Tag Archives: Blairsville

01/4/18

Over the river and through the woods with the Mitsubishi Outlander GT 3.0 AWC!

This adventure was made possible through a partnership with Mitsubishi, who provided me with a vehicle to test drive in December. You can follow the conversation on social media with the hashtag #DriveMitsubishi and #MitsubishiOutlanderGT!

Hello there beautiful!

Meet the gorgeous Mitsubishi Outlander GT 3.0 AWC! 

Last month a group of family and friends rented a cabin in the beautiful town of Blairsville, Georgia in the north Georgia mountains. This trip is a tradition I started with my family almost 15 years ago, and now share with my husband and friends who have also fallen in love with the area. While we were there, we were able to explore the amazing blue ridge mountains with the Outlander! We had SO much fun climbing steep mountain roads, traversing streams, and navigating the winding lower Appalachian roads in this comfy, yet stylish vehicle. 

We picked up the Outlander near Atlanta, then drove the 90 mile drive to Blairsville. We were able to spend that time getting to know the ins and outs of the Outlander, and getting a feel for how it handles on the open highway. What stood out most during our initial drive was the smooth ride and steering. It was dark on that drive up into the mountains, so the crystal clear LED headlamps, and impeccable control of the steering, made me feel safe and secure behind the wheel.

I loved how in control I felt once we got to the mountains. Navigating the twists, turns, and inclines of mountain roads can be a scary thing, especially at night, but the Outlander made for an easy and enjoyable experience. It has the smooth and steady feel of a luxury car, but it’s also rugged enough to take us to locations like the top of the highest peak in Georgia, Brasstown Bald mountain, to watch the sunset and the supermoon rise, and to Helton Creek Falls, a beautiful spot surrounded by roads that often make my stomach turn and my knuckles turn white! 

This crossover vehicle had SO much to offer. It can seat 5 adults comfortably, with an optional fold up 3rd row for additional seating. Although Mitsubishi says that this can seat 7 people on its website, the last row does not provide adequate space for an adult to sit or travel comfortably for long periods of time. Our friend Nayra, who was vacationing with us for the first half of our trip, offered to sit in the back row while on an excursion to Tallulah Gorge, and at around 5′ in height, she did not have enough leg room and needed to sit sideways in order to stay comfortable. The back row would be the perfect spot for bigger children who are no longer in car seats, but it’s probably a good idea to let the adults sit up front. 

The Mitsubishi Outlander GT proved to be the PERFECT road trip car. Comfortable, stylish, smooth, good on gas, lots of cargo space when the 3rd row is folded down, an amazing 710 audio sound system with 9 speakers (for all of those road trip tunes!), Apple and Android car-connect capabilities, overhead backup camera with a crystal clear display, cup holders and chargers galore, a gorgeous sun and moon roof, and bells and whistles that help to make traveling easy peasy. 

But the fun really began halfway through our vacation when this happened…

North Georgia gets about 1-2 snows each year, and typically this area in particular gets a few inches at most. It was cold, yet comfortable when we arrived earlier in the week, and we kept our eyes on the forecast, which included snow towards the end of the week and into the weekend, but we weren’t prepared for just how MUCH snow we would get.

The snow began late Thursday evening, and continued all day Friday and into Saturday. It snowed more than I had ever seen in my life, and I was thrilled! Over those two days Union County measured record amounts of snowfall at a whopping 10 inches! It was such an unexpected treat! 

In all of our snow excitement, we lost sight of what 10inches of snow means for things like power outages and closures. Our friends who we rent the cabin from stayed in contact with us and gave us updates on what their neighbors were experiencing. Although the cabin we rent is quite secluded, there are a few cabins in the surrounding area. We learned that as the day went on, most of those neighbors had already lost power- and since everyone is on a well out there, losing power meant losing water too. 

We had planned to drive out to Helen, GA for dinner and some holiday festivities on Friday, but because of the snow, most roads and places were closed. It would have been way to dangerous too drive to Helen anyway, since the road to get there from Blairsville is an up-and-over high mountain trek. We still had a few things that we could snack on from our grocery trip earlier that week, but we decided that it would be a good idea to make a run to Walmart (who was thankfully still open and running on a generator!) to get some supplies for the night, especially since we had two young children with us. 

This gave us an opportunity to test out the Outlander’s AWC snow settings, which made us feel much more confident about tackling the 20 minute drive into town. I have zero experience with driving in this much snow, and so knowing that there was a setting to help with our inexperience was a big relief. The snow mode can be activated with just a push of a button, and works by sending additional power to the rear wheels sooner when driving in snow than when driving on the road for added traction. We scraped as much snow as we could off of the Outlander, and then headed out! 

 

We were able to get to the store and back to the cabin safely with supplies to take us through the night (including all of the ingredients to make a nice warm family meal of spaghetti and meatballs!) thanks to the Outlander! 

Luckily, we never lost power or water, and spent our last night in the cabin cozy and warm. The snow continued all through the night and into the morning, but by midday, the snow had stopped, and the sun started to peek out over the mountains, making it safe to venture out again and make our way back home to Tampa. 

