Page 53 - Blairsville NCG 2022

Walasi-yi Center

Shopping

It’s always shopping season in Blairsville

G rab your bags and put on your shopping shelves at Sunrise Grocery, just south
Appalachian soul permeates the
shoes because it’s time to treat yourself.
Blairsville and Union County are brimming with of Blairsville at the foot of Neel Gap.
boutiques, antiques, galleries, mercantiles, and The store has operated since the early
crafters, each with their own flair to add to the 1920s and still maintains the charm
distinctive mountain spirit of the region. From and character of a time long before
destinations you won’t soon forget to stores you’ll cellphones and smart watches. Today
return to whenever possible, if you love shopping, the store sells local wares produced right
you’ve come to the right place. These are just a few of here in the mountains and items created
the retail options in and around Blairsville. For more, by the family that has owned the store
see the directory starting on page 58. since the 1980s.

THE DESTINATIONS
It’s not often a retailer doubles as a tourist
attraction, but in Blairsville we are home to three
businesses that are themselves destinations. You’ll
find just about everything at Alexander’s, a store
that began more than 60 years ago and is still
family owned. Today it is more than 50,000 square
feet of retail space selling everything from guns
and ammunition to furniture and clothing.
Mountain Crossings can claim something no
other store in the world can – it is the only place
where the Appalachian Trail passes through a
manmade structure. Originally built in 1937 by
the Civilian Conservation Corps and completed
at the same time as the trail, the Walasi-Yi
Interpretive Center at Neel Gap is now a
premier outfitter for thru-hikers on the
world’s most famous trail.

Mountain Life Mercantile
877-745-5789 • visitblairsvillega.com 49