Picture a gently rushing trout stream, dappled with sunshine, illuminating a trout waiting for its next meal to float down the current. Among your New Year’s resolutions – have you planned to someday get into flyfishing? (And if you’re a woman reading this – don’t stop! There are a number of organizations dedicated to women fly fishing, including Georgia Women Flyfishers.)

Here are some upcoming dates and events to put you into the stream with the rainbow trout :

1. The season opens March 31 for seasonal streams. Georgia also has year-round streams, which have special regulations such as catch and release or delayed harvest (you can keep what you catch certain times of the year.) These are often trophy streams.  All that information is on the DNR website.
2. Blue Ridge Fly Fishing Guides offers guiding packages along the Tocooa River. Sharper Bites in Blue Ridge serves as both a guide and gourmet caterer if you like. Unicoi Outfitters does guiding and also has various programs as well. They are located in Helen, Georgia, but plan trips to a number of locations.
3. Georgia Women Fly Fishers is holding a beginners class at Black Hawk Trophy Fly Fishing March 10 in Clarkesville (along the Soque River.)
4. Smithgall Woods State Park has cottages along Dukes Creek, a trophy trout stream. That part of the stream is not open to the public, but a one-night’s stay gets you two days on the stream. (They can refer you to guides or lessons.) Casting for Recovery-Georgia, part of a national organization that provides counseling, information and yes, fly-fishing for breast cancer survivors will hold its first retreat at Smithgall in April.
5. The Fly-Fishing Federation, Southeastern Council is holding its 22nd Flyfishing Festival April 27-29 at Unicoi State Park. This is your chance to browse flies and equipment, attend a few classes and watch demonstrations.

You can put yourself in that picture of the peaceful mountain stream. Just get started.

One of the advantages to hiking in the winter in North Georgia is that you can see so much more of the landscape than you can when the leaves are covering the trees. A great place to really get out is the Cohutta Wilderness in North Georgia. There is a “loop” of roads that goes through the forest – but much of the 36,977 acres are not accessible by car.

You can find information about the hiking trails in various books and websites, including Tim Homan’s excellent Hiking Trails of the Cohutta and Big Frog Wildernesses (2007.) While the majority of the Cohutta Wilderness is in Georgia, a little of it stretches into Tennessee. The Big Frog Wilderness is mostly in Tennessee, with a little of it in Georgia. There are 65 miles of hiking trails in the Cohutta Wilderness, which contains both the Conasauga and Jack’s rivers. There are 35 miles of trails in Big Frog.  The Cohutta area was logged fiercely up until the 1920s when it was bought by the Federal government and it came under protection. It took almost 50 more years to become part of the National Wilderness Preservation System, which occurred when Congress passed legislation in 1975.

It is rare to find a place with almost 100 years of wild growth – you’ll be amazed at the size of the trees.  This part of North Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina has the most wilderness in the Eastern United States. By the way, a two-hour drive through some of this beautiful area will take you to the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest in Robbinsville, North Carolina, which managed to miss the logging boom of the late 1800s and early 1900s. It is 3,800 acres of virgin timber.  Some of these trees are 400 years old. (The drive there takes you partially along the Cherohala Scenic Byway and through the 11 miles of the Dragon’s Tale – so named for its twists and turns.)

Take advantage of this gorgeous weather we’re having and see a little wilderness.

If you’re one of those people who can’t take your time off during the holidays, I’ve got a suggestion for some January fun – if you like the outdoors and the mountains. Just over the state line in Pigeon Forge, Wilderness Wildlife Week is scheduled from January 7 through the 14, 2012. 

Guided hikes are scheduled each day through selected parts of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Each hike has a sign up starting the day before and many fill up quickly. But most of the week takes place indoors, at the Music Road Hotel and Convention Center.

In hour-long sessions, you can pick up pointers on folk medicine (and learn a lot about mountain ginseng,) the history of the park, fly fishing, nature photography woods-lore and folk-lore. There will be live music – including banjo, dobro and dulcimer, folk music, historic country music, ballads, old-timey hymn singing and shaped note singing. Presentations will explain about bears in the park, wolves, owls, elk, osprey and the possibility of panthers. There will be sessions on wildflowers of the area, butterflies and the tremendous variety of trees native to the Smoky Mountains.

People come from all the surrounding states to enjoy this week of nature – some getting out there for a hike or two, some in the comfort of the convention center learning enough to better enjoy it when the weather gets warmer.  Oh, and did I mention that the sessions are all at no-cost?

Check the schedule and make your plans to attend part of the week or all. I visited last year during the great snowstorm – and even though the snow was inches thick, the roads were clear and restaurants were open.  By the way, the Winterfest tour of lights (by trolley) lasts through January 13 – so if you didn’t get enough holidays during December, you can still get some of it in Pigeon Forge.

