‘Georgia’s Longest Yard Sale’ features a stop in Perry

Year after year on the second Friday and Saturday in March, the Peaches to Beaches Yard Sale offers shopping opportunities at 15 different locations across the state from Barnesville to Brunswick.

This year marks the 16th anniversary of the event, and Perry is showcasing the official location for Houston County.

The Perry Lions Club began handling the event a few years ago after taking over the role from the Convention and Visitors Bureau, according to a member from the Lions Club’s Peaches to Beaches Committee, Michelle Gee.

“We take all the funds from the vendors, and we handle the vendors, we check them in, we check on them, make sure they’re okay while they’re there — and after it’s over with, we have to make sure the area is clean,” Gee said. “We also sell the T-shirts that are sold for Peaches to Beaches during that time, and we sell our Lions Club brooms at our booth.”

Gee said the route of the yard sale runs along Highway 341, and while some people pay to set up a vendor spot within the downtown area of Perry, some folks also set up in their yards to attract visitors traveling the roadways, instead.

“We do food vendors, we do new [items], we do yard sales — I know we have people that do antiques,” Gee said. “So, it’s a variety of different things available.”

If you can make it to multiple locations along with checking out the spread in Perry, plan your route accordingly with the event running through the following counties: Glynn (Brunswick); Wayne (Jesup & Odum); Appling (Baxley); Jeff Davis (Hazlehurst); Telfair (Lumber City & McRae-Helena); Dodge (Chauncy & Eastman); Pulaski (Hawkinsville); Houston (Perry); Peach (Ft. Valley); Crawford (Roberta); Monroe (Culloden); Lamar (Barnesville).

The vendor application process opens up in January, and Perry has been sold out of 10×10 spots for a while, she added.

“We sell the [vendor] spots here in Perry,” Gee said. “This year, the only spots we have are around the courthouse square here on Carroll, Jernigan and Main Street.”

The event can provide a broad economic opportunity for the city, as well.

“When people come in to shop, the vendors, of course, make money,” Gee said. “We also have vendors that come and stay in our hotels; our hotels can benefit from it, and our surrounding restaurants benefit from it.”

Explore Hwy. 341, Inc. of McRae-Helena created and runs the statewide event, Gee added. You can learn more about Peaches to Beaches by visiting their website: explorehwy341.org.

Catch Peaches to Beaches Friday and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

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