Appalachian Trail Hike + TrailFest + AOC Trail Magic! + gorgeous Weather!

IN A NUTSHELL:  This 3rd annual "Dahlonega Trailfest" Saturday Day Trip is a great alternative for AOC members who are into HIKING and also would like to take advantage of this big celebration of outdoor activities, live music, and arts & crafts in the lovely mountain town of Dahlonega.  It's an easy 1-hour drive from Atlanta - See Details & Directions below.  The Weather is expected to be ideal for "all things outdoors" despite the slow approach of Hurricane Irma.
  Day Trip hiker-volunteers will hook up on Saturday with our previously registered Trailfest Campers for exciting activities described below.  We can all easily meet with one another between about 10:00 and 11:30 AM at our festive"AOC Outreach Tent" on the town square.  In addition to the varous Festival attractions our AOC activities will include an easy Sat afternoon Appalachian Trail Dayhike (optional, from 1:00 - 4:00 PM) and staffing the AOC Outreach Tent (10:00 AM - 5:00 PM).  While having fun together we'll be spreading the good word about our fine Club and giving out an assortment "trail magic treats" to like-minded lovers of the outdoors- both on the trail and on the town square.
  Day Trip participants are welcome to drive up and join us at your convenience on Saturday morning.  Since Dahlonega is so close to Atlanta we're NOT posting a formal event carpool, but we encourage driving up with other members whom you know.   See event Directions and Parking suggestions below, and for a zoomable map or satellite view of the approximate location of our Outreach Tent click the square blue & green "Event Location" icon above.  

MORE about TRAILFEST:  Just 50 miles north of Atlanta, the historic "gold rush" town of Dahlonega is near the southern end of the Appalachian Trail (AT) and is widely known as Georgia's gateway to the legendary 2200-mile-long footpath.  Each year this friendly mountain community celebrates hiking, camping and backpacking by hosting on its town square a wonderful free event called "TrailFest," with fascinating outdoor-related presentations, live music, arts & crafts displays, delicious food & refreshments and much more!   Produced by hardworking local volunteers, the festival especially honors the hundreds of AT thru-hikers who begin or end their quest nearby. Click here for the main website about the amazing 2016 festival  http://DahlonegaTrailfest.org/
  For festival details and options click the various topics in the rectangle on the home page. For example click "Program," etc.for this year's weekend-long schedule of presentations, live music performances, etc. (which will continue to have new things added through early September).

MORE about SAT OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES & AOC "OUTREACH":  Our Dahlonega friends who host TrailFest have again this year offered us free booth space on the town square where we'll have our AOC "Trail Magic" Outreach Tent set up all weekend, Fri-Sun. There we can enjoy the jovial atmosphere of the town square and share info about the AOC with like-minded partners including the Len Foote Hike Inn and the GA Appalachian Trail Club.  We intend to build on the AOC tradition of sharing donated snacks, refreshments & small gear items as mentioned above.   Please pitch in at our AOC Booth (for at least an hour or so on Saturday)  and feel free to add your own personal touch to our volunteer efforts.
  Suggestions are given below (in "Recommended Items to Bring") for specific snacks, refreshments and various other small gear items that you might wish to donate.    For lunch on Saturday there's an amazing variety of restaurants & cafes within a 5-minute walk from the town square, and we may suggest a specific place and time for a group lu nch and/or late-afternoon group dinner.

OPTIONAL SAT DAYHIKE on the nearby "AT":  For all AOCers who would like to participate, we'll offer a leisurely paced early-afternoon ~3-hour dayhike excursion to the nearby "AT."  For the hike we'll first meet at 1:00 PM at the AOC Outreach Tent on the town square where we'll organize a carpool caravan to the GA-60 AT trailhead at Woody Gap.  The relatively easy and leisurely paced hike will take us to the spectacular "Preacher's Rock" overlook and back - about 2.5 miles total. During this special outing we'll enjoy chatting with numerous other hikers & backpackers and offering them "real-time Trail Magic" treats and snacks
  For those who may prefer a longer and more strenuous hike we may offer an optional guided extension beyond Preacher's Rock about 6 more miles to lovely Dockery Lake (at a leisurely pace, via the AT and the Dockery Lake Trail).  It's easy to set up a vehicle shuttle for that if you're interested in this extension (2 to 3 extra hours, in lieu of returning from Preacher's Rock to Woody Gap with our main hiking group).

"RAIN OR SHINE" EVENT!  We intend to go ahead with this event Rain or Shine, esp. because we can so easily find shelter in the event of severe weather.

SPECIAL THANKS!  to our friend Tom Lamb and his family, who are the founding organizers of Dahlonega TrailFest.  Their staff of hardworking volunteers & sponsors from the Lumpkin Coalition, Yahoola Outdoors and REI Co-Op make this fine festival happen each year.

NOTE: Daytrip participants are welcome drive up at your convenience on Sat AM and meet with other AOCers (ideally between about 10:30 and 11:00 AM) at our AOC "Outreach Tent" on the Town Square.  Driving and suggested parking directions are given below.   Feel free to augment the written directions below by entering the following Lat/Lon coordinates as your GPS Destination Address, being sure to include the comma and minus sign.  34.5094,-83.9762

1.  From the GA-400/ I-285 Interchange take GA-400 North for about 47 miles to its official end at the GA-60 junction near Dahlonega. (En route note that a convenient meetup spot for "privately arranged custom carpooling" is the Park & Ride lot at the GA-400 Mansell Rd exit in Roswell/Alpharetta - about 9 miles north of I-285.)
2. Turn Left at the traffic light onto GA-60 stay on it about 5 miles to the traffic light just past the McDonalds (on your left).
3.  Continue straight ahead at the light onto S Chestatee Street  into Dahlonega and begin looking for convenient free parking along the side streets, etc.
4.  To reach the town square and our AOC Trailfest Outreach Tent, etc. walk about 0.2 mile northward up Chestatee Street.