Lake Blue Ridge Underwater Railroad

When the Toccoa Electric Power Company began construction of the Lake Blue Ridge Dam in 1925, a railway was put in place to bring in materials. When the dam was completed in 1931, the rails were salvaged while the ties and other structures were abandoned in place and soon disappeared underwater as the lake was filled. The current drawdown now offers a temporary viewing of this lost relic...

Lake Blue Ridge Emptied for Dam Repairs

The TVA is currently performing maintenance on the penstock and intake tower of the Lake Blue Ridge Dam. The work has required a deep drawdown of about 70 feet below the full pool level. I found it rather amazing that with all of the boat traffic during the summers, the bottom is relatively unfouled from garbage and such - I bet that the bottom of Lake Lanier further south towards Atlanta is not quite as pristine...