Northeast Georgia Mountains- Mother Nature's Playground
Harmonica Virtuoso Comes To The Sautee Nacoochee Center

Hailed as an innovative musician and author, Mike Stevens transcends the perceived limitations of the instrument in virtually every musical genre. His aggressive, soulful approach to the harmonica takes audiences on an incredible journey. Best known for his groundbreaking work in the bluegrass field with legendary Grand Ole Opry members Jim and Jesse (with whom he has performed on the Grand Ole Opry over 300 times) Stevens was able to create an original, much sought after, and often copied, style of playing the harmonica. Mike hails from Canada, and has won "Entertainer of the Year" at the Central Canadian Bluegrass Awards five consecutive years. To his credit he adds many other accolades including "Best Selling Album of the Year" in 1992 for Blowin' Up A Storm; "Album of the Year" in 1990 for Harmonica, and in 1994 he was made a "Kentucky Colonel" for his accomplishments in bluegrass music. In 1998 the master instrumentalist and composer gained new fans with the release of the recording entitled Normally Anomaly - a blend of musical influences that begins with a base of bluegrass, adds a dose of Son House, spiced with Middle-Eastern rhythms and is often performed live, solo and with no synthesizers. This musical versatility enables mike to perform in many different situations. His performance schedule includes bluegrass dates with Jim and Jesse, The Lewis Family and The McLains as well as selected dates with many bluegrass bands. In addition to solo harmonica concerts, he books shows as "The Mike Stevens Project" - a group of musicians who perform original, rocking, blues-based music. Don't miss this one night only experience in the Center Theatre Thursday, March 8th at 8:00 PM. Tickets are $15 for members, $20 for non-members, $8 for children 12 and under. Reservations may be made by phoning the box office at 706- 878-3300, M-F, 9 to 5. The Sautee Nacoochee Center is a member-supported, non-profit organization located in the historic red-brick schoolhouse on Highway 255, just off Highway 17, two-tenths of a mile from the Old Sautee Store. Visit our website at http://www.snca.org.www.snca.org.

Tour de Georgia to Visit Northeast Georgia Communities in April

Tour de Georgia, a week-long spring tradition will cover 600 miles of Georgia to maintain its stature as a tune-up for the Tour de France on the international cycling calendar. In 2007, a good portion of the 600 miles will be throughout the beautiful northwest Georgia mountains as Rome, Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain in Dade County and Dalton get set to host the race again. Tour de Georgia gets underway on Monday, April 16, and makes its way to a Rome on April 17-18. On April 18, riders will compete to see who reaches the top of Lookout Mountain on Burkhalter Gap Road in Dade County. The first competitor to reach the top in the King of the Mountain competition will receive $1,500. For more information on this day contact the Dade County Chamber of Commerce at 706-657- 4488. On April 19, the popular individual time trials will be held from Chickamauga to Lookout Mountain. The start of the time trial will be in downtown Chickamauga at Gordon Lee High School. The cyclists will ride Grand Center Road out of town to Old Chattanooga Valley Road, where the climb up Lookout Mountain begins. The route follows Nick-A-Jack Road to HWY 157. The cyclists will turn onto Lula Lake Road, turning on Wood Nymph Trail for a fantastic finish at Rock City. In addition to race day activities, a free festival will be held in downtown Chickamauga on Weds. April 18. For more information on the time trials and festivities in Chickamauga, call the Walker County Chamber of Commerce at 706-375- 7702. On Friday, April 20, perhaps the most thrilling if not grueling day of the event, Dalton will send riders off on a trek to Brasstown Bald - Georgia's highest peak. The stage race, one of the highest ranked outside of Europe, will finish in Atlanta's Centennial Olympic Park on Sunday, April 22. For more information see " h t t p : / / w w w. t o u r d e g e o rg i a . c o m / " http://www.tourdegeorgia.com.

New Fine Dining in Rabun County

88 Main Street Opens in April Chef James Lewis has arrived in town and is remodeling the old Buck Creek Tavern building on Main Street in Clayton. He will be opening what amounts to two new restaurants. Upstairs will be 88 Main Street featuring casual dining with wonderful barbecue with smoked meats. Downstairs will be Sago with upscale Italian fare. The casual restaurant is on schedule to open in March and the fine dining at Sago will open in April.

Chef Lewis is a graduate of the Cordon Bleu Cooking School in Scotsdale Arizona. He was also a pioneer in the Virginia Wine Industry and formerly owned the Totier Creek Winery near Charlottesville (Now the First Colony Winery). That probably means we can expect a wonderful wine list at Sago, and hopefully he will feature some of our local wines as well.

Chef Lewis took us on a tour of the remodeling. You will enter off Main Street into a casual tratatoria with an Expresso Machine. Stairs on the left will lead to casual dining upstairs. But past the tratatoria an arched doorway will lead you to the formal dining area which will feature an open stainless steel kitchen with tables lining the opposite wall. He has peeled years of plaster off the old brick walls which will be partially exposed to lend a Tuscan appearance to the dining area. One corner will feature a chef's table with prix fix multi-course fine dining. Call 706-782-4812 for more information.

Appalachain Wild Plant Weekend with Plant Herbalist Patricia Kyritsi Howell (6/8-10)

Treat yourself to a weekend at luxurious bed and breakfasts in the North Georgia Mountains where you'll enjoy exquisite food, hiking, seminars and a hands-on workshop with plenty of time for relaxing and savoring the beauty of this region.

Well-known native plant expert and herbalist, Patricia Kyritsi Howell, author of Medicinal Plants of the Southern Appalachians, will introduce you to the use of wild plants that have a long history of use as foods and medicines. You can make your reservations by calling the Beechwood In at (706) 782-5485 or by calling Glen Ella Springs at (888) 455-8896.

The Mountain Music & Medicine Show Returns April 7th at Dahlonega's Holly Theater

April 7 brings the return of the Mountain Music & Medicine Show to Dahlonega, at its new home - the Historic Holly Theater. The Mountain Music & Medicine Show has won three awards from the Georgia Association of Broadcasters for the state's best locally produced live radio show. The 2007 episodes taped live at the Holly Theater will be broadcast later this year from WPPR Georgia Public Radio at Piedmont College in Demorest.

Georgia's best mountain music bands are highlighted at each episode along with the unique fun of radio theatre. Don't miss the number one live radio show in Georgia! The January and February shows were completely sold out, so get your tickets early. Tickets are available by phone at 706-864-3759, extension 3, or buy on line at www.hollytheater. com.

Contact the Mountain Music & Medicine Show Phone: 678-617-1169 "mailt o : m m m @ m m m s h o w . c o m " mmm@mmmshow.com. The official website is: "http://www.mmmshow.com/" www.mmmshow.com.

Plan your next trip to the Northeast Georgia Mountains, Mother Nature's Playground.

For information and free brochures visit www.georgiamountains.org.