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"No matter how sophisticated you may be, a large granite mountain cannot be denied -- it speaks in silence to the very core of your being."
~ Ansel Adams
AREA ACTIVITIES
A stay in western North Carolina has a certain calming
effect on the soul, whether you're taking in a leisurely
day at Biltmore Estate or strolling around Asheville or
Black Mountain, embarking on an
afternoon
drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway, sampling one of the
area's great local restaurants, or hiking and biking in
the woods of Pisgah
National Forest. Take things at your own pace while
you're staying at the Inn on Mill Creek and explore the
following:
Hiking and Mountain Biking Trails
The
mountains of western North Carolina
provide great hiking opportunities, as well as numerous mountain
bike trails. Whether you want a waterfall, a stunning view of some of the tallest
peaks east of the Mississippi, a
peaceful walk in the woods, a trail where you can search
for wildflowers, birds, geocaches or a
train tunnel, a strenuous climb or an easy stroll, you'll find it here!
We're not kidding. Here are a few options that are
within a five-minute drive from the Inn:
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Point Lookout - a 3.5-mile
paved greenway that leads to the 24-mile Royal Gorge
overlook and also gives access to the old stagecoach
road along the Swannanoa Creek used by travelers
before the railroad was constructed
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Heartbreak Ridge - a hiking/mountain biking trail that splits off in two
directions, leading several miles to the Blue Ridge
Parkway or down to the Curtis Creek Recreation Area
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Kitsuma - a half-mile
switchback trail {well-known to mountain bikers}
that offers views of Ridgecrest from Kitsuma Peak
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Youngs Ridge - four miles of
ridgeline trail that connects Kitsuma Peak to the
Old Fort Picnic grounds near the Inn
And that's not all.
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The town of Montreat, with
more than 15 hiking trails of various distance and
level of difficulty, is 15 minutes away
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Want to check out a waterfall? The
trailhead for the 340-foot
Catawba Falls
{pictured below} is 20 minutes southeast,
Linville Falls
is less than an hour northeast, and there are
smaller falls in between the two
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The Blue Ridge
Parkway entrance near Asheville is 20 minutes west of
the Inn and leads to several trails and gorgeous views
at
Mt. Mitchell State Park,
Grandfather Mountain,
Mt. Pisgah, and Craggy Gardens
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The trail system and 404-foot
Hickory Nut Falls at
Chimney Rock State Park
is just 30 minutes to the south
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The
NC Arboretum's
gardens and trails, as well as and Bent Creek's
mountain biking trails, are less than an hour away
Ask when you arrive -- we have
maps for all the area's trails.
Biltmore Estate
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Constructed by George Washington Vanderbilt in the late
1800s, Biltmore House is 175,000 square feet of gorgeous
architecture and beautiful furnishings, not to mention
outstanding views of the Blue Ridge Mountains from its
terrace and windows. Surrounding it are 8,000 acres of
gardens, a Conservatory
filled to the ceiling with trees and plants, and Antler
Hill Village and Winery, which offers complimentary
tastings {our favorites: the Sangiovese, the Limited
Release Malbec and the Pinot Grigio}. Antler Hill
Village also includes a farm and kitchen garden, as
well as an outdoor center that offers horseback riding,
bike rentals {or you can bring your own bike and ride},
river float trips, fly fishing lessons and even Segway
tours.
Tickets to
Biltmore Estate
for our guests are always at a discount when
purchased here at the Inn, can be used any
day, and are good for the following
day for FREE.
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The Blue Ridge Parkway
Stretching from the edge of the Great
Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina to the
Shenandoah National Park in Virginia is the 469-mile
Blue Ridge Parkway, a scenic byway that meanders along
the Blue Ridge through the Appalachian Mountains. We
happen to think the most beautiful part of the Parkway
is right here in the Asheville area. And the entrance to
the Blue Ridge Parkway on
the east side of Asheville at the Folk Art Center is
just 20 minutes from the Inn on Mill Creek. From this
starting point, you can travel south and find the
430-acre North Carolina Arboretum as well as Mt. Pisgah.
Heading north will bring you to beautiful Craggy Gardens
{pictured below}, with its 360-degree views of the Black
Mountains and Blue Ridge {perfect for taking in fall
foliage} and loads of blooming rhododendron in late
spring. Further north is Mt. Mitchell State Park, home
of the tallest peak in the eastern United States, and
beyond that are Grandfather Mountain and Linville Gorge.
