Waterfalls and Hiking Trails
Enjoy the Beautiful sights of the North Ga Mountains while on vacation in Helen Ga
| Anna Ruby Falls is located near Unicoi State Park in White County near Helen, Georgia. The waterfall is accessible via a half mile (800 m) paved trail from a public use area with a small admittance charge. The Anna Ruby Falls Trail is designated a National Recreation Trail in Georgia.[1]
Anna Ruby Falls is actually twin waterfalls created where two separate streams- Curtis Creek and York Creek- join at the base of the falls to form Smith Creek, which flows into Unicoi Lake. Both Curtis and York creeks begin on Tray Mountain, Georgia`s sixth-highest peak: Curtis Creek drops 153 feet (47 m) and York Creek drops 50 feet (15 m). The falls are named after Anna Ruby Nichols. |
| Location: |
Helen, GA |
Raven Cliff Falls
| Shaded by towering hardwoods, the Raven Cliff Wilderness a large with patches of moss, a tumbling trout stream, and abundant wildflowers. And packed with beautiful, cascading waterfalls, the Raven Cliff Falls Trail is one of the most beautiful (and most popular) hiking trails in North Georgia. |
| Location: |
Helen, GA |
Dukes Creek Falls
| The Dukes Creek Trail hikes a moderate 2 miles out and back through a beautiful, mountain stream-filled forest in Georgia just north of Helen. The trail descends alongside a shallow, mossy stream, hiking to several large, cascading waterfalls that tumble at the convergence of Davis Creek and Dukes Creek. At the falls, several large wooden viewing platforms offer stunning views of the main attraction overhead: the exceptionally dramatic, multi-tiered, 150-foot-tall drop of Dukes Creek Falls. |
| Location: |
Near Helen, Ga |
Tray Mountain
| The Tray Mountain hike is one of the most popular on the Appalachian Trail in Georgia, and for good reason: the views from the Tray Mountain summit are stunning. This 5 mile out-and-back hike treks through beautiful valley terrain at Indian Grave Gap before climbing a scenic ridgeline to approach the mountain.
It’s a hike filled with North Georgia mountain beauty. The hike tunnels through dense, gnarly-branched canopies of mountain laurel and rhododendron, offering copious blooms in late spring and early summer. Moss and fern blanket the forest floor in this shady, sun-dappled wilderness. On the Tray Mountain summit, abundant views spread to the north and south, including Lake Hiawassee, the nearby Anna Ruby Falls waterfall valley, and the iconic Yonah Mountain. All-around, it’s a great, classic hike on a beautiful stretch of the Appalachian Trail in Georgia. |
| Location: |
Near Helen, Ga |
Unicoi Gap
| With a just-off-the-highway trailhead and some seriously spectacular summit views, it’s no wonder that it’s one of the most popular hikes on the Appalachian Trail in Georgia. This hike treks a heart-pounding climb of Rocky Mountain, one of the most difficult AT segments in Georgia, climbing over 1,000 feet from Unicoi Gap to the Rocky Mountain summit. After catching views from the mountaintop, the hike descends to the wildflower and mountain laurel-filled Indian Grave Gap and treks through lush forest on the middle elevations of Rocky Mountain, looping back to Unicoi Gap on the Rocky Mountain Trail. |
| Location: |
Near Helen, Ga |
Appalachian Trail
| The Appalachian Trail’s rectangular, white blazes – over 100,000 in total, pepper the length of the trail. They’re painted on trees (and, occasionally, on rocks on tree-barren mountain summits) to guide hikers along the AT’s mammoth stretch through fourteen states from Georgia to Maine.
The AT starts its northbound trek to Maine’s Mount Katahdin – a 2000+ mile journey – in the rolling southern Appalachians of North Georgia. The Appalachian Trail hikes 78.6 miles in Georgia from the southernmost blaze at Springer Mountain, where the trail’s start is commemorated with a bronze plaque. There’s also a Springer Mountain trail log in a vault, inscribed by hikers beginning their journey to Maine – or enjoying a summit celebration at the finish of their epic hike.
Departing Springer, the AT winds through the southern Appalachian Mountains, meandering through North Georgia’s rolling Blue Ridge Mountains. The AT crests its highest elevation at Blood Mountain – one of the most popular day hikes on the trail in Georgia.
Wildflowers, rhododendron, laurel, shady deciduous trees and towering pine line the trail in an ever-changing mix of plant and tree life. Catch an explosion of blooming wildflowers, including the beautiful trillium, on the AT’s high elevations in Spring.
And traveling over, under and through the lush North Georgia foliage, wildlife frequent the trail, including wild turkey, black bear, deer, wild hog and songbirds. The AT crosses wind-swept summits, rolling ridgelines, and mossy, creek-filled valleys as it arcs northbound to the Georgia border. |
Helton Creek Falls
| Helton Creek Falls cascades in a set of two waterfalls, sliding down in tendrils through a beautiful, hemlock-filled creek valley. The trail to these gorgeous waterfalls isn’t a long hike – in fact, the trail’s extremely short distance qualifies it as more of a short walk in the woods. But this double waterfall’s beauty makes it a fantastic, easy day hike for visitors to Helen or nearby Vogel State Park – and a makes it a great hike for families with kids. |
| Location: |
Near Helen, Ga |
High Shoals Falls Trail
| The High Shoals Falls, located just north of Helen, hikes to one of the largest, most popular and most impressive waterfalls in North Georgia, High Shoal Falls. On the way to the main attraction, the hike trails through some exceptionally beautiful stream valleys and lush forest, and visits the equally beautiful – but smaller – Blue Hole Falls waterfall. |
| Location: |
Near Helen, Ga |
DeSoto Falls Trail
| Two gorgeous waterfalls. A beautiful forest filled with tumbling creeks and gnarly, leathery-leafed rhododendron. And, legend holds, the site where a piece of armor was found, thought to be from the epic expedition of explorer Hernando de Soto in the mid 1500s. DeSoto Falls is well worth the visit. |
| Location: |
Near Helen, Ga |
Yonah Mountain Trail
| With incredible views, steep dropoffs and a moderately challenging, ultra-scenic climb to the summit, the Yonah Mountain Trail delivers one of North Georgia’s best and most popular hikes. Yonah rises from the foothills of Georgia’s southern Appalachian Mountains, jutting skyward from the rolling landscape between Cleveland and Helen. The mountain’s asymmetrical, iconic shape and massive, exposed rock outcrops near the summit lend to its popularity with hikers and climbers. |
| Location: |
Near Helen, Ga |
Blood Mountain Trail
| The views on this Blood Mountain trail’s hike to the summit are simply outstanding, with long-range vistas opening through much of the Appalachian Trail’s ascent to the peak. This hike trails the Appalachian Trail to Blood Mountain via the Byron Reece Trail at Neels Gap. It’s one of the most popular day hikes on the Appalachian Trail in Georgia: stunning views combine with a heart-pounding workout on the relatively steep ascent to the Blood Mountain summit for an all-around fantastic hike. |
| Location: |
Near Helen, Ga |
