Located on US-19, just 1.5 miles off the Blue Ridge Parkway at Soco Gap (Milepost 455.7), Soco Falls is an extremely popular place to visit in Summer and Autumn. In addition to being very close to the BRP, people love Soco Falls because it’s a rare (and gorgeous) twin waterfall, meaning that two streams come … Read more
Though it’s nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains and steeped in a long history, Downtown Boone NC has the vibe of a young, hip, and happening town. We live about 90 minutes from Boone, but try to visit every month to sample the great restaurants. We often spend a little time exploring Boone NC hiking trails on … Read more
Blowing Rock NC is located just a couple of miles south of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Drivers simply exit onto US-221N between Moses H. Cone Memorial Park and Julian Price Memorial Park. The Blowing Rock, the namesake of the town, is located at the edge of town a couple of miles south of that. This unique … Read more
The state of North Carolina is home to over half of the Blue Ridge Parkway’s 469 total miles, and the mountain overlooks in NC are by far the most high-flying along the route. In our experience, many of the best views on the Blue Ridge Parkway are found along the ridges of the Craggy Mountains, … Read more
The Blue Ridge Parkway is one of the premier scenic drives in the USA, and also the most visited national park in the country. Created by Franklin D Roosevelt to connect Shenandoah National Park in Virginia with Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina, construction of the BRP began in the 1930s. By the mid-1960s, most … Read more
Whether you’re taking your very first Blue Ridge Parkway road trip or– like us– you’ve explored the scenic route multiple times, a visit to the Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center is a must! Located near Downtown Asheville, just 2.4 miles south of the Southern Highland Craft Guild Folk Art Center, the Visitor Center is essentially … Read more
The 469-mile Blue Ridge Parkway is widely regarded as “America’s favorite drive,” with over 16 million annual visitors making it the most popular unit of the U.S. National Park Service. But in order to fully appreciate why the world-renowned scenic route remains so beloved today, more than 90 years after the concept was created, it’s … Read more
When we think of America’s most beloved scenic route, most people envision jaw-dropping Blue Ridge Parkway overlooks, amazing waterfalls, and/or the colorful foliage along the Blue Ridge Parkway in Fall. Commerce and other signs of “civilization” rarely enter our idyllic picture of the BRP, which is America’s #1 most visited National Park. There are actually only … Read more
The Southern Highland Craft Guild has been an advocate for high-quality crafts being made and sold in the southern Appalachian Mountains since the 1930s. Their mission is to ensure that generation after generation of locals and visitors alike continue to value both the traditional and modern arts and crafts of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Originally designed … Read more
In our experience, wildlife in the Smoky Mountains is both abundant and diverse, including amphibians, birds, large mammals, and reptiles. Some of the amazing animals in Great Smoky Mountains National Park can be rather secretive, living deep in the forests or hiding under rocks. Others will graze or hunt out in the open, … Read more