Lasso the Moon/Holly....a 5 star experience!! The adorable alpacas, dogs, cats, ducks...lovely…read moredrive to Blairsville on a crisp Fall day to enjoy beautiful leaves, art, delicious food and a memorable day... highly recommend this visit!! Happy to support this small business

Previous 1 star review should really be disregarded as it's pretty clear on Lasso the Moon's…read morewebsite that appointments need to be scheduled ahead of time. And they deserve no less than 5 stars for the experience, from my first correspondence with Holly to arrange the tour, to arriving. The directions and the signage were momentarily confusing, but the site indicates to drive towards the right behind the barn on the gravel road. Pulling in you can't help but "awww" over the chickens, ducks, dogs and alpacas dotting the property. Once all of the other guests had arrived, the tour began and it was both fun and informational, about the farm, alpacas, and the artwork made from their fibers. Even my little one was less than her squirmy fidgety self and listened. Feeding the alpacas was really the most fun part as we were told that they don't particularly like being petted on their heads (only a minor bummer as we'd gleefully hoped that we'd get a few gentle pats in.) The tour finished up in the upstairs art studio where hand-made gifts were available, or where one could make a donation, as the tour is free. For how much fun it was, I wouldn't have hesitated to have been required to pay for it anyways. It was a very fun and memorable morning meeting some gentle and fluffy alpacas up close, and I would strongly suggest that anybody making a weekend trip to this area to plan ahead to also visit Lasso the Moon.

We visited the winery on Saturday, 11/18 around 5pm. Courtney welcomed us with open arms. The…read morevineyard is a small family owned business with the owners very active and visible. We loved our experience. We purchased several bottles of wine and even found some cute fatigue jackets. This is not a luxury vineyard but it is a very welcoming and friendly environment.

Great tastings and the owners are super nice. The small little tasting room is nice and their wines…read moreare delicious.

So happy to leave a well-deserved 5 star review for Nottely River Valley Winery!! Thanks for…read morewelcoming us, along with our beloved dog VAL, to your space :)

There are different varieties for everyone's preference. It's okay to bring food such as cheese…read moreand crackers. It's peaceful enjoying wine with friends and family!

The Cherokee County Historical Museum is located in Downtown Murphy in the Carnegie Library…read moreBuilding. Look for the bear. Parking is on the street. The museum is on two levels and starts up the stairs. There is an elevator available on the first level for those who need it. Admission to the museum is $3. The second floor has a variety of collections of household items and farm tools donated by the community members. There are some gems mixed into this collection. I wish the museum was more focused on the history of Cherokee County and selected the better items to be showcased. It seemed junky with random donated old items of family members. Storyboards upstairs would be helpful. Now, the first floor provides information and artifacts on the Cherokee History that they had before the Trail of Tears. The first floor also has a large variety of minerals. The Cherokee History displays are factual and well presented on the storyboards. The Cherokee Indians story is sad. It is worth visiting the museum for the first floor.

This is a great little historical gem, with super knowledgeable folks that have a passion for the…read morearea. stayed about an hour and was taken back in time with the historical artifices from the native americans in the area and the civil war era items. I could have stayed all day and talked to the director and her volunteer. They have a huge collection of arrow heads and an actual native american cabin from West Virginia reassembled and on display.

What a beautiful place. This should be on every brides short list for venues. A sunset wedding…read morewould be ideal here.

Fabulous venue for a charming wedding, reunion, anniversary or birthday party. It truly is the…read moreperfect place for any celebration. The Payne family has passionately created the mountain wedding location in Western North Carolina. With their love of the area and desire to share the rich offerings of this quaint mountain town, you will not be disappointed!

MOUNTAIN HERITAGE FESTIVAL…read more This is a small annual festival that takes place on Labor Day weekend in Blairsville, GA. Blairsville is approximately 1.5 hours from Alpharetta on Highway 400/19. The artisans and vendors out today were selling jewelry, colorful gourds, wind chimes, clothing, jams/jellies, beautiful handcrafted wood items and more. There were many items that are perfect for enhancing your fall and Christmas decor and for giving as holiday gifts. The most popular items today were foods in jars. Although I am familiar with certain fruits and vegetables being prepared and stored, I was surprised to see, greens, zucchini, beans and other unusual items pickled and packed in jars. This must be a mountain tradition because I have not seen it in other places although I attend various festivals and was raised in the south. For me, the highlight of the festival was seeming the historical Mock house which was built in 1906 and restored in 2006 and the John Payne cabin built in 1861. The John Payne house was actually moved from it's original location and actually placed next to the Mock house. The Mock house was a small two bedroom home decorated in the style of the day with all antique furnishings and appliances. There was a quilting demonstration going on in one of the bedrooms. It is interesting how small the bedrooms were and I think the largest bed they had is what is known today as a "full size" bed but would only be appropriate for one person. Also, I love that the only fabric used at this time was just natural cotton which was used for EVERYTHING! That old GE refrigerator actually worked and had food in it! Wow! The rear of the home had a nice porch and an old well right next to it. The well was covered and no longer in use. The Payne cabin is located just a few feet from the Mock house and is the home of one of the area's prominent citizens. John Payne and his wife raised seven children in this one room cabin that also included a loft. I quickly realized just how blessed I am to live in this time, under current circumstances. Ms. Wanda was on hand churning butter from raw milk, it took her two hours and she mentioned that she had not done so in 60 years. She explained the process of extracting the butter from the milk and preparing it to be used at the dinner table. One of the other tour guides, provided a history of the home and its occupants and was actually making Brunswick stew in the fireplace using a cast iron pot. She was also planning to make cornbread as well but we did not get to see this part of the demo. This was such a great experience and a really important lesson for teaching children appreciation and what hard work really entails. DO NOT EXPECT IT TO BE COOL UP THERE AS IT WAS HOTTER THAN THE SUN AND THERE WAS NO DETECTABLE BREEZE! SURPRISE!

Our favorite alpaca farm and we've visited many! Friendly, well-cared for alpacas. The owners…read moreJerome and Pam are passionate and knowledgeable, and are happy to have visitors to their farm. We recommend visiting if you get the chance and love alpacas!

An absolute blast!! My husband's good friend's birthday is on Valentine's Day, and when we saw that…read morethis festival was happening and it also filled on a Saturday, we knew we had to go for a bday celebration up in the mountains! About 10 of us went to the festival and had such a fun time. It was a chili cook off mixed with a craft beer festival as well as an ice carving competition. I'm not kidding you when I tell you I truly felt like I was living in an episode of Gilmore Girls. For all GG fans out there, you'll get it. The festival was held right in downtown Blue Ridge at the 790 Block of East Main St. and the Downtown City Park. Admission to the festival was FREE. For those wishing to sample chili and vote for the People's Choice Award winner, tasting cards were available for $15. Blue Ridge itself is already the cutest little downtown area, then add in a chili cook off, beer stands, and an ice carving competition... the absolute cutest small-town day!! They announced the winners in the gazebo right in the middle of the green area downtown, and that's when I was like "OKAY IS THIS REAL LIFE?!" The chili and beer was fantastic, everyone was friendly, dogs, kiddos, families of all shapes, colors and sizes were gathered together and it was such perfect weather too. A perfect day! All of us decided it was essential that we make this an annual trip up to north ga and come back every year if it continues!