If you’re a couple or small family with a decent budget planning to explore the Southern Appalachian Mountains, you’ll find an endless array of Blue Ridge Mountain Cabins, Hotels & Resorts to choose from. But the larger the group is that’s traveling together, and the more important “must-haves” on your list of desired amenities, the … Read more
Sugar Mountain is a sweet little mountain village located at an altitude of 5,236 ft in the High Country of North Carolina. It’s a perfect place for year-round outdoor adventures, offering gorgeous waterfall hikes in the Summer, awesome leaf-peeping in the Fall, and snow skiing and snow tubing in the Winter. Nestled in the heart of Pisgah … Read more
What makes a particular mountain town great? From walkable downtown areas with great shops and restaurants to a wealth of natural beauty and outdoor adventures, everyone has their own qualifying traits. But, for us, historic sites and cultural attractions are two major X factors that elevate our favorite Blue Ridge Mountain towns above the pack. … Read more
This holiday season is extra special for the town of Banner Elk NC, especially after having spent the last two months climbing out from under the devastation Hurricane Helene brought. As a small North Carolina mountain town whose economy is largely tourism-dependent, it was quite a blow. But while 2024 brought much heartache and loss … Read more
[Updated 10/13/25] Most of us are familiar with Groundhog Day, wherein a large rodent (a.k.a. Woodchuck) checks to see his shadow on February 2 and helps to predict when Winter will end. But have you ever heard about how one quaint North Carolina mountain town uses a fuzzy caterpillar known as the Woolly Worm to make similar … Read more
[Updated 6/11/24] Every year in September, visitors to the NC High Country have a rare opportunity to explore the child-like dreamland of a Wizard of Oz theme park. Tucked away in the small town of Beech Mountain NC, the Land of Oz welcomes guests with costumed characters, vibrantly colored plants, delicious treats, and beautiful views of … Read more
Located 16 miles west of Boone and 18 miles from Blowing Rock, Banner Elk ranks high among the most beloved small towns in North Carolina‘s High Country. It offers close proximity to major tourist attractions ranging from Grandfather Mountain State Park and the Linville Gorge Wilderness Area to Beech Mountain, Sugar Mountain, and some of … Read more
The Blue Ridge Mountains are known to blow visitors away with its jaw-dropping panoramas. Nature abounds in the region, with countless hiking trails, thunderous waterfalls, mountain streams, vibrant wildflowers and wildlife. And there’s an inherent peacefulness that comes with these pastoral landscapes. A road trip along the Blue Ridge Parkway is one of the best ways to take … Read more
[Updated November 16, 2024] Located in the North Carolina High Country, less than 20 miles from Boone and Blowing Rock, Banner Elk is one of the most beautiful Blue Ridge Mountain towns we’ve ever visited. Once used by the Cherokee people for hunting and fishing, the area surrounding the Elk River was settled by Martin … Read more
For me, the monolithic majesty of Grandfather Mountain preceded itself. On a few occasions in the past, my wife Emma and I visited friends who had a distant view of it from their mountain cabin. They were always thrilled to point the iconic summit out as a centerpiece of the High Country landscape. In a … Read more
