Asheville Adventures
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After an exhausting arrival night, we settled into the Asheville area for a lovely 4 night stay (5/28 - 6/1). Note to self: don’t arrive at your first campground at 9pm, in the pouring rain and dark, to set up your trailer for the first time! Luckily, we had some really kind neighbors at the campground who helped us to back our trailer into a tight spot, and hook it up. Southern hospitality is real, folks!
We stayed at Laurel Bank Campground in Canton, NC, a serene spot on a creek owned and managed by a woman named Sheri. She grew up on the property, and her dad started the campground and built it “with a shovel and a lot of determination,” as she told me. Laurel Bank was about a 40 minute drive to downtown Asheville, but we were there mainly to hike, and this campground proved to be within a 30 minute drive to many incredible trailheads, mountains, and the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway.
Staci and Eddie arrived shortly after us on Friday night (5/28), and the four of us camped together in Destiny, our first time having guests stay on our convertible dinette. Saturday (5/29), we enjoyed a lazy morning and then set off on our first hike in the area, a 10.4 mile loop up to Shining Rock. While we didn’t get much for views thanks to low lying clouds, the trail was interesting and proved to be a fun challenge. Sunday (5/30) was Ian’s 39th birthday, and that day he and Eddie played 18 holes of golf at a nearby course in the morning, while Staci and I logged another 4.6 miles, hitting Black Balsam Knob and Tennant Mountain. For part of the hike, we were on the Art Loeb Trail, which in this section, is a scenic ridge run with 360 degree views and meadowy mountain-tops. This ridge runs all the way to Shining Rock, where we were the day prior. We returned to our campsite around 12:30pm, and had a quick bite before venturing into Asheville for the rest of the day.
Asheville is nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains and has a funky, hipster vibe, and is full of art galleries, shops, restaurants more breweries than you can count. It reminded us a lot of Boulder, CO and Burlington, VT. We enjoyed brewery hopping, and had great, sunny weather to walk around the hilly city. Dinner proved to be a bit of a challenge without a restaurant reservation on the Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend (oops), but we grabbed pizza at the Mellow Mushroom which was quite good.
Monday (5/31) Staci and Eddie departed early, and Ian and I decided to tackle one last hike as it was a clear and sunny day. We ended up doing nearly 8 miles and summited Devil’s Courthouse, Silvermine Bald, Black Balsam Knob, and Sam Knob. We agreed that we really love the mountains in Asheville, and would enjoy spending more time down here in the future.
Today (6/2) we are en route to Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas, where we will spend two nights and will visit the park tomorrow for a hike, and hopefully a soak in the natural hot springs.
We stayed at Laurel Bank Campground in Canton, NC, a serene spot on a creek owned and managed by a woman named Sheri. She grew up on the property, and her dad started the campground and built it “with a shovel and a lot of determination,” as she told me. Laurel Bank was about a 40 minute drive to downtown Asheville, but we were there mainly to hike, and this campground proved to be within a 30 minute drive to many incredible trailheads, mountains, and the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway.
Staci and Eddie arrived shortly after us on Friday night (5/28), and the four of us camped together in Destiny, our first time having guests stay on our convertible dinette. Saturday (5/29), we enjoyed a lazy morning and then set off on our first hike in the area, a 10.4 mile loop up to Shining Rock. While we didn’t get much for views thanks to low lying clouds, the trail was interesting and proved to be a fun challenge. Sunday (5/30) was Ian’s 39th birthday, and that day he and Eddie played 18 holes of golf at a nearby course in the morning, while Staci and I logged another 4.6 miles, hitting Black Balsam Knob and Tennant Mountain. For part of the hike, we were on the Art Loeb Trail, which in this section, is a scenic ridge run with 360 degree views and meadowy mountain-tops. This ridge runs all the way to Shining Rock, where we were the day prior. We returned to our campsite around 12:30pm, and had a quick bite before venturing into Asheville for the rest of the day.
Tuesday (6/1) we got on the road to Nashville, TN early, and arrived by 4pm local time. We set up camp for one night at the Nashville Fairgrounds RV Parking, and met Staci and Eddie for dinner on 12 South, a hipster neighborhood of Nashville. Ian and I have been in the past, and it’s a fun street to explore. The highlight of the evening was an ice cream at Jeni’s (SO GOOD!) and popping a bottle of champagne to celebrate the start of our road trip.
Thanks for the update kids. Love Dad
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great trip so far ! Looking forward to seeing you guys in California! Safe travels. xoxo Paula
ReplyDeleteamazing pics -- such a great adventure!
ReplyDeletestay cool and safe
ReplyDelete