Elevation: 4,784 feet
Location: Brasstown Bald
Visited: November 2021
Brasstown Bald is the highest point in Georgia. It is situated in the Blue Ridge Mountains and is surrounded by the Chattahoochee-October National Forest. To reach the summit requires a short, but steep hike up a paved path to an observation tower that provides a 360-degree view of the surrounding area.
After spending the day in Atlanta, we still had a few hours of daylight left so we decided to hit up Brasstown Bald along the drive to Knoxville, Tennessee. It was a bit of a detour to get here, but it’s not like we had much else to do since it was American Thanksgiving and pretty much everything was closed.
We arrived at the parking area in the late afternoon. The official trail starts beside the Visitor Centre and restrooms, both of which were closed when we visited. In the summer, an alternative option is to take the shuttle service from the parking lot to the summit. But the trail itself isn’t that long, only 1.9km (or 1.2 miles) round trip. It sure is steep though.
The trail to the peak of Brasstown Bald is paved and winds uphill through the forest. There are a few signs along the way that provide some fun facts about the forest, including about the tragedy of the American Chestnut trees which were destroyed by a blight, and how forest lands are a source of nearly two-thirds of the freshwater in the lower 48 states. In addition to being educational, the signs provided a good excuse for us to catch our breath.
The trail leads to a circular observation platform that is located beneath an old wooden fire lookout tower. There’s an official plaque just before that provides more information on Brasstown Bald.
After climbing up a few steps we were rewarded with sweeping views of the mountains and surrounding area in every direction from the viewing platform. There are also plaques at the north, east, south and west viewpoints and signs that provide more information about the mountains and the names of the nearby peaks.
We headed down and walked back the way we came. Alternatively you can walk along the road, which is shorter, but much steeper. We opted for the scenic route through the forest. On the hike back we passed a few other groups of hikers who most likely timed their visit to coincide with the sunset.
While there are a few other trails in the area, we hopped back in the car and continued driving along the winding country roads towards Knoxville.
L
I love the place names in this part of the world. Calling a high point a “bald” is interesting. I always liked the name Chattahoochee and recall it being used ion several songs. Thanks for sharing Linda. Allan
There are definitely some interesting names of the forests and peaks along the Blue Ridge Mountains. Chattahoochee is a good one, along with poor mountain and rich mountain. Thanks for sharing. Hope you had a wonderful weekend. Linda
Such gorgeous scenery!
I’m glad we had such nice weather so we could enjoy the views of the mountains in every direction. It was quite the workout to reach the observation tower, but it was well worth the effort.
Beautiful view from the top!
The views of the mountains never get old. Thankfully we had clear skies and were able to get a panoramic view of the surrounding area.
Incredible scenery! I’ve not been to this spot- but lots of other “ balds “ north of there. Glad you had the sunshine with you!
It’s funny just how many Bald Mountains there are in the US. I guess they ran out of ideas and just started reusing names. Brasstown Bald was an awesome spot to visit to get a great view of the surrounding area. It always helps to have blue skies and sun when spending time outdoors.
Haha I agree!! Can totally see the southerners associating those mountains with bald men…… in line with the humor around here 😂
That’s hilarious. Some of the mountains in the US have pretty funny names, so that may explain some things.
Also lots of things with “ gap”
Now that you mention it, there totally are a lot of names with the word “gap” in it. And surprisingly (because I just had to look it up), a lot of trails that lead from a “gap” to one of the “balds”. Of course.
Hahaha that’s awesome!! I love it
That’s a lovely trail!
Even though the path to reach the observation tower was steep, at least it was paved and meandered through the shaded forest.
Nice!
Exactly. It could have been waaaay worse. At least it wasn’t muddy!!
So beautiful! what a pretty view of those Blue Ridge mountains…I can see why they call them that! and I love signposts when I am hiking. So great to get some info and like you said to rest as well.
The views from the mountains were stunning. I’d love to drive along the entire Blue Ridge Parkway someday. I bet it’s such a scenic drive with lots of great viewpoints and hiking trails. I’m such a fan of trails with interpretive signs and storyboards too. It’s a great way to add some education in with our exercise.
Wow the views from Brasstown Bald are incredible!!!
I’m glad we had such nice weather to enjoy the lovely views from Brasstown Bald. The sun was just starting to set and casted a magical glow over the landscape. It was really pretty.
Those views from Brasstown Bald are stunning Linda and what wonderful weather for the time of year with those blue skies.
I was so happy that we had clear skies otherwise there wouldn’t have been much of a point to visit Brasstown Bald. It was a great way to get a nice view of the surrounding mountains. Plus, the drive was really scenic.
What a fantastic mountain viewpoint. It’s wonderful that you’re writing about these places. When we take our next road trip in that direction, it’ll be nice to know what to expect before we add it to the ‘stop, explore, and view’ list.
Thanks for your kind words. It’s been fun to visit some of these high points in the US as the views are beautiful and it gives us an excuse to visit an area that we otherwise would have skipped. Some of these high points are a bit out of the way, but at least the drives have been scenic.
Picturesque!!!
The scenery was stunning. I’m glad we had such fabulous weather to enjoy the views of the mountains.
