Named after Cherokee, Chief Duck, Ducktown was the center of the US “Copper Basin’s” mining operations from 1847 until 1987. A vast area was stripped of trees for burning copper ore in outdoor sheds, which released acid that scorched the remaining vegetation. It is a testament to nature that the once-barren, Martian landscape now supports plant life around this gaping, water-filled, crater.
Double fencing keeps gawkers from plunging to their deaths in the vacated mine’s chasm.
The Ducktown Basin Museum was closed when we took the self-guided walking tour.
The massive mining machinery was powered by compressed air. The rusty relics on display conjured images of the hot, hard, nasty labor required to extract copper from the earth.
The view of Ducktown from atop the Burra Burra Mine’s epicenter reveals a hardscrabble hamlet, nestled in the southern Appalachian Mountains that’s survived booms and busts.
We rented a Copper Company mining home built in 1900 called the Lilly-June cottage as a base to explore the region and hike to waterfalls. The cozy bungalow sat atop a hill, across from a city park and provided a fire pit for toasting S’Mores and watching sunsets.
Copperhill, TN and McCaysville, GA join as one along the Toccoa River, just 3-miles south of Ducktown. The Georgia-Tennessee border slices through the Copperhill Brewery.
Outdoor enthusiasts seeking thrills on this 93-mile stretch of the Toccoa/Ocoee River have replaced miners. The “Twin Cities” make up for what Ducktown lacks in amenities with restaurants, two breweries and quirky shops. We visited in the off-season when many businesses close early and don’t open Monday-Wednesday.
The Cuban comfort food, “made like mami’s” in McCaysville was a great find. Note the high-water mark above the door from when the Toccoa River flooded the place in 1990. From behind the counter, Elizabeth told us, “The water wreck everything.” Water reached 10-feet deep in the center of the two cities.
The Rum Cake Lady’s Cuban food was the best I’ve had since we left Florida. I’m always on the lookout for a great Stromboli and Kenny’s Pizza and Sub’s pie was awesome. You must call in your order and pick it up before 4pm or you’ll get left standing in the street like we did our first night.
If you’re searching for Olympic-caliber white-water, awesome Appalachian hikes or historical sites, Ducktown is a great place to start from. Our adventures over the next three days, took us to seven waterfalls with trailheads in Georgia and Tennessee that were an hour’s drive or less away. Ducktown was, “A Quacking Good Place,” as advertised. Stay tuned for my waterfall-story posts.