As I noted in a previous post, one of my all time favorite trips was Asheville, NC.
After flying into Charlotte and driving two hours to Asheville, my mom and I spent a day driving along parts of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Returning from Grandfather Mountain we wanted to be sure to see Cold Mountain so we drove on a road that we thought would be a shortcut, that would come out right on the parkway just a mile or so from where we needed to be. The map we had was not to scale but how far off could that little wavy line be?
We found ourselves going up, up, up a winding, zig-zagging road with no guardrail. There was trees on one side a straight drop on the other. My mom, on the passenger side, would occasionally look out the window and moan. My knuckles were white and I literally couldn’t take my eyes off the road for even a brief second for fear of plunging to our deaths.
This road went up the mountainside for at least 20 minutes. In that time we never passed another car and there were no other roads branching off. There was absolutely nowhere to turn around. We were stuck on this road to hell. I was pretty sure we’d come upon a hillbilly baracade where they would club us over our heads, drag us up the mountain to a lonely shack and steal our teeth. Somehow we survived without incident, saw Cold Mountain and returned to the hotel before the hillbillys got us.
Another thing we did was visited Blowing Rock (waste of time) and Chimney Rock. Chimney Rock and Hickory Nut Falls were used in scenes in the movie “The Last of the Mohicans”. I was so proud of my mom for climbing those wooden stairs. She has an intense fear of heights and I nearly shat myself climbing the stairs. The view from the top was spectacular.
One of the things I didn’t want to do but my mom talked me into (and paid for) and I was later really glad we went was touring the HGTV Dream Home that year. It just happened to be near Asheville (Lake Lear, NC) and tours were offered before the winner was announced. This place was truly amazing. It was elaborate yet cozy. The decorating was comforting and welcoming. The view. Oh, the view! Enough said. I decided after that, that someday, if I ever build my own house in the mountains, I must, must, must have a sleeping porch.
The very best part of the trip was visiting the Biltmore Estate. This is something that everyone must see, must experience. We spent four hours touring the house and some of the grounds. Had everything actually been in bloom I know we’d easily have spent another couple hours. This house was incredible as was the tour. The following day we spent browsing and shopping in all the little, unique shops in the Biltmore Village.
I want to go back someday and next time I'll include a trip through the Smoky Mountains.
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