11 Apr - Amazing Day at Big Canoe GA

Today will be hard to top!  We spent an amazing day with Beth and Brad Herren at Big Canoe GA where they live.  As explained before, Brad and I served together in the Air Force in Maine back in the mid-70's.  It was a small unit at a remote site and a tight-knit group.  We were truly a band of brothers up there.  We worked together and we played together and Doreen was everyone's mom.  She cooked the holiday meals, counseled many of the single guys with their girl-problems, and basically kept us out of trouble We have stayed in contact with Brad ever since.  Brad and I had our going away party together.  Brad was headed back to Georgia and I was headed back to Iowa.  

March 1977, at the site near Caribou Maine

I still have that bottle!

So we could not make a trip to the southeastern states without getting ahold of Brad and Beth, and we are so glad we were able to connect up with them.  

Today we traveled from our campground here in Ellijay to Big Canoe.  We parked out truck outside the gate and Brad  ad Beth came to pick us up in their Jeep.  Like many other places, very difficult to maneuver a one ton dually pickup on the roads in Big Canoe, plus Brad knew where he was going and we sure would have been lost as GPS is of marginal use in Big Canoe.  

They first took us to their residence, a magnificent house built in 2011.  

The library

The kitchen (dining area in the back)

Living area

One of the bedrooms

Doreen, Brad and Beth - view from one of their decks.  WOW!

Doreen, Ed and Brad

We went from their house to their country club for lunch, which was amazing.  After a quick stop back at Brad's house to let Liberty out, we headed to one of their churches for an outdoor benefit concert.   The bands performing were mostly local talent that lived in Big Canoe.  The weather was great and we had a wonderful time.  

Following the concert we took an off-road Jeep trail and visited a couple water falls.  It was a fun ride through the off-road areas of big Canoe.  

Flowers in bloom as spring warms the soil

Headed to one of the falls

One of the waterfalls we visited on the trail

The larger waterfall.  Just beautiful

What a fun day with Brad and Beth!!

Iowa crew!

After our Jeep trail tour we returned to Brad and Beth's house for drinks, hors d'oeuvres and steak dinner.

They have an awesome indoor barbecue area and Brad cooked us some great steak filets.  

Tomorrow we plan to visit some wineries and also Amicalola Falls.