Hiawassee, Georgia Guide: Lake Chatuge, Young Harris and Events

Hiawassee, Lake Chatuge and Young Harris at a glance

Hiawassee is the county seat of Towns County, on the shore of Lake Chatuge in Georgia's northern mountains. Towns County has two incorporated cities, Hiawassee and Young Harris, home of Young Harris College. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates 1,038 residents in Hiawassee and 797 in Young Harris on July 1, 2025, in a county of 13,285. Everything outside the two cities is unincorporated Towns County.

The New Georgia Encyclopedia lists Towns among the eleven Georgia counties in the Blue Ridge Mountains, and the courthouse on River Street sits at about 1,978 feet, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Hiawassee calls itself an Appalachian Trail Community.

Lake Chatuge: beaches, boat ramps and water levels

Chatuge Reservoir is a Tennessee Valley Authority lake on the Hiwassee River. TVA says it is 13 miles long and extends southeast from its dam in Clay County, North Carolina, into Towns County. The dam was built from 1941 to 1942. Towns County puts the lake at 7,000 surface acres at full pool, and Georgia's wildlife agency says the upper half lies in Georgia and the lower half in North Carolina.

Where the public can get on the water

• Towns County Beach is open to the public free of charge for swimming, picnics and a playground, with a concession building in summer. The county visitors bureau places it on Highway 76, about 2 miles from the town square, and notes there is no lifeguard.
• Chatuge Woods Campground is a 30-acre county campground on the lake on Red Banks Drive in Young Harris, open April through October, with a public boat ramp and ample parking next to it. Call 706-994-1533 for reservations.
• Mayors Park in Hiawassee has a city boat ramp, according to city council records.
• Lake Chatuge Recreation Area is a free Forest Service day-use site with no drinking water. The old campground is closed to camping, but Georgia's wildlife agency says about a mile of shoreline is open for fishing: go west on Highway 76 past the fairgrounds about 1 mile, turn left on Sunnyside Road (Georgia 288), and go about 1 mile south to Forest Service Road 704.
• The Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds campground on the lake includes a boat ramp for campers.

Across both states, TVA counts 17 boat ramps including marinas, 9 marinas and 10 campgrounds on the reservoir. A fishing license from either Georgia or North Carolina lets you fish the whole lake by boat, but you need that state's license to keep fish caught in its waters.

Water levels

In a year with normal rainfall, TVA lets the lake vary about 10 feet from summer to winter for flood storage. Its target is a low of elevation 1,915 feet in mid-February and a high of 1,926 feet around Memorial Day.

Things to do in Hiawassee and Young Harris

Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds and Anderson Music Hall

The Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds at 1311 Music Hall Road hosts the Georgia Mountain Fair, which Towns County first held in 1950, plus the fall festival, a Christmas lights drive and concerts. Anderson Music Hall holds about 2,900 people, parking is free, and since January 1, 2026 only clear bags are allowed. Pets are not allowed in the fairgrounds or music hall, except service animals. The fairgrounds campground is open year-round on the lake.

Hamilton Rhododendron Gardens

At the top of the fairgrounds parking lot, 96 Pavilion Road, Hamilton Rhododendron Gardens grows more than 400 varieties of rhododendron, 3,000 plants in all, along easy 1- and 2-mile trail loops. It is open daily until sunset.

Brasstown Bald

Brasstown Bald, the highest point in Georgia at 4,784 feet, is in Towns County, and its visitor center address is 2941 Highway Spur 180, Hiawassee. It is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $10 for each adult 16 and older and free for children 15 and younger. A steep 0.6-mile paved trail climbs to the viewing platform, with a shuttle as the alternative, and the observation deck looks over four states.

Bell Mountain and High Shoals Falls

Bell Mountain Park is an 18-acre summit the county named a park on February 18, 2016. The road is paved, and a second platform rises to 3,424 feet with 360-degree views. It is open from 8 a.m. to dark. The county visitors bureau places it at 220 Shake Rag Road, about five miles from the square.

For a waterfall, the visitors bureau describes a 2.5-mile round-trip hike from 1333 Indian Grave Gap Road, about 12 miles from the square, past Blue Hole Falls to High Shoals Falls.

Young Harris College and its planetarium

Young Harris College started in 1886 as the McTyeire Institute and is an affiliated United Methodist institution at 1 College Street in Young Harris. The O. Wayne Rollins Planetarium, open since 1979, seats 104 under a 40-foot dome and runs public shows on select Friday evenings: $5 for adults, $3 for children and free under 4.

