Always able to find new things to do

We were able to spend almost a full week recently at Our Mountain Place (aka, "Honey Bear House"). It was such a wonderful time to get away. Sure, we did some of our usual things: Otter Falls in Seven Devils ... Grandfather Vineyard (TWICE!) ... Blowing Rock shopping ... Blue Deer Cookies ... Come Back Shack ... Bistro Roca for dinner. And so on and so on. But we also managed to actually try some new things, believe it or not!

On the way up we stopped in West Jefferson for the afternoon. It was nice strolling around that beautiful town ... and checking out the Ashe County Cheese factory! We got the Buffalo cheese, which was INCREDIBLE!

Next day we hit up the Alpine Coaster at Sugar Mountain. If you haven't done this yet, I HIGHLY recommend it. So much fun. Check it out! It's essentially a 1-person coaster (or 2, if you have a little one with you, like I did) that goes through the trees and hills. You get to control the speed ... but going faster is THE BEST!

 

 

And, finally, one thing we counted as a "first" (but had done a LONG time ago when the kids were really small) was a visit to Elk River Falls. It's truly a beautiful (and dangerous) waterfall that offers some great swimming and dipping opportunities.

 

Is it autumn yet?

We will be making the trek up to the High Country this weekend. (Friday can't get here soon enough!) I. Cannot. Wait.

It's always a blast to get up to Honey Bear House. But I'm just ready for some actual, honest-to-God fall-like weather. It was in the mid-to-upper 90s in Raleigh yesterday. Today is supposed to be even worse. Ugh.

Taking a quick glance at the old weather app for the forecast, the High Country looks GREAT over the next couple of days. High of 78 on Friday, but then highs of 61 and 66 on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Oh, and the lows over the next few nights? In the upper 40s or low 50s -- PERFECT for this:

But I'm also looking forward to potentially seeing a smidge of fall color. It's probably a tad early for the good stuff, but still. Maybe there's hope? Let's go to the Fall Color Update for an, uh, update:

There has definitely been some color development this week! We’ve had very warm days for this time of year, but thankfully the mornings have still been cool. ... A drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway yesterday revealed a few spots where fall color is starting to pop. As expected, the higher elevations are showing the largest color shifts at this early stage in the season. ...

Color or no color, it's always a nice time to escape to the High Country!

It's about time to go looking for fall color, y'all!

As much as I love pumpkin-flavored stuff, one of my favorite reasons why fall is my favorite season is because of the leaf colors. And few places have more vibrant autumn colors than the High Country.  We are almost at that time of year, people!!

The good folks at the Mast General Store are here to keep you up to date on fall foliage.

In this section you will find tips on taking better fall photographs, fun puzzles for kids, activities for young and old, a guide to fall colors, and an up-to-date leaf watch with periodic photos from the mountains of Western North Carolina and the Upstate of South Carolina.

Go check out the updates each week. Better yet, get your butt up to the mountains. And drop by and spend some money at the Mast General Stores while you're up there. You know your kids want candy, if nothing else!

The white stuff brought a lot of green over the holidays

The "arctic" weather that hit North Carolina over the 2017/18 holidays was a boon for High Country hotels, restaurants and ski areas.

“This one week will mean millions of dollars in economic impact,” Tracy Brown, director of the Blowing Rock Tourism Development Authority, told the Watauga Democrat. “It’s always good to see snow on slopes and the streets black. The stars aligned for us this year.”

Recent years have seen warmer weather this time of year impact tourism, particularly for skiing. (Here's to hoping it stays cold enough for our trip in March!)

“The last few winters have been tough, because we haven’t had the product to put out there, in our case, that’s winter sports, skiing, snowboarding, tubing, snowy hikes,” Brown said of the last warm December winters in recent years. “It’s critical that we have good weather and people can get here.”

Yet another enjoyable weekend in the High Country

We honestly do not make it up to Honey Bear House nearly as much as we should. Every time we do we think, "why aren't we up here every weekend?"

This past weekend was one of those times. While we would have loved to have seen just a tad more fall color, it was still magnificent to watch the colors change quite literally before our eyes.

We also managed to hit one of our favorite spots along the Blue Ridge Parkway: Linville Falls. The view from the top never gets old. And the girls managed to squirm their way onto a tree that hangs over the path at a low angle.

The whole gang always enjoys Linville -- even Winston the dog.

So ready to get back!

