Green Mountain Resort in Lenoir, NC was a good home base for exploring the Linnville Falls area of the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was a short and pretty drive to the parkway, and in close proximity to three highlights, the Linn Cove Viaduct, Grandfather Mountain, and Linville Falls.
The
Linn Cove Viaduct was the first of its kind built in the US. It was constructed to preserve the rugged terrain and though only a quarter-mile long, was an incredible feat, dubbed the most complicated bridge ever built. The visitor center was well worth the stop also.
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| Deer crossing in the morning |
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| Ooooh Aaaahhh |
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| The Viaduct was constructed so that it would not interfere with the massive boulder formations on the rugged side of Grandfather Mountain |
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| love the photo on the mantel in the Viaduct visitor center, and it was very cold so the fireplace felt wonderful! |
The drive up
Grandfather Mountain is usually $20 (which I may not have been willing to pay anyway) but alas, the drive to the top was closed due to the cloud cover and high winds. But...they were allowing people to drive half way up, to their gift shop, for half price! Wow, only $10 to visit your gift shop, with no view of the mountain? Hmmm.....thanks, I'll pass. If I were going to spend the whole day hiking the trails and walk across the Mile High Swinging Bridge on a clear day, maybe the $20 would be worth it, but we did not have a whole day to spend in one place.
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| looks like they found some folks willing to pay $10 to see their gift shop! |
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| Grandfather mountain under clouds |
Continuing south on the parkway, a must-see is Linnville Falls, and it's FREE! There are multiple trails to choose from; the more difficult and steep trails go to the bottom of the falls. We took the easy trails, to the Upper Falls Overlook and Chimney View.
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| fall colors along the trail |
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| at Chimney View |
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| There's the chimney, which shoots water upwards |
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| looking downstream from the chimney |
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| Chimney View |
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| at Upper Falls Overlook |
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| Upper Falls |
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| more fall colors as we head southwards on the parkway |
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| Lots of wonderful vistas along the way |
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| "Road worsens beyond truck ramp" - they weren't kidding! The little road we took off the parkway was horrendously steep and windy - completely unfit for an RV. Thank goodness we were without the rig. |
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