Twelve Days of a Dixie Christmas #8

A Countdown to our Favorite Christmas Destination The Christmas season is taken pretty seriously in the southeastern US, and the Richardson Tribe has a dozen suggested destinations to make your holidays more adventurous. Over the next 12 days, we will reveal each of our favorite RV camping and recreation spots until we reach our #1 Christmas Holiday Destination. Come back each day to see the places this southern family has grown to love. #8 - Helen, Alpine Village - Helen, Georgia Ok, I admit it's a bit crowded and touristy, but Helen has to be one of our favorite Dixie Christmas holiday destinations. The "ginger bread" architecture of the simu-German alpine village lends itself to the Christmas season. Enjoy Christmas music and bratwurst as you browse through dozens of nic-nac shops offering-up all sorts of candy, fudge, t-shirts, knives, and otherwise, pretty cool stuff. The Chattahoochee River flows through Helen, barely a creek at this point. In the summer season, visitors can "shoot the Hooch" in inner tubes and kayaks. Tubers can pull over and enjoy a brew and sandwich before proceeding downstream. The water is a little too cool this time of year for such activity, but you will still enjoy sitting by the river enjoying a hot beverage as the sun sets. Then the light show really begins. Everything in the village is outlined with lights, even the horse-drawn carriages. It's an awesome experience. On one particular visit to Helen last winter, the kids found a phone booth. They had never seen a phone booth, but soon discovered the cold hard fact about public phones, they seldom work. While visiting Helen, we like to camp, pan for gold, and collect rocks at Gold n Gem Grubbin' in Cleveland, Georgia. Helen is also very near Unicoi State Park, Vogel State Park, Blairsville, Dahlonega, and Brasstown Bald, the highest point in the great state of Georgia. So, there you have it. Our #8 Christmas destination is Helen, Georgia. Check- in tomorrow to see what our #7 favorite Christmas destination is.

Helen - A Rustic Alpine Mountain Village in Georgia (No, really!)

Adventure Journal - Entry Date: November 2011 (More)
On this particular trip to Helen, we were camping at Vogel State Park. Being Thanksgiving weekend, we  knew there would be a lot of Christmas lights and decorations in the streets. Additionally, Unicoi State Park was having their "Festival of Trees" this weekend. We'd hoped to see both, but time would not allow.

We pulled into Helen mid-afternoon, and the Sun was already low in the sky. We made our way down the crowded sidewalks, and visited several shops. The candy shops and toy stores were the most popular with the kids, and there are plenty. There was a street side musician playing a violin, and I sat and listened to that for a while. He was incredible. People were lined up to ride in the holiday adorned horse drawn carriages. Toward one end of the downtown area, a bridge crosses the Chattahoochee River. Here is where the kids had the most fun. They even caught a crawdad (crayfish) the size of a small lobster.

After visiting a few more shops, we settled into an outdoor café area where a musician performed various classic rock tunes with his band in a box and a guitar. As the sun set, the thousands of Christmas lights began to glow and blink. It was a beautiful sight, but the view (and ability to photograph) was hampered by the constant flow of traffic through town. We considered having our evening meal and Helen, but the crowd made that prospect unappealing. We decided to head back to Vogel and an evening by the campfire.

The appeal of Helen varies in our family. Rebecca loves it, and the kids seem to like it as well. Me? I'd have rather spent the day at Vogel. But that's just me. For lots more pictures of Helen, plus details of places to go and things to do near Helen, click here.

Nearby destinations include Vogel State Park, Unicoi State Park, Gold n Gem Grubbin', Blairsville, Brasstown Bald, Enota Mountain Retreat, Hiawassee, Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds, Dahlonega, Amicalola Falls State Park, Tallulah Gorge State Park, and much more.