I’m a lucky girl. I’ve been spending a lot of time lately in the North Georgia Mountains. First, I enjoyed a weekend getaway with my friend at her cabin in Mineral Bluff. Then, a couple of days later, I returned for five days with my family at Whitewater Cabin. The leaves of fall were gorgeous and we even had a surprise snow flurry one morning. The big snowflakes were so pretty against the dark green of the pines and the bright oranges of the hardwoods. Ahhhh! Autumn in the North Georgia Mountains. Does it get any better than this??
It was our first stay at the Whitewater Cabin. What a treat! Wes and Leslee Reuning, the owners of the cabin, and the owners of Rainbow Cabins Rental Company, spent a year totally renovating this fantastic log home that is located high on a secluded ridge overlooking Fightingtown Creek. Whitewater got its name because it sits on a beautiful stretch of the river that has big boulders which create the noisy rapids. It’s heavenly, sitting on the screened porch or one of the many open decks, listening to the water. This cabin was made for relaxation and entertainment. Our family particularly enjoyed the game room. It has a BIG screen TV and two really cool arcade games. One of the arcades actually contains at least 20 of your old favorites like PacMan, Gallaga and Frogger. Then there’s Hydro Thunder, the real attraction that even our three year-old granddaughter loved. It’s loud and all about going full tilt, racing your speed boat through various courses and levels. We all loved it. Don’t get me wrong–I come to the mountains for their beauty and serenity. But, there’s something that really gets the juices flowing when I hear the revving of that speed boat engine. This cabin sleeps at least 12, so if you have a big family or a lot of friends and are looking for the perfect mountain retreat, give Whitewater a try. Everything in this cabin is spacious and beautifully designed and decorated down to the last detail.
We drove into town to visit Huck’s General Store, hoping to find something fun to do inside since it was too cold to go to a park. Huck’s is exactly what you’d expect an old fashioned General Store to be–barrels bursting with colorful candy, nostalgic toys, handmade candles and soaps, etc., etc. You can sit on the back Rocking Porch and watch the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway come and go, while sipping a Sasparilla or coffee. We meandered downstairs to play Miniature Golf on the indoor course and to go gem mining. The kids had a ball. We bought the girls special “Princess” bags of dirt and the “Miner” took us outside to the sluice where the girls were given a wooden box and shown how to sift through the sand just like the old timers did. They shook it, dipped it in the chilly rushing water and discovered all sorts of pretty gemstones and interesting rocks–even a Princess ring! By the way, did you know that more gold was mined in North Georgia than was mined in the subsequent California Gold Rush of 1849? We didn’t actually find any gold in our bags of dirt, but the girls had a great time searching for treasures.
After golfing and mining we walked over to the new Whistle Stop Grill. It’s a sports bar, but very family friendly. It has big booths, a juke box and lots of TV’s. The food was yummy. I can heartily recommend the Philly Cheesesteak hoagie with a side of onion rings.
It was a very enjoyable outing but we were happy to return to Whitewater. As the kids were quietly napping, you could hear the grownups racing downstairs to the rec room to see who could be first to rev up his engine on Hydro Thunder. We’re looking forward to a return visit in the summertime.
