Can the views get any better? If they can I’d like to see that! After moving out of Linville Falls RV Park in the central southern portion of the Blue Ridge Mountains (the 1st 4 photos) to Asheville we immediately headed out to the famous Chimney Rock. But before I get to that the first photo in this gallery is of Linville Winery. With a few hours to spare before heading south we thought we’d give the local drop a test run. Not too bad but they’ll not get too many gold medals at the show unless they give awards for the prettiest setting.
Back to Chimney Rock. This is SW of Asheville and a pleasant drive. As you get very near CR you pass through the town of “Bat Cave” North Carolina. Yes, you thought it was a secret but anyone with google maps can find where the Bat Cave is now. So…. “To the Bat Cave Robin” is no longer a mystery. Just past the turn off to the Bat cave there’s the town of Chimney Rock and you turn right through a stone arch and over a timber bridge then start the windy road up to the CR car park. Like all things American it costs to enter the park (see photo of the toll gate) but it is worth it.
After you park there is a small Information/interactive hut to look at while you await the shuttle bus to take you the final mile or so to the Rock. From here you can see the rock but it is not till you get off the shuttle that you realise the enormity of the site and where you are. The original owners many years ago drilled an elevator shaft through the rock and you ride this up to the shop and the base of the actual ‘rock’. You can take a trail and walk but hey, if someone has taken the trouble to drill an elevator in the rock why should I disappoint them and not use it?
Anyway I’ll leave it at that. You can just enjoy the views and imagine how thrilling the visit was. I finish the gallery with a couple of shots from the gift shop and then some photos of the trip home. The GPS pic Shane took is not of Chimney rock but the Gerton Highway back home. Some of these roads are like a roller coaster.
Coming up next The home of Coca Cola, Atlanta, Georgia.