pubs in Georgia and I can see why. It is large and the night we were there was karaoke in the downstairs bar.
Capers on the Square: This centrally located restaurant specialized in Greek/Mediterranean inspired food. We came here for lunch and got an excellent flat bread and gyro sandwich.
Picnic Café & Dessertery: WE came here for breakfast. This is a small, well-decorated café that has a wide assortment of soups, salads and sandwiches as well as pastries, coffees and desserts. Next time in Dahlonega we are definitely coming for lunch.
Paul Thomas Chocolates: Chocolate store featuring custom designed chocolates and an overhead model train
As far as our bad dining experience…..normally we don’t like to mention places we dislike assuming they may be having an off day. However, the Bourbon Street Grille was making several people angry the night we were there. The restaurant closed at 8 but when we arrived at 7:15 they were all but shutting down. This included rushing out an elderly couple that had gone out of their way to make a 7 pm reservation. They were not happy. We were also rushed through an expensive, mediocre meal that cost us nearly $100. We ended up having to get food from Shenanigan’s Pub.
Unfortunately places like this that take advantage of tourists are all too common in the small-town south. Again, we don’t like to be negative but this really stood out.
For a more interesting experience in being treated bad we wanted to try the Coffee Break coffee shop and gift shop. The Yelp reviews are absolutely awful and describe how customers are literally yelled at. Of course, that made us want to check it out. Unfortunately, it was closed when we visited.
We only got to experience a little of what Dahlonega Georgia has to offer. We plan to return with the kids to take advantage of the many outdoor activities.
Nevertheless, I think we got to see Dahlonega as a great romantic retreat. There is much to do right in the downtown square. The beautiful campus of the University of North Georgia is right by downtown and help makes for a lively small town.
Downtown Dahlongea is filled with history. There of course, the standard ghost tours and gift shops, but this is actually the site of a very historic, and tragic, part of United States history.
One site we discovered by accident was the Chestatee River Diving Bell. This is a submarine like diving device that dates from the Civil War. It is located in a park by downtown and is free to view. Divers would use the bell to explore local river bottoms. The bell sunk in the Chestatee River until it was recovered in 1983.
Georgia is a state we have yet to explore in detail. We have been to Atlanta many times, but Georgia is a large state, the largest on the East Coast. Based on our brief visit to Dahlonega we are eager to do some more exploring.
For more on our winter 2019 trip to Georgia and Tennessee go here.