Brasstown Valley Resort

Brasstown Valley Resort and Spa, 6321 Highway 76 in Young Harris, has an 18-hole Scottish links-style course designed by Denis Griffiths, the Equani Spa, guided trail rides and, on its more than 500 acres, 9 miles of trails.

Downtown and local history

The Towns County Historical Society opens the Old Rock Jail, built in 1936 at 91 South Berrong Street, on the first and third Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and on first Fridays from 5 to 8 p.m. It is one of two Towns County places on the National Register of Historic Places. The county's Recreation and Conference Center, 150 Foster Park Road in Young Harris, is a 37,161-square-foot facility.

Taste local wine

Tasting room	Where	Posted days
Hightower Creek Vineyards	7150 Canaan Drive, Hiawassee	Open from noon most days, Sunday from 12:30 p.m.; closed Tuesdays; live music Saturdays 2 to 5 p.m.
Crane Creek Vineyards	1040 Crane Creek Road, three miles north of Young Harris	Farmhouse Tuesday to Sunday from 9 a.m.; closed Monday

Hiawassee events calendar: October 2026 to October 2027

Verified October 11, 2026 against the Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds calendar, City of Hiawassee council minutes and organizers' pages. Rows marked "not yet announced" are recurring events whose organizers had not posted the next date.

Date	Event	Where	Source
October 15 to 17, 2026 (second weekend)	Georgia Mountain Fall Festival; $10, children 12 and under free; Molly Tuttle October 16, Tanya Tucker October 17	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds
October 24, 2026, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.	Appalachian Brew and Music Festival; Blackberry Smoke at 7 p.m.	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds
October 29 to 31, 2026	The Haunted Village; free Halloween at the Fairgrounds October 30, 5 to 8 p.m.	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds
November 7, 2026	Tin Can Tourists vintage trailer show, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; The Oak Ridge Boys at 7 p.m.	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds
November 13 and 14, 2026	Light Up Hiawassee: decorating Mayors Park and Lloyds Landing, then the town square with a Santa visit and free outdoor movie	Downtown Hiawassee	City minutes
November 26 to December 31, 2026	Mountain Country Christmas in Lights; $12, children 12 and under free; closed Christmas Day	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds
December 31, 2026, fireworks at 8 p.m.	New Year fireworks; parking lot opens at 6 p.m.	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds
March 13, 2027	Hiawassee Half Marathon and 5K	Hiawassee	City minutes
May 14 and 15, 2027	Georgia Mountain Fire and Smoke Cooking Festival	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds
June 11 to 13, 2027	Georgia Mountain Scottish Festival and Highland Games	Hiawassee	Festival site
August 13 to 21, 2027	Georgia Mountain Fair	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds
September 16 to 18, 2027	Dailey and Vincent Music Fest	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds
October 2027, not yet announced (2026 was October 9 to 11 and 15 to 17)	Georgia Mountain Fall Festival	Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	Fairgrounds

Getting to Hiawassee and when to go

These are approximate drive times from downtown Hiawassee without traffic. Fair and festival days add time on Highway 76.

From downtown Hiawassee to	About	Miles
Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds	5 minutes	2
Lake Chatuge Recreation Area	5 minutes	4
Young Harris	10 minutes	8
Blairsville	25 minutes	16
Helen	30 minutes	21
Murphy, North Carolina	35 minutes	23
Clayton	40 minutes	26
Cleveland	50 minutes	30
Blue Ridge	55 minutes	39
Franklin, North Carolina	55 minutes	38
Dahlonega	1 hour 10 minutes	50
Gainesville	1 hour 25 minutes	54
Downtown Atlanta	2 hours 25 minutes	108
Asheville, North Carolina	2 hours 25 minutes	105
Greenville, South Carolina	2 hours 30 minutes	98
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport	2 hours 40 minutes	121

Seasons and crowds

Summer is lake season: the county beach has a summer concession, Chatuge Woods campground runs April through October, and the Georgia Mountain Fair fills mid-August. The lake is highest around Memorial Day. October brings the fall festival, and the Christmas lights drive runs from Thanksgiving through New Year's Eve.

What the weather is like

NOAA's closest station with 1991 to 2020 normals for both temperature and precipitation is the Blairsville Experiment Station, about 12 miles west of Hiawassee at about 1,949 feet, close to the town's own elevation. It averages about 60 inches of precipitation and roughly 3 inches of snow a year.

