Friday- 10/18- We woke up to a beautifully blue, crisp, clear sky. After breakfast we hiked Sharp Top mountain. It was perfectly challenging with a great view, but it only took us less than two hours and we had energy left for the rest of the day. We took in more of the views and made stops at visitor centers along the way including the BRP Musical Heritage Center. They have a great musical history exhibit and live bluegrass/fiddle/banjo music everyday! We listened for a while before getting back on the road and crossing into North Carolina where we stopped for the night.
Saturday- 10/19- We drove a bit more of the parkway this morning and quickly realized that not only was it a Saturday, but the Saturday of “peak foliage”. Up to this point we have mostly felt like the only ones on the road. Today however there were overflowing parking lots and lots of slow drivers. All stopping to take picture of what we considered underwhelming foliage… it was at this point we realized how amazing the foliage in New England is. We only made one hiking stop today at Linville Falls. This was a rewarding hike in the “strenuous” terrain. We took both prongs to see the above and below vantage points. We then took the “moderate” trail to see the falls from another vantage point. This was literally a wide gravel road that was relatively flat AND we discovered where all of the people were. This confirmed for us that being around so many people kind of ruined the outdoor experience and quickly ran back to the parking lot. We rode a bit longer on the parkway and ended up in Asheville, NC for the night. We were glad to be staying in comfortable beds at a hotel with a pool and free laundry. On a side note- the kids got to experience their first hotel fire alarm... we had all just gone to sleep so it was humorous and nerve wracking to them all at the same time. I am sure they won't soon forget it:) PB&J count- 22… the troops are getting restless with peanut butter everyday…
Sunday- 10/20- Today we finished all 469 miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway! It was a bit foggy in some places, but this lead to some pretty amazing views when the sun peaked out. The Blue Ridge Parkway ends where the Smoky Mountain NP begins. We stopped at the visitor center and it was so crowded! It was a beautiful Sunday in October so I guess we weren’t surprised, but after days of minimal people and peacefulness it was a bit of a shock. While in the visitor center we met a man whose daughter went to UMF and whose brother was a doctor in Farmington until a few years ago! We also met a woman from Standish all because I was wearing my MDI half marathon shirt. This morning we had a goal of two last hikes- one up a mountain and one into a waterfall. We started driving and not 1 mile in on the road the sun disappeared and the fog/drizzle set in. Well, this forced us to recalibrate and skip both Clingmans Dome and our Chimney mountain hike. At the visitor center on the other side of the park the ranger suggested we hike Grotto Falls which was only open to hike on the weekends. To be honest when we got out of the car after more driving than I had planned and the drizzle I was ready to just skip the whole thing, but the kids really wanted to hike it so we donned our rain coats and gave it a shot. The trail was relatively easy, though the wet slippery mud did make it more of a challenge and it was still 1.5 miles in, so not an insignificant distance. It was totally worth it! The waterfall was rushing and you could walk right behind it. After the hike the kids washed the mud off in the pool of our hotel… they were more than a little thrilled with the water slide. PB & J count- 27.
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