day 6
I wanted to visit Tupelo Honey Cafe one more time before I left Asheville, to enjoy their Sweet Potato pancakes…so delicious! I then took off (for what is getting harder to find) a postcard for Claire, which sent me about 6 blocks through downtown. It was a fun side trip though, because I ran upon a Sunday market happening in the center of the city. I also found the postcard!
Then I took off to the little town of Black Mountain. I’d heard it was cool & they had a neat little downtown. I strolled around the shops; a bunch were closed since it’s Sunday (which always surprises me in tourists towns) but it was cute & quaint. I didn’t realize I’d been here before, until I went inside the gear shop & had a moment of deja vu! Then I remembered Danny & I had come here way back when, but just to the gear shop & Pisgah brewery…not the little downtown shops. I found a tiny little brewery called Lookout around the corner & went in for a couple of tasters. The beer was good & the bartender & other patron were interesting to talk to. I got to take a break, step outside & FaceTime with Claire & Sara…they were all having a blast at Disney this weekend celebrating Kevin’s birthday. I REALLY DO LOVE THAT BABY GIRL! PS: Love Lookouts logo!
I drove back into Asheville & went to Hi-Wire brewing. I had my first Gose with that was just plain…most have some fruit brewed into them. It was good, the place was eclectic & I visited with a young girl sitting next to me for about 30 minutes. She was eager to give me suggestions of places to go, a fellow cat-lover & had her own interesting story to share. One BIG side benefit to loving beer…besides getting to drink it, is meeting other beer geeks. They’re friendly & fun to visit with!
I had tentatively planned (because most of my solo adventures have sketchy plans) to leave Asheville tomorrow. I wanted to visit Wicked Weed one more time & needed to get something to eat…so that’s where I landed next. I happened to sit by a guy from Louisville, KY. We chatted all things travel; he’s been all over the world. Then he started to tell me about Louisville since I told him there was a chance I was going by there on my way home & I didn’t know much about the place. I let the waitress pick my dinner & I chose the beer! It was a nice way to end by time in Asheville.
day 7
I have fallen in love with the Parkway, despite some of it’s dark history. So, this morning as soon as the fog cleared, I was back on this beautiful, winding, & very peaceful road going north.
My first hike today was named Craggy Pinnacle. A ‘must hike’ as told to me by the bar mate at Hi Wire yesterday. There was one other couple that passed me on the trail, but this short hike climbs up to 360 view of these rolling lush mountains.
After continuing my drive, I pulled off at Mt. Mitchell State Park & drove up to the top & got out hike the super short distance to the top.
There are several falls you can hike to along the Parkway, Crabtree falls was super lovely!
I really loved this one! Now I think this is my new favorite! I loved how close you could get, how quiet it was down there & love the lone tree boldly & defiantly growing straight up in the middle of stream, all by itself.
Beautiful butterfly making even a thistle look amazing!
The couple I’d met from Missouri earlier in the week told me Little Switzerland was a great spot. So, I took the turn off & wound down into this tiny roadside town. Evidently, there’s a winding road that motorcycles & sports cars love to drive that also ends up here, called the Diamond Back. There were a couple of shops & a little cafe. I decided I’d eat some lunch.
I ordered everything “South”…their BBQ pork, Appalachian cornbread, southern coleslaw & beans…all came on one platter & I added Sweet Tea. I should have it once while I’m here right? Wow, it was all super good, except the cornbread. I left most of it on the plate, but ate everything else…right down to the pickle!
Stuffed & with my cup filled with tea, I kept heading north. I made a super brief stop at the NPS Museum of North Carolina Minerals. It’s an interesting place, & I get the feeling lots of schools make this a field trip. Since it was just north of Little Switzerland, I asked the person working, how did the town get its name. In a ‘not so friendly’ tone, she told me it was because of their view…it looks like Switzerland. All I could say was “Oh”. Now I’ve never been to Switzerland, but I’ve seen a gazillion pictures of the place & Little Switzerland looks more like the Ozarks than Switzerland. I think she thought I was an idiot for not figuring that out for myself. Lets move on..