Month	Average high	Average low	Precipitation	Snowfall
January	49°F	25°F	5.8 in	0.5 in
April	69°F	41°F	5.2 in	0
July	85°F	62°F	4.9 in	0
October	70°F	43°F	4.2 in	0

Living in Hiawassee, Young Harris and Towns County

Buyers here usually want a lake home on Chatuge, a cabin in the hills around Hiawassee and Young Harris, or land with a view. Whether the property is in a city or in the county, and how far it sits above the lake, decides which rules apply.

Area or property type	What to know
Lake Chatuge shoreline	TVA permit for any dock, the county's lakefront setback, and the winter water level at that lot.
In town (Hiawassee and Young Harris)	City zoning, and whether city water and sewer serve the property.
Mountain cabins	Road access in wet weather, the septic permit, and lodging tax if you plan to rent.
Land on high slopes	A county mountain protection permit for land disturbance above 2,200 feet, a perc test and a survey.

Schools, health care and utilities

The Towns County School District runs the public schools. Chatuge Regional Hospital in Hiawassee is an affiliate of Union General Health System. The Hiawassee Water Department maintains the city's water lines and sewer collection lines, so ask whether a specific property is connected or relies on a well and septic system.

Buying around Lake Chatuge: taxes, rentals, docks and land

Current listings across the county, including lake homes, are on our Hiawassee, GA homes for sale page, which carries a live search filtered to Towns County.

Property taxes and the homestead exemption

Georgia taxes property on an assessed value of 40% of fair market value. The Department of Revenue's 2025 millage table lists maintenance and operations rates of 3.805 mills for Towns County, a 0.355-mill countywide fire levy, 5.211 for schools, and 1.532 for Hiawassee or 1.994 for Young Harris inside those cities. A mill is $1 per $1,000 of assessed value. The county posted that it will set the 2026 millage at a called meeting on October 23, 2026.

For a primary residence, the Department of Revenue takes $2,000 off the assessed value for county and school taxes when you own and live in the home on January 1. Its Towns County facts page says to apply by April 1 of the first year, and late applications are now accepted through the 45-day window to appeal your assessment. Ask the Towns County Tax Assessor which local exemptions apply.

Renting out a home

We did not find a short-term rental ordinance in the online codes for Towns County, Hiawassee or Young Harris, and county meeting agendas from January 2025 through September 2026 list no rental item. The county's online code is only codified through 2019, so call the Commissioner's office at 706-896-2276 before you count on rental income. Lodging taxes do apply: 5 percent of the rent in unincorporated Towns County, and 8 percent of gross rent in Hiawassee's special tax district, which covers rental cabins and exempts stays over 30 consecutive days. Young Harris zoning lists guesthouses as a special use. Georgia also adds a $5 per night state fee.

Docks, setbacks and the drawdown

TVA requires a Section 26a permit before shoreline construction such as a dock, and its shoreline FAQ says permits do not transfer automatically, so a buyer should notify TVA within 60 days. Towns County adds its own rule: under Section 10-92, no building may sit within 50 feet of the 1,926-foot elevation contour of the lake, measured along the slope, and Section 40-169 sets a 20-foot minimum setback from the 1,933-foot contour for subdivision lots. Inside Hiawassee, city zoning applies. With the possible dam-repair drawdown, ask how the lot's water depth changes at lower levels before you buy.

Septic, wells and steep land

Call Towns County Environmental Health at 706-896-8873 for septic questions; the county needs a copy of the septic permit before it issues a building permit. Private wells in Georgia are not regulated, and the Georgia Department of Public Health recommends a coliform test every year. The county building department requires a mountain protection permit for any land disturbance above 2,200 feet.

How Gold Peach Realty helps Hiawassee buyers

Gold Peach Realty is a licensed Georgia brokerage based in Dahlonega, about 1 hour 10 minutes from Hiawassee, and we work with buyers and sellers across Towns County. A purchase with us runs like this:

1. We start with how you will use the property: full time, weekends or partly as a rental.
2. We set up a live Towns County search and send new listings that fit.
3. For each lake home you like, we ask for the TVA permit and check the house against the county's lakefront setback.
4. We line up the inspection, septic review and water test.
5. We negotiate the contract and coordinate the closing.

Comparing towns nearby? Read our Blairsville guide, our Ellijay guide and our Helen guide, or browse Blairsville homes for sale and Lake Burton homes for sale.

Frequently asked questions