Summer can often slip through our fingers like grains of coastal sand.
Forgetting to plan a warm weather vacay doesn't have to deflate your summer.
Here are quick-fix getaways less than 100 miles from the Atlanta area. So start packing the duffel bag and plot a course.
Approximately 60 miles north of the city, Dawsonville owns its share of picturesque spots. Pack the camera for a visit to Amicalola Falls State Park. You'll find the tallest cascading waterfall in the Southeast, with water rushing down its 729-foot face.
Save some time to visit a section of the Amicalola River known as the Edge of the World. Courageous visitors can body surf or tube down the rapids. Finding the Edge of the World can be challenging. From Dawsonville, take Georgia Highway 53 west for about six miles to the bridge across the river. Park at either end of the bridge and enter the trail on the Dawsonville side of the bridge. After a short walk through the woods, you'll reach the rapids.
While in Dawsnville, visit the Georgia Racing Hall of Fame — Dawsonville's Bill Elliott parks his first NASCAR ride there — or the neighboring Dawsonville Moonshine Distillery, which creates a legal version of the corn-laced liquor the area is historically known for. Both spots share space with City Hall.
While some may opt to bunk at the Lodge at Amicalola Falls, others choose nearby budget-minded Super 8 or Quality Inn. Campers can consider a spot at Under the Hemlock, located next to the falls.
To visit somewhere south of Atlanta, hop on I-85 south and then take I-185 south toward Columbus to reach Pine Mountain, home of the Callaway Gardens resort. Rich flora rules the 6,500-acre resort.
Summertime calls for sprawling on the sands of Robin Lake Beach, a manmade venue for swimming and sun soaking. Gardens admission includes access to the beach, but several pay-to-play activities are also great options: Aqua Island, a floating playground with the Xcelerator inflatable water slide or paddle boat on Chickadee Lake. You can also rent a boat and hire a driver for water skiing, wakeboarding or tubing. On select summer nights, you can enjoy a movie on the beach for free.
Another family-friendly freebie is the FSU Flying High Circus. Steps away from the lake, college students gather beneath the big top for on-the-house shows. When the performers aren't waltzing across the high wire or tackling the trapeze, they serve as Callaway's Summer Family Adventure camp counselors.
Set aside enough cash for accommodations at one of Callaway's onsite facilities from the Mountain Creek Inn to one of the property's cottages or the swank Lodge and Spa. Cut costs by camping in the nearby F.D. Roosevelt State Park or kicking back in the more rustic digs at the Pine Mountain RV Resort. The latter offers glamping in the form of yurts that can sleep groups of four to eight or more.
Atlantans can score the quickest off-the-cuff getaway of its kind by visiting Lake Lanier Islands. Just a 30-minute drive from town, its pearly white expanse of beach, part of LanierWorld, serves as the hub for the surrounding vacation-worthy activities.
LanierWorld links together four sections loaded with attractions, eateries and more: Family Fun Park, Big Beach, Boardwalk and Sunset Cove. Waterslide thrills, a massive manmade wave pool, zip lines, volleyball, a giant movie screen and other amenities help lure visitors. Its Full Moon Parties, taking place on a handful of summer nights, wrangle together live music, street entertainers and copious grub. Regular food options include Italian at Gianni's, and burgers and seafood at Sunset Cove Restaurant.
Lodging on Lake Lanier Islands runs for the gamut: Legacy Lodge & Conference Center shows off recent upgrades and has a heated saltwater pool. The center offers a variety of accommodation packages.
On the other end of the price spectrum, camping at Blue Ridge Campgrounds at Lake Lanier Islands and Shoal Camp Campgrounds, approximately seven miles from the resort, both offer scenic lakefront camping.
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