I stopped at Linville Falls Visitor Center which is home to three hikes & a campground. They must get lots of visitors here, because the parking lot is HUGE. But, today, there were only about 5 other cars in the lot. I grabbed a map & headed off to find the falls. The first hike takes you to three different views of the hike…it was really pretty! (I haven’t found one yet that hasn’t been!) The water runs down a chute which you can’t see very much of from the top.
But the second & third part of the hike take you farther up so you can see the whole view!
There’s a little ‘canyon’ (that’s what they call it) where the water flows after the falls.
I was saving the other two hikes until tomorrow. I was going to try to score a camping site at the NPS campground here & wanted to enjoy the evening in camp. It was easy to get a site…the place was only about 1/4 full or maybe not even that much. I picked an open site, set up the hammock & got out a book I’d been wanting to start reading. The weather was perfect!
There were apples loaded in the tree above me…every once in awhile one would bomb down around me! The book got me so entranced, I stayed up until super late reading it.
day 8
I made coffee & sat & read until I finished my book. There’s no showers here, but I cleaned up (or my version anyway), packed up & drove back to the trailhead to hike the other Linville Falls hikes. These trails take you to the other side of the stream & to a view of the chute & the bottom of the falls.
When I’d made it to the bottom, which was hardest of the three trails (it’s straight down, filled with big steps, extremely rocky & layered with tree roots) there was a guy with lots of photography equipment up on a high rock & three young girls…I’m guessing from all the posing going on he was taking Senior pictures. It’s always kind of funny to watch professional portrait photographers & their clients. I watched this young girl stand like Zenia Warrior Goddess with the falls in the background…too bad he didn’t capture the other two girls as they were standing unposed, laughing & looking beautiful & natural. Guess after stumbling onto so many wedding & engagement shots in nature, such as this, then seeing the people in such ‘un-natural’ poses, it just makes me cringe. I stood & waited, & waited, while the girl moved incrementally per the photographers instructions. After about 5 minutes, I motioned to the guy, that I would only be a few minutes but I wanted a shot of the falls. He said they were through anyway, & the girl climbed down from her perch & they all took off. I had the place to myself! I took some shots then just sat for awhile. Then I spotted something swimming towards the rocks, up above the short tiny falls I was sitting next to. I jumped up & hopped over water & rocks trying to see the critter…I thought it was either a Beaver (although I saw no evidence of beavers) or an Otter. I didn’t think they had Otters in this area though. I’ll never know, because I never saw it again & couldn’t get any closer.
I climbed back up & headed out to the one other little trail. It takes you to a tiny waterfall…the smallest one I’ve seen so far & it’s kind of hard to see, but I thought it was a sweet little thing & glad I’d made the hike to see it.
I stopped at the Art Guild Craft Center that’s just off the Parkway…similar to the one near Asheville only not as big & this one is housed in an old mansion that’s been donated to the area. The crafts & art inside were interesting & the view from the house was super nice…I can imagine the former owners spending a ton of time on this magnificent porch just taking in all the big views!
My time on the Blue Ridge Parkway was over & I was getting off at Boone, NC. I’d driven about 200 miles on this fantastic stretch on magnificent road…not even 1/2 way, but I have really, really enjoyed it! I’d met someone in Asheville who was a native of Boone..a college town but still small & seems in the middle of nowhere! It was really cute though…tons of little shops & of course, I found a brewery with super good food….my meal of the day included another new ‘first’…jalapeño IPA coleslaw…it had a big kick, but was really good!
I’d read about a NFS campground, complete with showers for only $12 a night, so as I started driving West, that’s what I was looking for. I found it at a beautiful little spot called Lake Watauga. The campground had few people in it, but looked reserved for the big upcoming holiday weekend. I found a site, pulled in, roamed around, took a shower then settled in with another new book. All was quiet & peaceful. Until a carload of people drove up next to me, unloaded with a ton of plastic bags & all started arguing about how many cigarettes one had ‘alloted’ to another one. This went on for about 20 minutes. I ended up driving up to the Camp Hosts RV & asking them if I could move to another site. Yes was the answer & soon I was in a new peaceful, pretty spot!
Found this tree next to my campsite…always thinking about you Danny Hill!
