Rabun Bald
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Rabun Bald rises to 1,431 m in Georgia. Fork Mountain stands 1,381 m to the north-northeast, 6.0 miles off. The nearest named place is Fodderstack, a peak 0.7 miles away. Waterfall Byway passes 7.8 miles off.
The story
Rabun Bald, with an elevation of 4,696 feet (1,431 m), is the second-highest peak in the U.S. state of Georgia; only Brasstown Bald 4,784 feet (1,458 m) is higher. It is immediately southeast of Sky Valley, Georgia, and is the tallest mountain in the county. An observation tower on the summit provides hikers with views that, on clear days, extend for more than 100 miles (160 km). The hike to the top of Rabun Bald is 5.8 miles (9.3 km) round trip via the Rabun Bald Trail. The Rabun Bald Trail connects with the Bartram Trail system, which passes over the top as it winds through northeast Georgia for 37 miles (60 km). According to Native American legend, Rabun Bald is inhabited by fire-breathing demon people: some campers still report hearing strange sounds throughout the night. Rabun Bald was the site of the first fire tower in the area, which was constructed by Nick Nicholson, the first forest ranger in Georgia. The fire tower was operated by the United States Forest Service until the early 1970s. After the fire tower was taken out of service, a Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) crew dismantled the tower's uppermost component, a metal-framed enclosure with glass windows that sat atop a stone base. Leaving the stone base intact, the YCC crew replaced the metal "cabin" with a railed wooden observation platform.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Wikidata Q7278818, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Elevation
- 1431 m
How to reach it
- 7.8 mi off the Waterfall Byway
- 7.8 mi off the Mountain Waters Scenic Byway
- 11.2 mi off the Oscar Wigington Scenic Byway
- 16.4 mi off the Whitewater Way
Overlooks nearby
- Dry Falls Viewing Platform · 8 mi
- Whitewater Falls Overlook · 17 mi
- Whitewater Falls Viewing Platform · 17 mi
- Rainbow Falls · 21 mi
Named places within 25 miles
- Fodderstack: 0.7 mi
- Flint Knob: 0.9 mi
- Flat Top: 1.3 mi
- Alex Mountain: 1.6 mi
- Ford Mountain: 1.7 mi
- Upper Middle Creek Falls: 3.4 mi
- Middle Creek Falls: 3.6 mi
- Lower Serenity Falls: 3.6 mi
- Serenity Falls: 3.6 mi
- Dome Falls: 3.8 mi
- Warwoman Wildlife Management Area: 2.4 mi
- Blue Valley Experimental Forest: 4.5 mi
- Warwoman Dell: 6.5 mi
- Chattooga Wild and Scenic River: 7.5 mi
- Stekoa Creek Park: 7.6 mi
- Sheep Cliff: 3.2 mi
- The Catstairs: 4.9 mi
- Cedar Cliff: 8.2 mi
- Sunset Rock: 8.5 mi
- Cedar Cliff: 9.1 mi
- The Foxfire Museum: 6.6 mi
- Highlands Nature Center: 8.7 mi
- Macon County Historical Museum: 15.6 mi
- Scottish Tartans Museum: 15.6 mi
- Old Tallulah Falls Jail: 16.5 mi
- Chattooga Town: 8.2 mi
- Rabun County Confederate Monument: 8.4 mi
- Air Force B25C Plane Crash Memorial: 12.5 mi
- General Pickens Monument: 14.9 mi
- Oconee Station: 15.4 mi
- 12 Spies Vineyards: 4.2 mi
- Stonewall Creek Vineyards Tasting Room: 13.0 mi
- Wasilik Poplar: 15.1 mi
- forest service Rd 27: 18.3 mi
- Oconee County Cage: 19.2 mi
- Warwoman Wildlife Management Area: 2.8 mi
- Brushy Face Preserve: 7.3 mi
- Satulah Mountain Preserves: 7.8 mi
- Ralph and Louise Sargent Preserve: 8.7 mi
- Kelsey Trail Preserve: 9.0 mi
- Franklin Garden: 15.6 mi
- Annie Dee Leatherman Smith Memorial Garden: 21.2 mi
- Common Gardening: 24.1 mi
- Common Gardening: 24.2 mi
- Sandbar Pool Beach: 21.4 mi
- Sandstone Beach: 21.8 mi
- North Beach: 23.6 mi
- South Beach: 23.9 mi
- Ear: 24.2 mi
- Wi: 24.8 mi
- Chalice: 24.9 mi
- American Eclipse: 24.9 mi
- Moody Spring: 12.0 mi
- Big Spring: 12.0 mi
- Wine Spring: 21.6 mi
- Smoky Mountain Visitor Center: 11.4 mi
- Burton: 17.0 mi
- South: 23.9 mi
Other summits around it
The highest named summits within 6.3 miles of Rabun Bald. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fork Mountain | NNE 19° | 1,381 m | 6.0 mi |
| Curtiss Knob | NNE 12° | 1,369 m | 5.5 mi |
| Flint Knob | W 280° | 1,283 m | 0.9 mi |
| Chinquapin Mountain | NNE 32° | 1,275 m | 5.5 mi |
| Little Scaly | NNE 28° | 1,273 m | 5.1 mi |
| Osage Mountain | NNE 17° | 1,272 m | 2.9 mi |
| Flat Top | SW 222° | 1,259 m | 1.3 mi |
| Alex Mountain | WNW 284° | 1,246 m | 1.6 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:38 | 19:12 | 19:45 |
| June solstice | 06:20 | 20:14 | 20:51 |
| September equinox | 07:22 | 18:58 | 19:32 |
| December solstice | 07:38 | 16:47 | 17:26 |
Local time (America/New_York).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: Apr–Oct.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 36 | 39 | 45 | 53 | 60 | 66 | 69 | 68 | 64 | 55 | 47 | 39 |
| Precip in | 6.2 | 5.8 | 6.4 | 5.5 | 5.3 | 6.0 | 5.6 | 6.0 | 5.8 | 5.2 | 5.8 | 7.1 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — MTN City 2 SW, 8 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikidata- USGS Geographic Names Information System feature 329348 — Rabun Bald, Rabun County, Georgia.
OpenStreetMap element node/358714127
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