The Georgia Apple Festival isn’t the only October harvest festival in the mountains. In Union County, Sorghum in the Mountains is all about sorghum syrup: cane is pressed and the juice cooked down in front of visitors, then the syrup is sold by the jar. Blairsville is about an hour from Ellijay by way of Blue Ridge.

How it started

According to the festival’s history page, the Blairsville Sorghum Festival began in 1969 with a few motivated people and a funeral tent on the town square. Junior Bridges, one of the founders, remembered dressing in “old-timey” clothes and selling syrup he and his parents helped make. The festival still sells syrup today.

The history page describes how the event grew after that:

  • 1971: local government gave land to the Blairsville Jaycees, who later became the Blairsville Sorghum Syrup Makers. The group built a cooker there.
  • 1973: Fort Sorghum was built on the donated land. It was torn down in 2018.
  • 2008: the festival moved to Meeks Park.

The festival says it has historically been Union County’s biggest fundraiser. It was founded so that all profits would help local families in need and fund local scholarships. Many vendor booths are run by groups such as the Diamond Club, Kiwanis and 4-H to raise money for youth programs.

What you’ll see

Meeks Park has a wood-fired continuous evaporator pan for making syrup. The festival says visitors can follow the whole process, from the cane trailer to a sorghum biscuit. Expect live music, demonstrations, local pottery and food vendors. To eat in town before or after, see where to eat in Blairsville.

The traditional games are a big part of the fun. They include biscuit eating, pole climbing, rock throwing and log sawing on what the festival calls the Sorghum Field. Tobacco spitting, once part of the lineup, was phased out.

The 2026 festival

The 2026 festival was scheduled for Oct. 10–11 and Oct. 17–18. North Georgia News reported that organizers canceled the first weekend out of caution ahead of Hurricane Isaias, which brought rain and gusty winds to the mountains. Co-chair Kim Bridges told the paper the decision was “not made lightly,” because the lost weekend meant a lot of lost money for the community.

Volunteers made syrup before the storm so that harvested cane wouldn’t go to waste. The second weekend went ahead with the festival open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Meeks Park on Oct. 17 and 18. The parade started at 10 a.m. on Oct. 17. That evening, the Sorghum Stomp brought outdoor music and some square dancing to downtown Blairsville, in the lot outside Grandaddy Mimm’s.

Planning for next year

The festival usually runs on two October weekends, which often overlap with the Georgia Apple Festival in Ellijay. Dates for next year had not been posted when we wrote this. Check sorghuminthemountains.com or call (706) 400-0720.

  • Getting there: Meeks Park, 490 Meeks Park Rd., Blairsville, GA 30512.
  • Next door in Hiawassee: the Georgia Mountain Fall Festival runs on overlapping October weekends at the fairgrounds on Lake Chatuge.
  • Make a weekend of it: stop in Blue Ridge on the drive, or keep going to Vogel State Park and the Russell-Brasstown Scenic Byway.
  • Apple festival dates: see our 2027 Georgia Apple Festival guide, or our Ellijay events calendar for the rest of the year. Our North Georgia festivals calendar covers the other October festivals in the mountains.

Sources and further reading

Facts in this article were checked against these sources on October 30, 2026. Hours, fees and seasons change, so confirm before you go.