Photos by John Erbele

Are you ready to think about New Year’s Day and resolutions? Sponsored by America’s State Parks, New Year’s Day hikes are being led at parks across the country on Jan. 1. A dozen of Georgia’s state parks have scheduled walks, falling in line with Georgia State Parks’ Tons of Fun Fitness Challenge. The website includes links to low-fat recipes, a chart of availability for Georgia-grown produce and suggestions for various ways to burn calories  - biking, climbing, paddling, walking the dog, even fitness activities scheduled at several parks at night.

The First Day hikes are scheduled at some of Georgia’s prettiest parks around the state – including Amicalola in Dahlongega, Ft. Yargo in Winder, Laura S. Walker in Waycross, Crooked River State Park in St. Mary’s, Cloudland Canyon in Rising Fawn, Sweetwater Creek in Lithia Springs, Tallulah Gorge in Tallulah and Smithgall Woods in Helen.

Some of the hikes will head towards waterfalls, some will showcase the Okefenokee, some will educate you as to the special habitats we have here. You’ll have to purchase a parking pass and in some cases, pay an additional $2 to $5 fee. Check with the park you want to visit to make sure the hike is suitable for those in your party (and plan on bringing a leash if you’re bringing your dog.)

Most of our parks have cabins and would make a great place to see the new year in. Amicalola has the Lodge, Ft. Yargo has cabins, Smithgall Woods has cottages and Stephen C. Foster has the new Eco-Lodge (which is 18 miles from the park, but a part of it.)

Specializing in teaching sustainability and conservation, the GEHC also has a museum with both permanent and traveling exhibits, including the history of the Native Americans that inhabited the area centuries ago.  Its current exhibit is about living in space. Beginning in January, Petticoats and Slide Rules will illustrate the role of women engineers in the development of technology in the last 100 years.

There are eight miles of trails at the center, open all the time. Special guided nighttime hikes are scheduled monthly. In addition there is a varied ropes course, which includes ziplines.

For  Christmas, the GEHC has taken its Gingerbread House competition a little further than most – with its second annual Sustainable Gingerbread House Contest and Exhibit. Structures can be made from gingerbread, dog biscuit dough, bird seed cakes or other edibles, and may also include pinecones, twigs, leaves and twigs. They must also have at least three sustainable building elements included in the design, such as solar panels, rain barrels, green roof, etc.  Get your application in by Nov. 30 and your house within the next day or two.

The Gwinnett Environmental and Heritage Center is located on Clean Water Drive off of Plunket Rd, which is just west of Buford Drive (Ga SR 20) and the Mall of Georgia. Admission ranges from $7.50 for Gwinnett County adults and $10.50 for non-Gwinnett adults to $3.50 and $6.50 for children.  It is open from 9 to 4 Monday through Saturday (closed Sunday.) The Trails are open daily from dawn to dusk.

Some December traditions are just for the grownups. The Winter Wine Highway Weekend is one of those.  Beginning Friday December 2, many of the wineries and vineyards in North Georgia are participating in a three-day tasting party. Each will offer special wine tastings, some will have hors d’ourves, some music, some special meals.  You buy a $25 passport at the first winery and get a tasting glass. The passport gets you in to the specials at all the participating wineries. (Some of the specials require reservations and have additional costs, like the meals.) Each will have a “barrel tasting” of some kind.

It’s a pretty drive through several of North Georgia’s mountain towns – Dahlonega, Helen (and Sautee Nacoochee,) Tiger, Young Harris. You won’t enjoy it if you try to pack too many into one day – so plan to spend several days. The  Winegrowers Association of Georgia, which sponsors the Weekend, has a number of associate members that offer specials for the weekend, such as lodging or food. See Sylvan Valley Lodge or Blue Ridge Cabins offers, for example.

 Crane Creek Vineyards will have Tapas available Friday evening. (Go early enough to enjoy the view from the deck of the mountainside and peaceful pond.)

Here are just a few of the events connected with the Weekend –

Tiger Mountain Winery in Tiger  is having a hayride (a $10 additional charge) plus wine around the fire pit afterwards. Their Holiday Open House on Saturday and Sunday includes soup, cheese and bread.

Wolf Mountain will invite Wine Highway participants down into its Old World Cask room for tastings. Frogtown will offer its Frogtown Cheesebox.  Cartecay, Cavender Creek and Blackstock will have music and tastings.  Each winery has beautiful views. Blackstock’s view is featured on the cover of the Georgia State Highway Map.

Check each winery’s website for directions and hours. Be sure to check out the awards portion of those websites – some of Georgia’s wines are getting international awards.

December is so full of events, it's sometimes hard to get in those special  holiday memories you’d like to make with your children – so start in November, with the Appalachian Christmas celebration at BabyLand.

