In May, the Fannin County Recreation Department joined Fannin County Chamber of Commerce

“We’re not the one-dimensional rec department,” says John Scalera, Director of Fannin County Recreation Department when describing his vision for the Recreation Department.  Mr. Scalera took over leadership of the Recreation Department in October 2015.

Mr. Scalera has set up two new camps for Fannin youth this summer – Fishing Camp and Waterlogged  Camp.  This year, each camp is only offered one time.  If all goes well, Mr. Scalera hopes to have more than one session in the upcoming years.

Fishing Camp is for ages 8-14 and will take place June 13-17.  The cost is $75. At this camp, would-be fishermen will learn more than just putting bait on hooks.  They will learn about fishing in different Fannin county waterways, fishing techniques for different kinds of fish and how to treat fish from catching to eating. Campers will visit the fish hatchery in Suches, Horseshoe Bend and Tammen Parks as well as fishing in the pond and creek on the Recreation Complex Land.  Campers top off their fishing knowledge with a fish-fry.

Waterlogged Camp is the other new camp for this summer.  The camp is for 8-14 year olds and will take place June 27 to July 1.  The cost is $100 .  Campers will visit types of water recreation facilities like the Cherokee Aquatic Center, Lake Winey in Chattanooga, Toccoa Family Campground, and go to Helen for tubing.  Teaching swimming is not the purpose of the camp, learning new ways to enjoy water is the purpose.  Mr. Scalera says that campers should come with some knowledge of swimming, but don’t they don’t have to worry if they are beginner swimmers since the activities are not about learning to swim but about enjoying different types of water activities.

In addition to the new camps, the Recreation Department will also hold their traditional one-week sport specific camps.  This summer the camps are soccer, baseball and basketball. Parents can call the Rec Department at 706-946-1130 for more information. Neither Waterlogged Camp or Fishing Camp currently offers scholarships.  However, the Fannin County Recreation Department does offer scholarships for its youth athletic programs.

Another multi-dimensional project the Recreation Department is pursuing boat ramps for the Toccoa River.  The Recreation Department is working on along with Fannin County Land Development Authority and TVA.  The proposed boat ramps would be at Tammen Park, Curtis Switch and potentially Horseshoe Bend.  The ramps would be for kayaks and drift boats.  TVA would be installing the ramps and Fannin County would be responsible for their upkeep.  An encouraging sign for the future success of the ramps is that TVA is donating $15,000 worth of animal-proof trash cans to the Recreation Department to place in parks alongside the Toccoa.