Ski season wrapping up

We have owned Honey Bear House for several years now, but this was the first year that we actually took advantage of being close to ski slopes. This past weekend we made our second trek of the season over to Appalachian Ski Mountain where the kiddos (even the little dude) hit the slopes again. It was also the first time I've skied in probably two decades. And I didn't even die!

But just because ski season is over, it doesn't mean there's not a lot to do up in the High Country. Please take a look at our calendar to see what dates may interest you. It really is a place for every season of the year!

You really 'Otter' go to the mountains

Our family headed up to Honey Bear House a recent weekend to escape the heat of Raleigh. And guess what? It worked! When we left the City of Oaks around 1 p.m., the temperature was already at 98 degrees. When we arrived in Seven Devils around 5, it was around 75. And that was about the warmest it would get all weekend (with almost no humidity).  It was a NICE reprieve.

I wanted to share some of the highlights of the weekend; we packed a lot in, yet still managed to relax and recharge.


Here is a shot of my lovely bride and me from the deck of Our Mountain Place.

The kids ALWAYS love "swimming" in the hot tub. This was one of Roman's first times, and he could not be happier.

Saturday morning we just had to go gem mining. We checked out Foggy Mountain for the first time, and it was a blast. (Spoiler alert: We just so "happened" to find lots of gems.)

After some good kid fun, we had to have some adult enjoyment as well. We headed over to one of the hidden gems of the High Country: Grandfather Winery.  We enjoyed some good wine and music (by the Romantic Egotists) while the kids played in the Watauga River. It was one of the most relaxing (and cheap) 3 hours we've ever spent.

Saturday ended; life was good. And I'm always amazed at how different this view looks, not only season to season, but throughout the day.

Sunday was mostly spent at the "new" Otter Falls in Seven Devils. I say new, but obviously the waterfalls and the creek have been there; however, the town recently acquired the land and it is now a wonderful public park (still in progress; a new trail is being worked on as we speak). It's about a mile from our house, and it is maybe our new favorite spot. We played in the water, climbed on some rocks, and Roman even did some "fishing."

Later that day, it was, sadly, time to go back to life and back to humidity. But it was about as perfect a weekend as you could have.

See ya soon, High Country!

It's no double rainbow, but still ...

Kudos to recent visitor Steven for capturing (and sharing) this fantastic photo of a rainbow in the valley in Seven Devils. Looks like Heaven to me!

Wanna learn some history about N.C.'s ski slopes?

North Carolina is fortunate to have topography that allows for winter sports. The High Country alone boasts several ski slopes, as well as tubing at Hawksnest. Now a new book celebrates that heritage.

“North Carolina Ski Resorts,” the newest addition to Arcadia Publishing’s popular Images of America series. The book, by author Donna Gayle Akers, was released just this week.

The book boasts 200 vintage images, many of which have never been published, and chronicles the history of the state’s ski industry.

During the early 1960s, local leaders in western and northwestern North Carolina were dedicated to developing winter recreational opportunities in the mountains. North Carolina’s ski industry dates back to the winter of 1961–1962, when the Cataloochee Resort in Maggie Valley developed the first ski slope in the state.

Once thought impossible to make snow south of the Mason-Dixon Line, technological innovations in snowmaking allowed several other resorts to develop through the 1970s, including Appalachian Ski Mountain, Beech Mountain, Sugar Mountain, Wolf Ridge and Ski Sapphire Valley, all of which still operate today.

Images of smaller ski areas such as Hound Ears, Seven Devils, and Mill Ridge, are featured to honor these now defunct clubs.

Many of the present-day resorts have incorporated snowboarding, snowshoeing, ice-skating and snow tubing, along with mountain biking trails for summer recreation on the slopes.

“North Carolina Ski Resorts” showcases the rich recreational history of western and northwestern North Carolina.

Highlights of North Carolina Ski Resorts include:

• Many of the images date back to the beginning of the ski industry in North Carolina.

• Each ski resort has a unique story of their survival that can be seen through historic photographs.

• Changes in ski technology are evident in the photographs, as safer bindings and boots were developed.

This books is available at area bookstores, independent retailers and online retailers, or through Arcadia Publishing at 888-313-2665 or online.

Hawksnest tubing in the spotlight

Sarah Kendall with the Moms Charlotte recently blogged about her experience snowtubing at Hawksnest. Sounds like she had a blast.

Looking for some good family fun this winter season? Put Seven Devils, North Carolina into your GPS and head to Hawksnest for a day of snow tubing. It is a must-do fun day for the whole family. The drive from Charlotte is a bit over two hours, but the high-action fun is worth the drive.