Santa will be visiting the Babyland General Hospital Saturday November 19. The facility is located in North Georgia’s Cleveland, where Cabbage Patch babies originated.  (See more about the history of Cabbage Patch babies in my blog here.) This will be the 33^rd  annual celebration of Appalachian Christmas, and the doctors and nurses that deliver the special little babies right out of the cabbage patch will have music, dancing, a bounce house, rock-climbing wall, bungee jumping, a giant slide and s’mores. The hospital has been decorated with more than 50 Christmas trees. At dusk they will begin the countdown to the tree lighting – and there will be snow. (Really!)

Admission to the celebration is free. You can have a pancake breakfast with Santa for $10 (reservations are required.) Cabbage Patch babies are always doing something new – and this year several Celebrity Kids are being auctioned on EBay to raise money for the Children’s Action Network (CAN) a national adoption awareness organizations dedicated to finding homes for children in the U.S. who are in foster care. The Celebrity Kids are one-of-a-kind Cabbage Patch babies – in the image of Steven Tyler, Al Roker, Katherine Heigl, Kristen Chenoweth and Raven-Symone. Go to CPKAuctionforCharity.com to bid on the babies – or to see them.

All proceeds from the Steven Tyler, Al Roker and Raven-Symone Celebrity kids will benefit CAN. Kristen Chenoweth and Katherine Heigl are donating 50 percent to CAN and 50 percent to Maddie’s Corner and the Jason Debus Heigl Foundation respectively.  Funds raised in the auction will bring programs and services to children in foster care.

If you don’t make it this Saturday, Santa will visit Babyland General Saturdays and Sundays through December 18 and then daily from December 19 through 23. He will be there for breakfast again on December 20. Check the Babyland website for times. (If you plan to stay overnight – check out the special Cabbage Patch deals at Unicoi Lodge, Smithgall Woods State Park and the Hampton Inn in Helen.

Photos courtesy BabyLand General. Used with permission.

The Monastery of the Holy Spirit is now one of the biggest tourism sites in Rockdale County People come to walk the now 2300 beautiful, peaceful acres. It is part of the larger 8000 acre Arabia Mountain Heritage area, which also includes Panola Mountain State Park.  There is an Abbey Store, a beautiful bonsai garden and a café.

The Monastic Heritage Center is made up of  the old barn, the visitors center and the Memorial Plaza, with its flowers and sculpture. In the old barn you can see  displays, exhibits and videos about life at the monastery. You can learn the history of monasticism in the visitor center. There is no admission charge, but donations are encouraged.

One of the goals of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance, also known as Trappist, is to be self-sufficient. The monks here grow their own food and earn money through sales at the gift store and the bonsai nursery. Specialties at the gift store include monastery made stained glass, fudge , cookies and fruitcake. (There are plenty of other items as well.) Feel free to fall in love with the beautiful bonsai – you can buy them, or buy supplies and make your own.

Another part of the acreage is Honey Creek Woodlands, a natural /conservation burial ground. Natural burial involves no embalming fluids or vaults – simply a wood casket or shroud. It is also a place for cremated remains. 

The University of Georgia Collegium Musicum will present a concert at the Monastery entitled “An Afternoon of Musical Gems from the Renaissance and Baroque” at 3 November 13. There is no admission but seats must be reserved.

How about some special Christmas music for the season? The Atlanta Boy Choir will present its annual “A Christmas Concert at the Monastery” at 7 p.m. December 10. (Tickets are $20 ($15 for students/seniors.) Look for the Concerts link at the Monastery’s site for reservations.

Atlanta’s biggest food block party is this coming weekend. The Taste of Atlanta is celebrating its tenth anniversary – and you can get $5 off your tickets by reading this blog!

Located at the corner of Spring and Fifth streets (also called Tech Square) you’ll find 80 of Atlanta’s great restaurants offering samples of their goods at little booths all along the streets. Of course, they’ll be closed to cars and parking is going to be really tight, so MARTA would be a good idea. (On the other hand, park blocks away. You can eat more if you’re going to walk it off.)

Are you a fan of Cupcake Wars? There will be an Atlanta version at the Taste. Stages will be set up for cooking demonstrations and competitions. (The winner of last year’s barcraft competition was Paul Calvert from Sound Table.)

The Taste opens runs from 11 until 6:30 Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 22 and 23. Admission is $25 in advance (that includes 10 tasting tickets) and $35 at the gate the dates of the event. Children under 13 are admitted free (but that doesn’t include tasting tickets.) You can buy more tasting tickets once you’re inside – and most booths offer tastes for two or three tickets, some are more. Tickets cost $1. There is a Friday night party, called the Big Grill. Tickets are $100 for two and $130 for two. VIP tickets for the Saturday and Sunday events are $75 each. Those allow you into VIP tents, special seminars and the Wine+Beer+Cocktail experience.

Use the promotion code TASTE for online ticket orders only for a $5 discount off your ticket! (You’re welcome!)

Photos courtesy Taste of Atlanta. Used with permission.