LOOKING AT A VIBRANT LOCAL ECONOMY
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Fannin Co. Development Authority
Don’t let the name fool you. Noontootla Creek Farms is not a place where you will see planting and harvesting. What makes this rural Fannin County gem such a popular destination is best described by two other action verbs: blasting and casting.
Noontootla Creek Farms, southeast of Blue Ridge, is a privately held, 1,300-acre, outdoor-lovers paradise. Visitors from across the southeast can choose from a menu of popular activities, from trout fishing, quail hunting and sporting clays. For four generations, beginning in 1954, the Owenby family has owned and operated Noontootla Creek Farms, steadily improving the property, which has more than two miles of waterfront property.
“We have a regular group of clientele,” said Operations Manager Emily Owenby, “that mostly comes from Blue Ridge, McCaysville, Copper Hill and Murphy. We are typically busy during summer, when school is out. But our busiest time is during October and November, and quail season.”
The Farms also offers overnight accommodations in “Granddad’s House,” a four-bedroom, three-bath farmhouse with a full kitchen, fireplace, and screened-in front porch. The most recent addition to the property is The Mill at Noontootla restaurant, which serves lunch Wednesday-Sunday, with dinner and live music on Friday nights.
“We will likely be adding more days for dinner,” Owenby said. “We are surrounded by rental cabins across the entire area but there are not many places to eat.”
In addition to its regular clientele and regional visitors, Noontootla Creek Farms has become an increasingly popular destination with tourists from Florida and the Carolinas. While various locations in south Georgia, Tennessee and Alabama offer quail hunting, few can match the gorgeous mountainous terrain of Fannin County.
The Farms offers both quail hunting guided trips as well as guided fly fishing.
“We have some large corporate groups come out for a day of recreation,” Owenby said. “We have hosted up to 42 at once, who came for the sporting clay course and lunch.”
For the avid outdoorsmen who prefer not to choose between trout fishing and shooting clays is the Farms’ most popular package: Casting and Blasting.
“My great grandfather envisioned hosting people and preserving the land,” Owenby said. “As our business has grown and evolved, we have stayed true to that. He did not want to develop it.
“Sometimes growth and change are bittersweet. But I see opportunity in it as well. We plan to continue growing and improving.”
Learn more about Noontootla Creek Farms at ncfga.com.
(Learn more about local businesses and industries at both fannindevelopment.com and the newsobserver.com).