GEORGIA

Compared to the rest of GEORGIA, the largest of the Southern states, the bright lights of its capital Atlanta are a wild aberration. Apart from some beaches and towns on the highly indented coastline, this overwhelmingly rural state is composed of slow, easygoing settlements where the best, and sometimes the only, way to enjoy your time is to sip iced tea and have a chat on the porch.

Settlement in Georgia, the thirteenth British colony (named after King George II), started in 1733 at Savannah, intended as a haven of Christian principles for poor Britons, with both alcohol and slavery banned. However, under pressure from planters, slavery was introduced in 1752, and by the time of the Civil War almost half the population were black slaves. Little fighting took place on Georgian soil until Sherman's troops marched in from Tennessee, burned Atlanta to the ground and laid waste to all property on the way to the coast.

The economy successfully re-established itself after the war, attracting substantial investment in the latter years of the nineteenth century. Today, bustling Atlanta stands as the unofficial capital of the South. The city where Dr Martin Luther King Jr was born, preached and is buried bears little relation to Gone with the Wind stereotypes, and its forward-looking energy is upheld as a role model for other cities with large black populations – though it does still suffer high levels of urban poverty and violent crime.

Atlanta's main rival as a tourist destination is the Georgia coast, stretching south from beautiful old Savannah via the sea islands to the semitropical Okefenokee Swamp, inland near Florida. In the northeast, the Appalachian foothills are particularly fetching in fall, while Athens has a reputation for producing offbeat rock groups such as REM and the B-52's. Further south, the agricultural heartlands are rich in musical history, but only Macon and ancient Ocmulgee provide reasons to stop.

Central Georgia
The broad expanse of central Georgia, south of Atlanta, is famous more for its people than for places to see. Otis Redding, James Brown, Little Richard and the Allman Brothers were all born here or grew up in the area, while former president Jimmy Carter came from little Plains, roughly 120 miles due south of the capital. Few of its small towns hold much of interest, though vegetable fanatics may enjoy tiny Juliette, twenty miles north of Macon, where the Whistle Stop Café dishes up the fried green tomatoes of book and movie fame (Mon–Sat 8am–2pm, Sun noon–7pm), and Vidalia further east, the self-proclaimed "Sweet Onion Capital of the World." The largest communities are the dull army center of Columbus and the likeable town of Macon.

Georgian Bay Islands National Park
A beautiful area to cruise, the Georgian Bay Islands National Park consists of a scattering of about sixty islands spread between Honey Harbour and Twelve Mile Bay, about 50km to the north. The park's two distinct landscapes – the glacier-scraped rock of the Canadian Shield and the hardwood forests and thicker soils of the south – meet at the northern end of the largest and most scenic island, Beausoleil, a forty-minute boat ride west of Honey Harbour. Beausoleil has eleven short hiking trails, including two that start at the Cedar Spring landing stage, on the southeastern shore. These are the Treasure Trail, which heads north behind the marshes along the edge of the island, and the Christian Trail, which cuts through beech and maple stands to the balsam and hemlock groves overlooking the rocky beaches of the western shoreline. At the northern end of Beausoleil, within comfortable walking distance of several other jetties, there are the Cambrian and Fairy trails, two delightful routes through the harsher Canadian Shield scenery, while, just to the west, the Dossyonshing Trail tracks through a mixed area of wetland, forest and bare granite that covers the transitional zone between the two main landscapes. The national park office in Honey Harbour (late June to Aug Mon–Thurs 8am–4.30pm, Fri 8am–8pm, Sat & Sun 8am–4pm; Sept to late June Mon–Fri 8am–4.30pm; tel 705/756-2415) provides a full range of information on walking trails and flora and fauna. In winter, a visit to the park office is essential as the wardens will advise on where it's safe to ski across the ice to the islands; they maintain a marked ski trail out to Beausoleil. The park has thirteen campsites, eleven on Beausoleil and one each on Island 95B and Centennial Island. The charge is $11 a night and all operate on a self-registration, first-come, first-served basis, with the exception of Cedar Spring ($15), where the visitor centre (tel 705/756-5909) takes reservations on half the 87 sites for an additional $10 fee. For everywhere else, ask about availability at the park office before you set out – and don't forget the insect repellent. Three Honey Harbour operators run a water taxi service over to three of the park's islands – Beausoleil ($30–35 one-way), Centennial Island ($35–40) and Island 95 ($35–40). Honey Harbour Boat Club (tel 705/756-2411), about 700m from the park office at the marina at the end of Route 5, is as good as any. Water taxi prices are fixed – the park office has the list – but times are negotiable; be sure to arrange an agreed pick-up time before you get dropped off. If you want to head southwest, a one-way water-taxi trip to Midland costs around $90. In addition – and much more economical – are day-trips to Beausoleil, giving four hours on the island, with the park's own Georgian Bay Islands Day Tripper (July to early Sept Thurs to Mon 3 daily; $15 return; reservations on tel 705/756-2415).

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