Tallulah Gorge

Tallulah Gorge State Park wraps around a canyon about two miles long and nearly 1,000 feet deep, cut by the Tallulah River. The six waterfalls drop the river about 500 feet over a mile. You can see a lot from the rim, and the 80-foot suspension bridge puts you out over the rocks at Hurricane Falls. If you want to be at the bottom, you'll need a free permit and some stamina.

Aesthetic releases let water flow through the gorge so you can see the falls running at fuller volume from the rim. Dates can change, so confirm with the park before you go.

The park lists about 20 miles of trails in all, plus a 10-mile mountain bike route, fishing and paddling on the 63-acre lake.

The completion of a railroad in 1882, later known as the Tallulah Falls Railroad, brought thousands of visitors a week to the gorge. In 1911, Helen Dortch Longstreet led an unsuccessful campaign for the state to protect it, and a hydroelectric dam eventually changed the river's flow. The state park was established in the early 1990s (the New Georgia Encyclopedia says 1992, Wikipedia says 1993) through cooperation with Georgia Power. You can still see the towers used by tightrope walker Karl Wallenda, who crossed the gorge in 1970. Georgia State Parks says tightrope walkers have crossed it twice. For more on how the river works today, see the park's background.

Pair it with north Georgia waterfalls, Toccoa Falls or fall color around Helen.