HELEN, Ga. -- A few turns off the Richard Russell Scenic Highway and suddenly you're no longer in Georgia. It's Bavaria, right here in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Old-world clock towers, half-timbered houses, red roofs, cobblestone alleys and murals on stucco walls may baffle, leading up to the question: Why is oompah music playing here?German music, architecture, cuisine and traditions -- replicated Georgia-style -- attract more than 2 million visitors annually to this city of 325 people. The storybook scene is pleasant because it captures the best of village life. Horse-drawn carriages amble past showy flower displays, fountains, sidewalk cafes and a babbling brook.Helen gussied up in Bavarian trim beginning in the early 1970s. City leaders succeeded in turning this desolate lumber town into a tourist haven. Carpenters hung ample gingerbread from eaves and placed dozens of flower boxes in windows. Building codes established uniformity. Luckily, the Chattahoochee River kept its Indian name and wasn't christened the Blue Danube. German and Swiss flags wave in the breeze beside U.S. and Confederate flags.Now there's the Edelweiss German Inn, Hansel and Gretel Candy Kitchen, Alt Heidelberg Restaurant, Altstadter Weinstube and Biergarten, Hofbrau Riverfront Restaurant, Kaffe und Kuchen Coffee Shop and Innsbruck Resort and Golf Club. Gift shops sell cuckoo clocks, beer steins, embroidered blouses, dirndl skirts and lederhosen."Experience Bavaria: no passport required" is a catch phrase of the Alpine Helen White County Convention and Visitors Bureau (800-858-8027, www.helenga.org).Sightseers on fall foliage trips make a point to visit during the ever-popular Oktoberfest. It's the longest Oktoberfest in the country, running through Nov. 2. "The year Oktoberfest got started, it was a one-day deal. It was a keg of beer in the back of a pickup truck," says former Mayor W. Hue Rainey. "Over the years, it just spread out and got bigger and bigger. Organizers rented big tents and hired more performers."Now festival-goers congregate in the Helen Festhalle for dancing, singing, drinking and feasting on schnitzel, sauerbraten, wurst and strudel. "When people go to the Festhalle, they get a bracelet so they can come and go," says Rita J. Morgan, executive director of the visitors bureau. Traditional entertainment spans the village, thanks to an abundance of touring German and Austrian bands. Many restaurants feature musical entertainment of all types and offer dancing in the parking lots.While attendees at the Festhalle are often seniors, the mix changes dramatically on weekends that universities in Georgia have road games. A lot of college students stream through the village and Festhalle to enjoy the jubilant harvest celebration. At all times, Oktoberfest is deemed very family-friendly. "We mind our manners and we expect other people to. We don't allow drinking on the street," says Rainey.Families find plenty to do any time of the year. They drift in bright green tubes on the Chattahoochee River and mine for gold and gemstones at Gold 'n Gem Grubbin. They play at miniature golf courses and soar in helicopters over the city. Helicopter tours, priced at an affordable $10 per person, promise to be especially popular as the Chattahoochee National Forest turns brilliant yellow, fiery red and blazing orange during peak foliage season.Unicoi State Park is one of the gems of the Chattahoochee National Forest. It has 12 miles of nature trails, lake and trout-stream fishing and a nationally acclaimed mountain bike trail. Lodge rooms face spectacular mountain scenery. Anna Ruby Falls, the most-visited waterfall in Georgia, is also tucked into the forest. Riding stables and outfitters for river kayaking do brisk business.Restaurants, specialty shops and hotels line the streets of Helen. People take time to browse through a variety of souvenirs, home furnishings, crafts, antiques and imported goods, often taking a break to buy ice-cream cones or fudge. They sit on benches set among flowerbeds and observe the street scene before walking to their hotels.Nacoochee Village, a quaint attraction just a half-mile from Helen, features Habersham Winery. It is one of the oldest and largest wineries in Georgia. "We will process about 150 tons of grapes right here," says general manager Steve Gibson.Georgia's drought hasn't affected the grapes grown at the company-owned vineyards, he says. "Grapes do better when they are dry. In times of less rain, we have better vintages. Our grapes take on more character and have higher sugar levels."Complimentary tastings showcase Habersham's 20 wines. Visitors can watch wine production and bottling through wide windows in the tasting room and gift shop. French and American oak barrels and huge stainless-steel tanks hold award-winning wines that are sold across the country.Habersham Winery occupies a new building in a very historic setting. Its architecture complements the adjacent white clapboard Martin House. This building once served as a boarding house for timber-mill workers and is now an antiques emporium. The Nacoochee Grill is situated in a renovated residence originally built in 1880. Across the highway, the Nora Mill Granary continues to grind local grains into flour, grits and cornmeal. A miner established the mill in 1876 when the gold rush begun in 1828 came to an end. Other shops along the river include the Chattahoochee Candle Company and Unicoi Outfitters, a fly shop with private trout water and professional guide service.Nacoochee Village is the gateway to the Sautee-Nacoochee Valley, an area first inhabited by American Indians and their departure point on the Trail of Tears. The Nacoochee Mound, Old Sautee Store and Folk Pottery Museum of Northeast Georgia are nearby attractions."People are surprised to find a museum of this quality tucked away in the mountains. They are thrilled by it," says Chris Brooks, director of the Folk Pottery Museum.Pottery, born in the clay of Southern Appalachia, glistens inside glass display cases. Its alkaline glaze produces a high shine that makes it distinct from pottery crafted in other places. "The potters of this region have created things of intrinsic beauty, an aesthetic beauty that we can see and appreciate in the 21st century," he says. The museum is a key landmark on the Folk Potters Trail, a scenic drive along rural routes to 15 artisan studios in Mossy Creek, Lula, Homer, Gillsville and Cleveland.Potters settled in the area and produced essential utilitarian containers, such as kraut jars, crocks, pitchers, butter churns and whiskey jugs. They were in demand because bottles and cans weren't available in this remote region. Potters began to produce more decorative wares after they lost their traditional market. Prohibition put an end to the jug trade. Customers had access to store-bought items after roads improved. However, these roads brought tourists ready to buy authentic keepsakes. Serious collectors followed in their footsteps once they recognized the importance of the finely crafted wares.Typically the businesses were family enterprises."The craft was passed from father to son, family member to family member," Brooks explains. "That's the way a true folk craft is passed on. You don't go to school and learn it. It's not about teaching yourself. To be an actual folk potter, you have to be trained in that tradition. It's something that is a part of the community and it's passed on by that community."Salt glazes weren't used here because salt was difficult to obtain and expended mostly for food preservation. Instead, an alkaline glaze is the signature of Southern pottery. The glaze uses fine clays and wood ash. To complete the mixture, potters crushed quartz stone, and once they became available, glass shards from bottles and windows. "Different potters had different secret ingredients," he says.Face jugs are instantly recognizable as Southern pottery. Some are handsome, others are buck-toothed, bug-eyed and strange-looking. "People either love them or hate them. There is no middle ground. They either have a collection of 20, or they don't want them in their house," observes Brooks.The museum's collection of 150 pieces, dating from the mid-1800s to the present, includes the work of 30 living potters. The museum is located on Georgia Highway 255 about 4 miles southeast of Helen (706-878-3300, www.folkpotterymuseum.com).(Linda Lange is travel editor of the Knoxville (Tenn.) News Sentinel.)
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