Travels with Jeanne and Serge: North Carolina

We embarked the next morning for North Carolina, wondering how long we would stay ahead of the storms that brought tornadoes to Mississippi. A short stint on I-75, then winding along state routes and through small towns took us to the Cherohala Skyway. This National Scenic Byway opened in 1996, and offers a route less traveled for a scenic crossing of the mountains. Starting as low as 900 feet, its high point is 5400 feet. We pulled over at an early stop to stretch our legs.

Photographer Serge was on duty.

The chill grew as we climbed higher, and the clouds slowly thickened. The view, however, was unlike anything Jeanne and Serge had seen so far on their visit.

Serge loved the light, mountains, and clouds. This photo is his:

As is this documentary one.

After leaving the Skyway but before reaching Robbinsville, we passed several local township road signs that were printed in both English and Cherokee. This discovery prompted us to describe some Cherokee history to Serge and Jeanne, focusing on the forced removal (Trail of Tears) in 1838, and the Eastern Band of Cherokee that hid in the mountains to escape that evil.

There was an occasional raindrop, but no real showers yet, as we drove down the Nantahala River gorge. Serendipity brought us a conjunction of kayakers and a Great Smoky Mountains Railroad excursion.

There was even a caboose!

We stopped at Bryson City, and steady rains descended, but this didn't block us from a welcome lunch at Mountain Perks. Afterwards, we started our soggy foggy journey towards the Pisgah Inn and the Blue Ridge Parkway (BRP). Serge took this shot through the car windshield.

Given the weather we elected not to join the BRP at Balsam Gap, but stayed on lower roads until the climb up to Wagon Road Gap, just three miles or so from the Inn. Route 276 snaked along a valley and then wiggled up to the gap. Just before reaching it, we entered dense fog, as often happens on this stretch of the BRP. We crept along inside a small bubble surrounded by gray on all sides, barely seeing either side of the road. Joan, driving that day, was greatly relieved when the reached the Inn. Also at the Inn was a wedding party, executing plan B; the original plan had been to have the wedding at an overlook. Not today.

One of my duties on this trip was wine chooser. Naturally we wanted to expose Jeanne and Serge to American wines as much as we could. Later, we would even try some Ohio wines. This night Jeanne took a picture of the selection, a good sign.

The rain continued to pound that evening, accompanied by a howling, umbrella-inverting wind. The windows in the dining room were not designed for sideways and even upwards rain (being blown up the ridge atop which the Inn was perched). A small puddle formed under our corner table during dinner, not deep enough to make us move.

By the next morning the weather had improved enough to take a few pictures of the inn. Jeanne's were the best.

Serge joined into the spirit of the trip with Squeaker, one of the two pigs accompanying us. French lessons, perhaps?

There were several closures along the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. The stretch between the Pisgah Inn and Asheville is closed for months because of rock slide and undermining danger. Between Asheville and our destination for the day, Blowing Rock, there were two sections closed because of debris and fallen timber from a big ice storm during the winter. (They reopened during May.) So, we returned to Wagon Road Gap for the first detour. We would pick up the BRP again just before Asheville. At this altitude, the trees had not begun to leaf out yet. But we could see something this time!

Taking route 276 down off the mountain, we stopped at Looking Glass Falls, running full.

We rejoined the Parkway and soon stopped at the Southern Highlands Folk Art Center. Being several thousand feet lower, more trees were in bloom.

After visiting the center -- always worth a stop -- and taking away a few gifts, we began the climb up to Craggy Gardens and Craggy Dome (parking area is at 5650'). Rising out of the Asheville valley, we got a look back at where we'd been the night before.

After a brief stop at Craggy Gardens we parked at the trailhead for Craggy Dome. It's a 1.4 mile round trip, moderate, that takes you to a wonderful viewpoint.

Faced with two potential detours, and the day advancing quickly, we decided to link the two detours rather than get off - get on - get off - get on. Joan and I wanted to guarantee that we had time to explore the Linn Cove Viaduct, close to Blowing Rock. Soon it was time for a late lunch. Fortunately, Serge and Jeanne were quite flexible.

Our French friends acquired a great many food firsts on this trip. They were introduced to, among other things, grits, catfish, maple syrup, cheesecake, pecan pie, cottage cheese, cream cheese, hush puppies, and collard greens. Cheesecake was a big hit, and we found a recipe for Jeanne on the Web that used ingredients available in France. Only the hush puppies failed their taste test.

There were plenty of sights to see along the extended detour. North Carolina is the second-ranked state in production of Christmas trees.

Serge stayed busy with his camera, ignoring the car windows.

At the Viaduct, we took the walk out to the structure.

The story of the Viaduct is amazing. It was the last link the Blue Ridge Parkway to be built, because a method had to be found to construct the road without disturbing the environmentally fragile Black Rock area of Grandfather Mountain. Here's that link again.

There was plenty of evidence of the ice storm that had created our detours.

By now it was after 4 pm, and another of Serge's rules had come into effect; although he and Jeanne were avid flower photographers, he was usually reluctant to take yet another flower picture after 4. Jeanne coaxed him into capturing this red trillium even though it was late.

After the walk we investigated the visitor's center, which included a scale model of the construction of the viaduct. Some purchases were made. Blowing Rock, our motel, and dinner, were not far away. Thank you for these pictures, Jeanne and Serge!

Even with the storm that caught up to us on the mountains, it was an excellent couple of days.