Achasta
in the North Georgia Mountains
Get Ready For A North Georgia Canopy Tour!
Only 8 Spaces Left!
On August 28th, Achasta residents are invited to participate in an action packed canopy tour in the North Georgia Mountains.
Come Join Us For An Exciting Tubing Trip Down The Chattahoochee River
Achasta residents are invited to come join us for an exciting tubing trip down the Chattahoochee River with Cool River Tubing Company.
The Killdeer Effect... A Different Kind of Bird
If you've never seen a Killdeer protecting her 'nest', it's a pretty neat thing to find. The eggs, which are tan with black speckles, blend in to the dirt where they make their 'nest'. Nest is an exaggerated term... it's essentially a little divot in the dirt that the eggs rest in.
The Killdeer watches over the eggs all day. When an intruder approaches the nest, the Killdeer runs about 10-20ft from the nest and makes a high pitched squacking sound while feigning a broken wing. It's really pretty neat to watch. We found this family along our construction road and put the stones around it as a visual deterent to any walkers or vehicles. If you want to see it in person, just contact me and I'll take you to see it.
Killdeer watching over the nest.
Tis The Season For Bird Watching
If you are at all interested in bird watching, now if the perfect time of year to stretch your legs and see some new families emerging. From the bluebirds around the golf course to any number of other native species (like this little family at my house... they're Eastern Phoebe, a type of flycatcher), this is truly a great time of year to get out and enjoy the great outdoors.
Stop by the Achasta River Park... we've added 6 new cedar bird houses to the area around the River Park to give you even more to look forward to while you're enjoying the rest the River Park has to offer. The bird houses are all made from reclaimed cedar, so they're impact-free to the environment.
Trail Season Opens at Achasta
This spring is the perfect time to get your hiking shoes on and get out onto the new trails at Achasta. As you see from the pictures, spring has brought out the daffodils and put the forest into bloom. Take an afternoon to stretch your legs on whichever trail is to your level and liking... we have several of each to choose from.
Azalea Pass (pictured) features an informational sign telling you about some of Georgia's Native Azaleas, which you meander through on the trail.
Transformed River Park Starts To Blossom
The Achasta River Park has undergone a massive overhaul in the past six months. With the addition of stone planter gardens, interpretive signs, swings, a horseshoe pit, angler accomodations, camp sites, wildlife habitats, and a parkside grill with seating for 20, there's no shortage of outdoor entertainment. The OutBound program (which initiated these changes), is not even a year old and we're really excited to continue to grow the program in 2010. Once the summer hits and the flowers we've planted really begin to bloom, it's going to be a site to behold!
Bird Is The Word Seminar
In case you missed it, we had a PHENOMENAL speaker in last week to talk about the many ways of attracting different species of birds to your property. Georgeann Schmalz walked through a number of different topics and gave out some great information, including info on her Birding Adventures trips to the National Forest in our area. In the event you missed it, I have some a free pdf I will be happy to email you, as well as a poster (in pdf format) that is available for $3. The poster is out of print, but includes a number of plants and birds and tells you what plants attract what birds. The one new thing I'm taking home from the event is that if you want to put up a screech owl house, make the hole 3" in diameter, place it 15-20ft up and have the hole facing another tree, so that the young owls will be better acquainted with their surroundings. Good stuff! Join us for our next adventure on March 12th to the NGCSU Planetarium and Observatory.&nb
Almost 2 New Miles of Trails at Achasta
We have successfully completed our trailblazing efforts this winter, adding approximately 1.8mi of new trails. If you include some of the connection points, it's a solid 2mi. Azalea Pass (0.5mi) has been added to the Miner's Ridge area to connect Black Forrest Trail with the hub where Creekside, Laurel Valley and Rocky Top all meet. This is aptly named due to the number of native azaleas along the trail. Tumble Rock Trail, is only 0.3mi, but is difficult terrain as it climbs up Bear Paw Ridge. Lastly, Luhi Trail (1.0mi and code named "The Hurt" while under construction) climbs up and around Bear Paw Ridge, connecting with Angler Alley. This trail is tough, but has a spectacular year-round view of Mount Yonah in the distance. "Luhi" in case you were wondering, is Cherokee for "Climber" or " to climb". After you've hiked it, you'll know why we had to go outside the english language!!!
Winter Projects
So it's been a while, but I've been very busy on creating the first of our new 2010 trails on Bear Paw Ridge. We should be finishing the current trail this week and whoa-nelly, is it a doosie! Most of our existing trails are fairly easy/simple, so we intentionally chose to make this one more challenging. There's a great reward at the top though... after a tough climb up the mountain, you can rest on a bench with a year-round view that peers out to Mount Yonah in the distance. The local wildlife have already taken a fancy to our trail... we see new tracks just about every day.
The current trail takes you from the end of Angler Alley, at the north end of the Achasta property, all the way to the top of Bear Paw Ridge. Next we will be doing two shorter trails on Bear Paw Ridge, in an effort to essentially make a large loop trail accessible from the Achasta River Park.
Achasta Honored For Environmental Excellence By Audubon International
Dahlonega, Ga. (October 22, 2009) – Achasta has achieved designation as a “Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary” through the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program for Golf Courses, an Audubon International program. Achasta is the 17th golf course in Georgia and the 787th in the world to receive the honor. Achasta Golf Course Superintendent, Jeff Bridwell and Assistant Superintendent, David Walker led the effort to obtain sanctuary status.
To reach certification, a course must demonstrate that they are maintaining a high degree of environmental quality in a number of areas. The areas include: environmental planning, wildlife and habitat management, outreach and education, chemical use reduction and safety, water conservation, and water quality management.
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(888) 988-6222 150 Birch River Drive Dahlonega, GA 30533
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