Loran Smith: While the Chattahoochee is a favorite, Soque River offers its own charms
CLARKESVILLE – While the Chattahoochee will always be my favorite Georgia river which flows out of the “hills of Habersham down the valleys of Hall,” there are several runners up. One of those is the Soque River, which is a grand total of 28.5 miles in length.
Should you find the plush “Viking Mississippi” plying the Mississippi River, know that it measures 450 feet in length and 75 feet in width. The longest vessel you encounter on the Soque likely would be a 17-foot canoe.
I like the Savannah River because of its history and its name. I am a fan of the Altamaha from a long-time exposure to the river with friends over the years and its colloquial pronunciation.
The Soque and its watershed are entirely within the boundaries of Habersham County. So, we have in these names a mixing of two cultures, the Cherokee Indians whose village Sakwiyi once stood on the banks of the river and a county whose name connects with the English family the Habersham’s, who were makers of habergeons, a type of armor worn in medieval times.
There is something aristocratic sounding, perhaps leaning toward noble, with Habersham. At one time, I thought that there might have been a misspelling involved with the name in that there is a village northwest of London known as Haversham.
Habersham Road in the Buckhead section of Atlanta is where you will find pricey real estate for this becoming neighborhood and like the county 80 miles to the northeast, was named for Colonel Joseph Habersham of Savannah. He was a patriot in the revolution and became the Postmaster General in George Washington’s cabinet. He became speaker of the Georgia General Assembly in 1785, the year the University of Georgia was chartered.
You will find the name Habersham on creeks, streets, and roads in Georgia, but its most redeeming image being that of Habersham County. If you spend time in the hills of Habersham, you won’t be disappointed. The sheer natural beauty of the place and the inspiration you get from its offerings of nature will make you pine for more. At the north end of Habersham there is Tallulah Falls, still a hiker’s and nature explorer’s delight. Most communities in Habersham County are refreshing and full of beauty, inhabited by people with ingenuity and energy.
Loran Smith: Visiting 'salt-of-the-earth' friends is the reason for so many north Georgia trips
There is Demorest, the home of baseball legend Johnny Mize; historic Clarkesville, the county seat; Mt. Airy, where the greatest baseball legend, Ty Cobb, planned to build his retirement home on Yonah Mountain; and Cornelia, home of the Big Red Apple, a monument to the past when this area was a flourishing apple growing community.
You can reap the most fun by spending time fly casting the Soque, which often yields trophy trout. If you are lucky, you might hook a brook, native to Georgia. That is an impressive trophy in that while it is a smaller fish, it brings about an emotional high when you realize you have netted a fish that is native to the state of Georgia.
That means I have something in common with the Cherokee Indians who once fished the waters of the north Georgia rivers. I have a nice “brookie” in my office bookcase. I caught it on the Chattahoochee, which makes it even better.
Out of the hills of Habersham,
Down the valleys of hall,
The brookie I caught is now on my wall.
While I am sure my colloquial iambic pentameter would not turn Sidney Lanier’s head, it was soul refreshing to stand in a north Georgia river, catch a native trout and swoon to the embrace of nature.
The good news is that almost anybody can enjoy this experience. There is even better news: Once you do it, you can do it again. Here’s to the Soque, an enchanting tributary of the Chattahoochee.
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Soque River in north Georgia a favorite for Loran Smith
