Ideal Living’s Top Mountain Destinations: The Appalachian Trail

Escape humidity and lower the temperature, enough to need a night-time cover. Enjoy cool mountain springs and hike amidst breathtaking peaks and vistas. Where can you find this relief?…The Appalachian Range! Discover the Best Mountain Retirement Communities. That perfect mountain retreat from the summer’s sweltering heat awaits. Find your second home or permanent vacation. Explore the great values in GA, NC, SC, TN & WV.

#1 Achasta, (Dahlonega, GA), is home of the 2010 Ideal Home featured in Ideal Living Magazine. Achasta in the north Georgias’ mountains is less than an hour from Atlanta. You can walk more than 3 miles of winding, scenic trials that meander around Achasta’s 1058 acres. The majestic Chestatee River invites you to its picturesque banks for a leisurely afternoon of trout fishing, tubing or a kayak ride in the cool mountain water. Their 6,995-yard, par-72, Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course, challenges you to play a round.

#2 Reynolds Blue Ridge (Blowing Rock, NC) is on 6,200 acres in the Blue Ridge Mountains, just off the Blue Ridge Parkway. The community is ten miles west of the toney downtown with its shops, galleries and gourmet eateries and 12 miles east of Boone, home to Appalachian State University. In addition to being nearby these two charming towns, Reynolds Blue Ridge has an extensive list of amenities, including golf, nature trails, wellness facilities and more.

#3 The Greenbrier Sporting Club (White Sulphur Springs, WV) is a private equity sporting club and residential community nestled into the lush landscape of The Greenbrier resort’s 6,500-acre estate. Designed for active individuals and their families, The Greenbrier Sporting Club offers members an array of private amenities as well as The new Tavern Casino at The Greenbrier, Prime 44 West-a steakhouse honoring Jerry West-and hosts The Greenbrier Classic, a new PGA golf tournament.

#4 The Reserve at lake Keowee (Sunset, SC) also known as the village by the water, hosts 3,900 acres in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains with over 30 miles of pristine shoreline on Lake Keowee-one of North America’s purest lakes. Convenient to Asheville, NC, Greenville and Clemson University, the Reserve offers a Jack Nicklaus Signature golf course and over $100 million in completed amenities to enjoy.

#5 Long Branch Lakes (Spencer, TN) rests atop the green pastoral hills and woodlands of the Cumberland Plateau in central Tennessee near Fall Creek Falls State Park in the foothills of the Smokey Mountians. This new, 4,500 acre community offers 362 wooded and lakefront home-sites complemented by amenities that include a general store, fully furnished condos, lakes with boat docks, recreational pavilions, pool, tennis and one of the south’s premier Equestrian Centers.

#6 Soleil Laurel Canyon (Canton, GA) is the only 55+ Active Adult Community on our list. Nestled within the beauty of the North Georgia foothills, Soleil is minutes from dining, shopping, entertainment, recreation and medical facilities. Expansive amenities both inside and outside the community coupled with more than 50 social clubs, makes life here as active or as laid back as you desire.

To research these and other communities in the South, visit www.ideal-LIVING.com. To read about the lifestyle in the south, visit www.ideal-living.com.