On New Year’s Eve this year, we decided to get some exercise in advance of a night of consumption and calories. Carter’s Lake was conveniently located near our cabin in Ellijay, so we drove around the 3,200 acre lake and found the visitor’s center.
The lady at the counter was very friendly and after our kids named every stuffed animal in the display room, we hit the Big Acorn Nature Trail which starts in the back of the building.
The Trail runs along Carters Lake which is the deepest reservoir lake in Georgia at 450 feet. It’s reported to be a popular spot to fish for Walleye – a fish that has eluded me on many trips to Northern Ontario. But back to the hiking …. we only covered about 0.6 miles of the 62 miles of shoreline, yet the Trail was very scenic with winter views of the lake and bright blue water that lit up on this sunny day.
We made our way to a round overlook near the main road which had outstanding views out to Carters Lake.
Then my son and I raced the rest of the group back to the visitors center. In case you are wondering .. the road route is definitely faster.
If you have some time, their is a nice park across the damn with a spillway carved in the side of the mountain. It’s worth a look and the kids had fun on the playground while we explored the area.
Overall, I was impressed with Carters Lake. It was very clean and well kept. I’m sure we’ll be back – maybe next time to catch some Walleye.