Wow! Wonderful mountains, beautiful places. Thank’s for share, Linda.
Have a lovely weekend. Keep well.
Elvira
I will never get bored of the mountains. The views are just breathtaking. This was one of the better observation towers that we’ve been to and the views from the top were stunning. Hope you had a wonderful weekend as well. Take care. Linda
The view looks stunning!
I’m so happy that we had nice weather to enjoy the views from the highest point in Georgia. The sun was just starting to set, which makes for some great lighting.
That is quite the beautiful scenery you got to see at the top. And that beautiful golden hour sunlight too!
I can’t wait to see your photos and recap from Tennesse!
I know! It was well worth the effort to hike up the steep path. The views of the mountains never get old. Plus the drive to get there was super scenic.
The beauty of the nature and legend buildings are gorgeous to view and
Written lines also 🌷🙏👍🏻♥️Thank you for sharing 😊happy weekend 👏
Thanks for your kind words. I’m glad we had such fabulous weather for being outdoors and to enjoy the views of the mountains. Hope you had a wonderful weekend as well. Cheers. Linda
That is quite the view! Gorgeous. It will be nice to do a bit of travelling again.
This was one of the better observation towers that we climbed up this trip. The views of the surrounding mountains were stunning. The sun was just starting to set, which made everything look more magical.
Beautiful view!!
I’m glad we had clear skies to appreciate and enjoy the views of the mountains in every direction. Thanks for reading and leaving a comment.
What a view! We’ll be crossing the blue Ridge on our way back home (whenever that happens), so I hope to stop in some of these places. You chose some spectacular spots to share. The parallels between our travels is too funny!
That’s amazing. I’d love to drive along the entire Blue Ridge Parkway someday as I bet there are so many nice overlooks and hiking trails. It is pretty neat that we have a lot of overlap and similar interests with our travels. It’s always great to get inspiration and ideas. Looking forward to seeing what’s next on your stranded adventure series and how (and when) you get back home!!
You’re in my neck of the woods! Happy travels in a beautiful place ✨
You live in a very beautiful area with all those mountains!! The hiking (and even the driving) was all very scenic.
That’s a view worth climbing the short, but steep trail for. The weather seemed just perfect for such an endeavour. The story of the sudden decline of the American chestnut is a sad and fascinating one, especially all the speculations as to why the trees were dying when it was first noticed. Looking forward to the next leg of your journey: Knoxville, Tennessee.
For sure. It was definitely worth the effort. And hey, I’m just glad the path was paved and shaded. Apparently we had a lot of American chestnut trees in southwestern Ontario too, but they were destroyed by the same blight disease. They’re now protected and considered endangered.
Oh those peaks make an interesting pattern, they look almost like a carpet with bumps underneath they are so smooth. What beautiful views 🙂
They do look very smooth and deceivingly easy to climb. Visiting the high point in Georgia was a great way to get a nice view of the mountains. We couldn’t have asked for better weather.
The views from the highest point in Georgia look nothing short of spectacular and so does the trail leading up to it! It would be a perfect place to watch a sunrise or sunset. Thanks for sharing, Linda and have a lovely day 🙂 Aiva xx
Visiting some of these high points is a great way to get a nice view of the surrounding area. Plus the drive along the winding country roads is super scenic. Agreed, it’s the perfect place to watch either the sunrise or sunset. Thanks for reading. Enjoy the rest of your week. Linda
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Perfect timing (and enough time!) to go to Brasstown Bald! I love the soft afternoon sun and the feeling that there was pretty much no one else there (at least in your photos).
I know! And we couldn’t have asked for better weather. While we were a bit too early to watch the sun fully set, we were the only ones on top of the observation tower. I couldn’t believe how many people we passed on the hike back down to the parking lot. I think it worked out better this way as I’m not a fan of the crowds.
Haha, I like a steep hike that is short 😉. And just look at that rolling hills at the viewing platform – gorgeous!
Exactly. The path was even paved, which made it easier. We’ve dealt with way worse before. The views from the observation tower were simply stunning and made the steep hike worthwhile.
These are beautiful scenery! I went to Georgia more than 20 years ago but I never been to the high point of Georgia. I hope I could stop by in one day. Thank you for sharing. Keep traveling and exploring.
The timing worked out well and I’m glad we were able to squeeze in a visit to Brasstown Bald. Visiting a few of these high points is a great way to get a gorgeous view of the mountains and surrounding area. Hopefully you’re able to visit someday. It was worth the drive. Thanks for reading and leaving a comment. Have a wonderful weekend. Linda
I love how civilized it is! Paved paths, nice facilities. I’ve always wanted to see the Blue Ridge Mountains so thank you for the tour.
I know!! Even though the path was steep, at least it was paved. The views from the observation tower were spectacular, especially with such clear skies. I’d love to drive along the entire Blue Ridge Parkway someday.
Loved the view once you got to the top. It’s been fun reading about places I know of but don’t really know much about.
Thanks for your lovely comment and for following along on our adventures in the US. The views from the top of the observation tower at Brasstown Bald were stunning. The sun was just starting to set, which casted a warm glow over the mountains.