It was close to my hubbys birthday and I had asked him, “If you could go anywhere you wanted, where would it be?” Even though we hadn’t spent a great deal of time there, he said Ellijay, Georgia. He had fallen in love with this quaint town years ago when we stayed in Cherry Log with some friends. So I secretively went in search of a place we could stay that would be an unforgettable experience for us to celebrate his birthday. After much research and phone calls I found Sliding Rock Cabins – North Georgia Vacation Rentals. There were three things I was looking for. Seclusion, a view and a hot tub. They were able to help me find just what I was looking for. When I saw pictures I thought, ‘It can’t be this awesome.’ It really was beautiful. I couldn’t wait to see it in person. I had only told the hubby to take off these particular days and that’s it. No details of where we were going. I finally broke the news a few days before since he usually insists on driving and only because he kept asking, but no details were given.
Our adventure began. On our way we stopped in a nice little town called Sylvester and had a picnic dinner in a charming little park we found. We were on our way to Peachtree where we would spend our first night. Our goal was to get as close to Senoia, Georgia for some shopping and lunch at our favorite place, Nic & Norms, another request from the birthday boy. No, we didn’t run into Greg Nicatero this time unfortunately.
Lunch at Nic & Norman’s was amazing. Juan had his favorite, the Braised Pork Shank which was tasty and incredibly tender and I had the Beef Tenderloin Medallions with mashed potatoes and grilled asparagus. Both were cooked perfectly as usual. After our lunch we sadly said a final goodbye to the Walking Dead set (Alexandria) that was being permanently taken down since the series was done filming. After that, it was time to head to our mountain paradise.
Our drive was pleasant and scenic. The sky was blue as were the mountains. The temperature was continuing to decrease and snow was a possibility later that night. Juan rolled his eyes when I excitedly told him it might snow. He wasn’t sure if he’d like snow or not. We made our way up the mountain. Now keep in mind, I’ve never been to this place, so I had no idea how the ride would be. Looking back it wasn’t that bad, but to us Floridians that live below sea level, anything bigger than a twenty foot slope was considered a mountain to us, so at first this was a little overwhelming. My hubby’s big brown eyes cut my way a few times. I sat silent gripping the handle on the door looking down the side of the mountain as we continued to climb higher and higher up. It was exhilarating and I could tell the view was going to be out of this world. We arrived at our very secluded cabin nestled amongst the trees. I allowed Juan to take a deep breath (I think he held his breath the whole way up). When he was able to really take look at where we were, he was speechless. Gazing around and taking in the amazing view, he said “You literally found the highest mountain in Ellijay and found a cabin at the very top.” I just smiled at him and said “Yep.”
The cabin was everything I had hoped for and more. Beautiful fireplace, rustic and cozy with all the amenities we could hope for even wood for the fireplace. There was nothing more relaxing then soaking in the hot tub with a chilled glass of wine enjoying the most stunning view of the Blue Ridge Mountains. We later slept in the loft listening to the crackling fire and the winds outside blowing across the mountain tops.
I was so excited when I found out it might snow in Ellijay. Juan has never seen snow. I set the alarm for 4am, when the snow was to start so I could get up. When I did…no snow like predicted and the forecast had changed. It wasn’t going to snow on our mountain that morning after all. I went back to sleep very disappointed. Then I woke up at 7:45am, looked out the window and was blinded by white everywhere. I shot up out of bed and ran downstairs of the loft like it was Christmas morning, nearly breaking my neck in the process. It was snowing. I went outside in nothing but a night shirt and shoes. Then I ran back up stairs, drug Juan out of bed, threw my jacket on him and took him outside. He was somewhat mesmerized by it, like a kid he looked up with wonder as the little fluffly white flakes fell from the sky. So my sweetie got to experience his first snowfall and later in the day made his first snowman
We waited for the snow to stop then slowly headed down the mountain into downtown Ellijay for lunch and shopping, encountering lots of wildlife on the way down. When we walked into the River Street Tavern in Ellijay, it felt like we had just walked into the Cheers bar. Everyone was so friendly and we met and friended several people during the short time we were there. Lunch was so delicious, burgers that were big, juicy and loaded with all our favorite toppings. We walked around the many shops downtown, finding everything from antiques to homemade fudge. The remainder of our stay consisted of more of the same. Scenic rides, shopping, antique stores and good food. I think the birthday weekend was a success and now not only is Ellijay Juan’s favorite place to visit. It’s mine too.
#ellijayga #unexploredadventures #slidingrockcabins #riverstreettavren