Archive for the ‘hiking’ Category
Off the Blue Ridge Parkway, behind the Arboretum, is a great locally known forest called Bent Creek. Locals love to walk the trails, jump in the creeks or gathered pools of water, and walk their dogs with comfort. We love it there. It’s a little known secret to visitors of the area I am pleased to share with you in hushed tones. There are miles and miles of walking trails, also dirt bike trails. Just about any outdoor sport can be exercised there. It’s originally created as an experimental forest, the first one in the southeast actually, so it’s quite reverred and protected.
It’s only just minutes from the Asheville pet friendly cabin you will be staying in. From the cabin take 240 to I-26 going towards Spartanburg. Get off at the first exit and turn left on Brevard road. Follow the signs to the Arboretum. When you get to the front, go left onto the parkway and follow it til you are exactly behind the Arboretum. You’ll see lots of cars parked there.
North Carolina’s newest state park, Chimney Rock, is only 25 miles southeast of Asheville, or about a 40 minute drive from the Asheville Pet Friendly Cabin you will be staying at. The pups will love walking the trails with you. They are not allowed at the top of the rock.
I’m not sure which is more fun to do; the trails around various places within the park, the elevator to the top of Chimney Rock, guided rock climbing, children’s programs or just the spectacular view from the top of the rock. There are all kinds of fun shops to visit up and down the road to the entrance to the park. Don’t forget to stop for an ice cream cone on the way in or out. Oh, go ahead, treat yourselves, do both!
My neighbor takes her horses out to ride at Dupont State Forest. Another hikes there on a regular basis. There are so many activities one can do there, including mountain biking. There are miles of multiuse trails, waterfalls and lakes straddling Henderson and Transylvania counties. DuPont’s trails are used by hikers, bikers, horseback riders, fishermen. The scenery is spectacular and if you ever wanted to feel you were in the frontier, this is it. You can go for miles and not see another person, still have that all alone in nature appeal.
From your Asheville Pet Friendly Rental Cabin it’s about 30 minutes away. Take your pups with you and hike til you all drop. Prepare your picnic at the cabin and take off for the day. You can set it up anywhere. Just be sure to walk out with your garbage. Take poop bags with you too. You’d want to keep it pristine.
All the National Parks across the country are honoring the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend by waiving admission fees Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. Now amongst all the great places that you can go to for free, you will want to check out Carl Sandburg’s home. The home tour itself is usually $5 at other times than this. But there is never a charge to enter the grounds, hike the more than five miles of trail or visit the dairy goats at Mrs. Sandburg’s farm operation. Additional free dates are: April 16-24, June 21, September 24, November 11-13.
From your Asheville pet friendly cabin it is aproximately 35 minutes.
There are so many really really neat things to see in the Smokies. All the great lookouts along the side of the road allow you to pull off the road to feast your eyes on the views without running off the side of a mountain while looking. :O)) The views are absolutely breathtaking, even with the smokey haze that rests amongst the mountains.
From your Asheville vacation cabin, take I-40 heading West. As you drive along the road, notice when you get past Waynesville you can actually see the shift from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Smokies. The drive West is gorgeous, the vegetation lush and the ascending and the descending and the twists in the road increasing in frequency. The road runs through the Smokies. Get off anywhere and you are standing in Smoky the Bear country.
Several animals are being reintroduced into the Smokies successfully. One is the Elk. Elk once roamed the southern Appalachian Mountains and elsewhere in the eastern United States. They were eliminated from the region by over-hunting and loss of habitat. The last elk in North Carolina was believed to have been killed in the late 1700s. In Tennessee, the last elk was killed in the mid-1800s. By 1900, the population of elk in North America dropped to the point that hunting groups and other conservation organizations became concerned the species was headed for extinction. The experimental release of Elk into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park began in February, 2001 with the importation of 25 Elk from the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area along the Tennessee-Kentucky border. I am happy to report the experiment in the Smokies has been a total success and the Elk are thriving and reproducing and the herd is growing.
It’s not far at all from the Asheville cabin you stay at. Simply get on I-40 going towards Tennessee and there will be many opportunities to exit to get into the park all along the road. Once you get beyond Waynesville, you can feel the change from the Blue Ridge to the Smokies. It’s quite interesting.
If you would rather sit inside an air-conditioned vehicle while touring the Smokies, navigating the loop at Cades Cove is a must. Here you might see the two most prolific mammals in the park, the white tail deer and black bear. Other common sightings are wild turkey and the ground hog, and other wildlife as well. When visiting Cades Cove, you will drive along an 11-mile loop that follows many of the curves and courses that settlers forged years ago. Cades Cove is a lush valley surrounded by mountains and one of the most popular destinations in the Great Smokies. The Cove takes visitors into another time, experiencing history in each building and wilderness around every turn.
It’s not that far from your Asheville Cabin, just about an hour beyond Cherokee. It’s a day trip for sure but it is so worth it. Just to see the wilderness and the wildlife in all this undisturbed beauty is so exciting. The trail of cars often have to stop so that the wild animals can cross the road.
One of our favorite things to do this time of year is to drive to Max Patch and walk to the summit and just breathe. Ahhh, what a glorious experience. From your Asheville rental cabin, you would drive to Trust taking Leicester Hwy towards Hot Springs. When Leicester Hwy (63) ends turn right, drive a few miles and watch for the Max Patch signs. Turn left at the sign and follow the long windy road up through forest land. When you get to the top, park your car in the area on the right. The put the dogs on a leash and walk the extra mile “up” to the top. You will be ecstatic!
By the way, after your visit to Max Patch and your return back to Trust, stop at the Trust General Store and Cafe and have a cup of coffee and pie. You will love the place. All local fresh foods. yum!
If you’d like to take a bit of an adventure from your Asheville rental cabin, you can hike the Bartram Trail at Cheoah Bald. It’s in the Nantahala National Forest west of Asheville. From your Asheville cabin, take I-40 west to Exit 27. Continue west on US 19/74 to Bryson City. Continue about 20 miles west, then 7 miles west of the Nantahala Outdoor Center on US 19 to Winding Stairs Trailhead. Turn left at FR 422 to the gravel parking area. The drive to get there is incredibly scenic. Then the climb to the Bald at 5,062 has a fabulous view.
The hike is steep and strenuous though it is categorized as moderate to strenuous. Oh but it’s worth it. The sensation of how you feel when you experience the view is well worth it.
Oh boy, it’s Fall for sure. The season changed from Summer to Fall like someone flipped a switch. We went from way hot to suddenly cold. Huh? We’re not ready on the farm, not by a longshot. The goats haven’t been sheared and I’m afraid it’s going to be too cold now to shear them for the winter. ugh! Here I am in a sweater. I walked outside today with long sleeve shirt and a sweater on top. I feel like I’m in season shock.
There is only one thing to do when this happens: from your Asheville cabin rental, saddle up the dogs and go for a hike. This has to be the best weather for a hike. Forget about getting hot and sweaty. You can walk, climb, jump, and thoroughly enjoy the fresh air and glorious smell of clean crisp air without shedding a drop of perspiration. Mount Pisgah Trail Hike is a good fall hike. Take the Blue Ridge Parkway south from Asheville to Milepost 407. The parking lot for the trailhead is on the left. It’s a moderate to strenous hike culminating at a 5,721 foot summit. Now that’s a place to see the leaves change.