An alternative to the Asheville entrance is to head east
from the Inn on Highway 70
through Old Fort and then travel scenic Highway 80
{popular with motorcyclists} 12 miles north to the
Parkway; this route will put you north of Asheville, Mt.
Mitchell and Craggy Gardens, and south of Grandfather
Mountain.
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Birding and the NC Birding
Trail
Being a site on the North Carolina
Birding Trail, Mountains Region, we see birding enthusiasts throughout the
year. With so many different elevations and
microclimates in the area, you don't need to go far to
see some great bird species. We highly recommend signing
up for a day trip with
Ventures Birding Tours. Ventures
owner Simon Thompson is our resident bird expert and has
led birding excursions all over the world. He's also
the ornithologist at Chimney Rock State Park and leads
guided bird walks on a regular basis at Chimney Rock. If
you'd like to schedule a morning or afternoon of birdwatching with Simon while you're staying at the Inn
outside of his regularly-scheduled tours,
please inquire with us in advance for availability and
pricing.
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Forests and State Parks
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Enjoy the beauty of nature at one of these nearby
forests and state parks:
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Chimney Rock State Park (and
nearby Lake Lure) - located 30 minutes south of the
Inn, Chimney Rock has several trails, a 404-foot
waterfall, and a large granite monolith that gives
the park its name; the park also offers guided
nature walks and events throughout the year
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Dupont State Forest - located
southwest of Asheville, about 50 minutes from the
Inn, is a treasure trove of waterfall hikes in this
state forest that was
one of the film locations for The Hunger Games
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Grandfather Mountain
- heading north on the Blue Ridge Parkway or US-221
will bring you to Grandfather Mountain, with
beautiful views, native wildlife habitats, a nature
museum, a mile-high swinging bridge, and both nature
trails and backcountry trails; Grandfather Mountain
is known to be a stellar place to see wildflowers in
the spring and summer
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Mt. Mitchell State Park
- located in the Black Mountain Range just outside
of Pisgah National Forest and home to the highest peak in the eastern United States, Mt.
Mitchell State Park has several hiking trails, one of which
goes to Mt. Craig {the second tallest peak in Black
Mountain range}; Mt. Mitchell is about a
60-minute drive from the Inn, accessible from the
Blue Ridge Parkway heading north from Asheville or
south on the Parkway from scenic Highway 80 in
McDowell County
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Pisgah National Forest - surrounding the Inn on Mill Creek 360 degrees and
extending both north/northeast and southwest around
Asheville, Pisgah National Forest
was the first tract of land purchased under the 1911
Weeks Act, which established national forests in the
eastern United States. Pisgah National Forest, now
510,000 acres, is
home to the Curtis Creek and Davidson River
recreation areas (both great for fishing) and a trail
system that includes Bent Creek, Looking Glass Falls, Roan
Mountain, Max Patch, the Linville Gorge Wildnerness
area and much more
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Art and Museums
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In 2011, Asheville was recently named
as the top small city for art by
American Style
magazine and for good reason -- Asheville and the
small towns around it are full of talented artists and
craftspeople. Woodworkers, painters, sculptors, fabric
artists, glassworkers, jewelry makers, photographers and
so on, have found their inspiration and make their
living here in the mountains.
Several times a year, you can take
part in art strolls of galleries and artists' studios.
Three popular ones are:
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There are also annual art
and craft (and music) festivals, such
as the
Lake Eden Arts Festival (LEAF)
and the
Sourwood Festival
in Black Mountain,
the
Biltmore Village Art & Craft Fair
and the
Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands
in Asheville,
and the
Honey Bee Arts Festival
in Marion.
In addition, the
Folk Art Center, at the east
Asheville entrance to the Blue Ridge Parkway, has a
permanent collection of arts and crafts by the Southern
Highland Craft Guild, as well as various exhibits and craft
demonstrations throughout the year.
Asheville even has an
Urban Walking Trail,
which divides the city's history into five different
time
periods. Stroll a little over a half mile around the
city along a route that contains 30 bronze sculptures
made mostly by local artists. Along with the sculptures
are plaques telling about different events and important
people in Asheville's history, such as Thomas Wolfe, E.
