Blue Ridge weather

Blue Ridge runs its warmest in summer (June – August), averaging 86°F by day and 62°F overnight. Winter (December – February) is the other end of it: highs around 52°F, lows near 28°F. That is a 58-degree spread between the hottest afternoon and the coldest night of a typical year, which is why the same packing list does not work twice here. Visitor numbers track it closely — fall is full, winter is quiet — so the cheapest weather is rarely the most comfortable weather.

• Winter

  December – February

  52°F / 28°F

  quietcrowds

  quietprices
  • Lowest cabin rates of the year, with midweek availability even in town
  • Leafless ridges open up views that are hidden from June to October
  • Waterfalls at their strongest through the wettest months of a 60-inch year

• Spring

  March – May

  69°F / 43°F

  steadycrowds

  steadyprices
  • Appalachian Trail northbounders resupplying in town from late February into April
  • Dogwood and redbud along the back roads before the canopy closes over
  • Waterfalls still running full from the winter's rain

• Summer

  June – August

  86°F / 62°F

  busycrowds

  busyprices
  • Evening temperatures in the low sixties, the original reason for cabins up here
  • Tubing the Toccoa below Blue Ridge Dam in genuinely cold release water
  • Pontoon rentals on Lake Blue Ridge booked out days ahead at weekends

• Fall

  September – November

  71°F / 45°F

  fullcrowds

  fullprices
  • Colour usually peaks in the second half of October, earlier on the high ground
  • Apple season at Mercier Orchards, with the orchard's busiest hours on October weekends
  • Foliage trains sell out and cabins book months ahead on three-night minimums