Adventure travel is a great way to experience nature, and Western North Carolina has more than its fair share of hiking, rock climbing, whitewater rafting, and even snow skiing opportunities. For others, enjoying the great outdoor means kicking back at a campground in the North Carolina Mountains, or cooling off in a mountain stream with a … Read more
Occupying a huge swath of North Carolina just south of Bryson City, the Nantahala National Forest encompasses over a half-million acres of wilderness, with elevations ranging from 1,200 to more than 5,000 feet. The Nantahala National Forest is the largest national forest in the state of North Carolina. It’s bigger than the more famous Pisgah National … Read more
Bryson City is surrounded by Great Smoky Mountains National Park to the north, Fontana Lake to the west, Cherokee NC to the east, and the Nantahala National Forest to the south. So even a shortlist of the best things to do in Bryson City NC could include dozens of exciting activities that would take weeks … Read more
Cherokee, North Carolina is not like any other town we’ve ever visited during our extensive explorations of the Blue Ridge Mountains. That’s partly because most of the area lies within the Qualla Boundary, which is held as a land trust by the US Bureau of Indian Affairs for the federally recognized Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. … Read more
With a wealth of Asheville breweries earning the mountain town the nickname “beer city,” plus the wealth of breweries in Boone and around Hendersonville, Western North Carolina is known for some of the nation’s best microbrewing. But NC wineries have also been gaining an increasingly high-profile national reputation. Farmers in the area have gradually realized that old tobacco fields, which … Read more
Chasing waterfalls in North Carolina is serious business. Transylvania County (which rightfully bill itself as “the Land of Waterfalls”) alone has an estimated 250+ NC waterfalls within its boundaries. The massive Pisgah National Forest and Nantahala National Forest are both chock full of alluring cascades. Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Blue Ridge Parkway, … Read more
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians strongly resisted the Indian Removal Act of 1830, even as many other Native American tribes were forced westward and out of their own established lands. After the signing of the Treaty of New Echota, thousands of the Cherokee people who walked the Trail of Tears to Oklahoma died. The rest resettled … Read more
The Appalachian Mountains run north to south in the eastern third of the United States, passing through every coastal state north of Florida and all the way up into Appalachian Canada. They also move slightly westward into other states, including Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia. Within this massive area— ranging from 100 to 300 miles … Read more
Nestled in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains near the town of Burnsville NC, Mount Mitchell looms large above the surrounding area. Rising to an impressive 6,684 feet above sea level, Mt Mitchell is both the highest point in North Carolina and the tallest mountain east of the Mississippi River. The desire to preserve and … Read more
Located just south of Boone, Blowing Rock is a tourism-driven North Carolina mountain town known as the “Crown of the Blue Ridge Mountains.” The town was named after The Blowing Rock attraction, a unique geological formation that offers spectacular views of the surrounding scenery. People come to see The Blowing Rock as well as other major … Read more