W. Grove, James Vester Miller, Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell,
and Richard Sharp Smith {architect of Biltmore House}.
If museums and/or galleries are your thing, you have
a variety of options, including:
The
Thomas Wolfe Memorial
in Asheville,
the famous author's childhood home, is open to the
public as a North Carolina State Historical Site. And
history museums, such as the
Mountain Gateway Museum and Heritage Center
in Old Fort and the
Swannanoa Valley Museum
in Black Mountain, offer museum-goers the
opportunity to learn about the early history of the area
through exhibits and historical artifacts.
Restaurants and Breweries
Sure, breakfast is the most important
meal of the day, but lunch and dinner aren't far
behind, especially in an area known as
Foodtopia.
Farm fresh local ingredients reign supreme here in
western North Carolina, and you'll find "buy local" to
be the norm, with several farmers' markets and family
farms supplying fare for many of the local restaurants.
No matter what type of cuisine you seek, there's a good
chance you'll find it
here... Southern, contemporary American, Italian, Thai, Indian, French,
bakeries, chocolate, pizza,
burgers, steak, seafood, vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, organic, our area
has it all.
And we have menus for all our guest favorites
in
Black Mountain and
Asheville.
So eat well while you're here and let us
know if we can help with finding a restaurant and making
reservations.
In addition to fabulous dining,
Asheville has been crowned Beer City USA, with more
microbreweries per capita than any other city in the
nation. Currently, there are 11 craft breweries in the
area, with two more on the way -- Sierra Nevada and New
Belgium Brewing Company are set to open up east coast
operations in Asheville soon. If you like
to sample local brews, check out
Black Mountain Ale House,
visit
Bruisin' Ales
in Asheville {they have 1,000+ different beers from all
over the world and right here in our neck of the woods}, or take the
Brews Cruise
of Asheville area breweries. And if wine is more to your
liking, two great local wine markets are located in the
town of Black Mountain --
Merry Wine Market
and the
Artisan Gourmet Market
-- selling both locally-produced
and national/international wines and offering tastings.
Fall Foliage
One of the questions we get asked the
most is, "When is the best date to see fall foliage in
your area?" It's a tough question, because the truth is
that western North Carolina generally sees six weeks of
color beginning in late September/early October at the
highest elevations, and then the wave of reds, golds and
oranges washes slowly downward to lower
elevations during the month of October. The peak time to
see fall foliage at our elevation {2,300 feet} is
generally October 21-31...below is a photo of the
overlook at Point Lookout Trail near the Inn, taken
October 28, 2010. The trees along the
Blue Ridge Parkway just north of the Inn peak earlier, while the
trees at Chimney Rock State Park 30 minutes south of the
Inn typically
peak a week or two later than our area. However, these
date ranges can vary based on what Mother Nature feels
like doing each year. Check out our
North Carolina mountains fall foliage reports
on our Bed & Breakfast blog to keep track
of which tree species are changing and where the best
places are to take a "leaf peeping" scenic drive each
week during the fall season. You can also access
previous years' fall foliage reports on the blog.
Quilt Trail
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Sponsored by the McDowell Arts
Council Association, the
McDowell Quilt Trail
is our county's driving trail of quilt squares that have
been painted and hung on businesses {we have two
blocks,
pictured},
public buildings, schools and libraries, and even
private residences.
County
businesses, organizations and
residents sponsor the blocks on
their buildings and get to pick the
design and colors, so all the blocks
are unique and handcrafted and
painted by local artists.
You can currently
see more than 100
quilt blocks while driving on the McDowell Quilt Trail; maps are available at the McDowell Tourism
Authority's offices in the Old Fort Railroad Depot &
Museum.
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Geocaching
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As
geocachers
{there's one of our geocaching innpugs on the right,
Csaba, sensing that a cache is near...}, we know that some of
you are like us and put together lists of caches to find
during your travels. While you're here, check out the
Fire Road series of 20+ geocaches placed by several
local cachers along the Forest Service
access roads just above the Inn. In addition, there are
great caches to be found on trails at Warren Wilson
College and Montreat College, around Asheville, near Chimney Rock State Park
and the NC Arboretum,
the town of Black Mountain and along the Catawba Falls
Trail, all 30 minutes' drive or less from the Inn on
Mill Creek. {We've even got one called All the
Difference, placed in the woods on our property.} Happy caching!
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