All in all it was another amazing and memorable trip in the books! We love Blairsville and we’re already looking forward to 2018’s winter trip!

If you’re in the market for a road trip friendly crossover that is not only a head-turner but functional, comfortable and safe (especially in unexpected weather conditions!), definitely look into test driving the Mitsubishi Outlander GT AWC and see for yourself just how great this vehicle is!

For more details on the entire Mitsubishi fleet, be sure to follow on social media using the links below, and the hashtag #DriveMitsubishi.
Twitter: Mitsubishi USA
Facebook: Mitsubishi USA
Instagram: Mitsubishi USA

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10/11/12

Judy’s tales: The Waterfall Incident

Today marks the 6 month anniversary of my mom’s passing. I cannot believe it’s been half a year since I’ve spoken to her. I cannot believe how time has flown.

I feel like I’ve spent each month awaiting for the arrival of the 11th day, to declare one more month of time since she passed. I don’t know when I decided to stop, but the idea entered my head not too long ago, and I have been waiting for the 11th day for a different reason this time around.

Today is October 11. Today I begin a story. It’s a story of my mom. Her tales of adventures, fun and hilarity. It’s how I, and everyone else should remember her. On the 11th day of each month I will write and honor my mom’s memory with a story she loved to tell about something that “would only happen to Judy.” I hope you’ll enjoy these tales, and if you were lucky enough to know my mom, I hope they bring a smile to your face whenever you read them.

The Waterfall Incident

In the winter of 2008, we packed up an SUV and a truck with family and neighbors and took an 9 hour road trip up to a little town called Blairsville, Georgia. The four of us (mom, dad, my grandmother and I + 2 dogs) had ventured to this beautiful northern destination just two years prior, and had fallen in love with the area. With it’s mountains, country restaurants, and quaint little markets, it’s a little-known vacation spot that we are so glad we discovered.

We rented two cabins in the tippy top of Blood Mountain, and had so much fun playing in the snow, roasting marshmallows in the fire, and squealing over the field mice who decided to vacation with us. I remember using the bathroom one morning (like sitting on the toilet) when one of these pesky rodents came running through the crack under the door, straight at my pajama pant-covered feet as I sat. I was completely calm, of course.

Each day we had different activities planned, as there is SO much to do up there. Hiking, shopping, scenic drives and horseback riding filled our days. But one particular memory sticks out above the rest: The Waterfall Incident. You see, Blairsville is the highest point in Georgia, and with that comes waterfalls- lots of them. After a half dozen trips up there, I still haven’t seen all of the waterfalls that the lower Appalachian mountains have to offer.

On this particular day, we had planned to take a drive over to Helton Creek Falls. As we pulled into the parking area, we realized there was about a half mile hike down, then back up to get to the top of one part of the falls, then the base of another part of the falls. My neighbor brought her elderly mother on this trip, and she wasn’t able to do the climbing involved, so she stayed in the car to wait for us while we dove into this adventure.

We began the trek down a some steep steps, then up what seemed double the amount to reach the top of the first 45ft. drop. The falls are divided into two sections. Walking up a bit further will take you to the bottom of the 60ft. waterfall, but unfortunately you cannot climb to the top of that part of the falls.

The base of the top falls.

As we reached the top, my mom decided she wanted to “take a closer look”. It was a very cold day, and had snowed the night before. Ice covered the steps and rocks leading up to the falls, so we were all extra cautious as we hiked. As the water rushed passed us over the slick rocks, we stayed on the observation deck…. except for Judy.

Before we knew it, my mom was walking out to the rocks by the roaring river, heading out towards the edge of the waterfall. My mother was never at a loss for crazy ideas (as you’ll soon discover) so when she decided to shimmy her feet over to take a peek, we weren’t surprised. What happened next wasn’t a shocker either. My mom was known for her clumsiness. She was always falling, slipping or tripping over something (usually because her daily movements incorporated some form of dancing), so when we turned our head and saw my mom on her back, slipping closer and closer to the final edge of the falls, we freaked!

You see, Judy was always known for her hair-brained ideas. And this one was no different. Fortunately she was wearing jeans, which prevented her from sliding towards an impending doom. As my father cautiously crept toward the edge to help my mom, I pulled out my camera to document the whole process on film (which I will frantically look for to share with you all!). My mom used to love to reenact the story of how she crawled onto her hands and knees and tried to reach out and grab my father’s hand as he continued to use his other hand to hold onto his precious cigar that he didn’t want to go to waste.

Needless to say, we were able to pull her to safety, and continue to enjoy the remainder of our vacation with little to no additional emergencies. When we returned back to the car, Ophelia, our neighbor commented on the screams she heard from her spot up at the parking area. She figured the falls were so beautiful and we were hooting and hollering in all of it’s glory. She, of course, wasn’t surprised to hear the truth, and from that day on those falls were dubbed “Judy Falls”. Pun intended.