...

Looking around the crowds, everyone appeared to be in good spirits and having a great time. I overheard two young siblings who got tired after an hour and wanted to sit with their grandmother. My ten and eight-year old daughters didn’t want to stop, but I believe just one session was enough for us.

One of my daughter’s said, it was awesome and the other asked, when can we go again?

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/02/13/4690225/snow-tubing-at-hawksnest.html#storylink=cpy

Oh, and in case you've forgotten, there's always a good place to stay VERY close to Hawksnest! (Blatant shilling over!)


Photo courtesy of Moms Charlotte.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/02/13/4690225/snow-tubing-at-hawksnest.html#storylink=cpy

Good snow business so far

According to the Watauga Democrat, good temperatures have resulted in good, solid, steady business for the High Country's ski and tubing spots.

Temperatures hovered within the ideal range for snowmaking around Christmas and New Year's, two holidays that -- along with Martin Luther King Jr. and President's Day weekends -- can be make-or-break events for the local industry. 

And despite a few bouts of mild temperatures and rain during the past few weeks, resort staff say that equipment upgrades made in the past few years have enabled them to turn slope conditions around in no time at all. 

"We have invested so much in our snowmaking," said Talia Freeman, marketing director at Beech Mountain Resort. "What we did in three days last year we can do in one day this year. Even with mild weather, it takes us no time to recover."

Things seem good over at Hawksnest, which just so happens to be right beside Our Mountain Place. (Cough. Hint. Hint.)

The live webcam at Hawksnest Snow Tubing in Seven Devils on Monday depicted a constant stream of dozens and dozens of visitors queuing up to take a rolling slide down the resort's tubing lanes.

It's ski season, y'all

Sugar Mountain opened up for business last week, meaning we are thick into the ski season up in the High Country. The colder temps will make snowmaking possible, according to the Mountain Times.

Snowmaking began Sunday evening, Nov. 10, and continued until mid-morning Nov. 11. A brief warm-up shut snowmaking down for the day. However, the snow machines came back to life early Tuesday morning, as temperatures steadily dropped throughout the day. Overnight temperatures settled in the single digits at the summit and mid-teens at the base, creating an ideal snowmaking environment. Snow flurries also left a dusting of natural snow on Sugar Mountain.

But with the drop in temps come potential dangers. Be careful on the roads, folks, says the Watauga Democrat.

[I]f we can learn anything from the slick roads we encountered last week -- and the half-dozen or so documented accidents, roll-overs and delays those conditions contributed to -- it's the knowledge that we're not as prepared as we might be for black ice and winter driving. 

Much of that lack of preparation stems from not allotting enough time to arrive at our scheduled destinations when cold and wet road conditions come upon us unexpectedly. As a rule, it takes longer to get from Point A to Point B in January than it does in September.  

That's a rule we'll likely live by in a month or two, but for today, it's important to temper our more seasonal outlook with the remembrance that we've already shaken hands once with winter driving conditions.

A berry good time of the year

We will be heading up the mountain to 7D pretty soon, and perhaps the one thing my kids are most excited about is blueberry picking. We had a blast doing it last summer, and we will have with us this time someone with a plethora of blueberry-themed recipes. I fully expect our lips to be blue by the time we leave.

Naturalist Amy Renfranz recently wrote something for the Mountain Times about blueberries. You can read it in its entirety here. But it certainly got me (even more) jazzed about doing some pickin.'

The truth is berries are a plant’s way of taking advantage of an animal’s sweet tooth.  

The fleshy berry is a cover-up for the seeds inside. These seeds, hidden in the berry, are consumed whole by the fruit-eaters as incidental parts of the meal. ... 

Color as an indicator of ripeness is an interesting adaptation of the berry. Without it, berries might be eaten before the seeds inside are fully developed.  

Of course, even a slightly green berry can taste good if sweetened in a pie or cobbler.  

Have you had your fingers pricked by a blackberry bush this summer? Have you laughed with your friends while showing off your blue smile? Did you “ruin” your favorite shirt with a big purple stain? Good for you. 

Yes, indeedy: a new park in the works

(Image from Town of Seven Devils)

The quality of life in Seven Devils is about to get even better -- if you can imagine it.

Week before last, the town received notice that it has been awarded a $135,000 grant to purchase pristine property for a new town park, which we mentioned a couple of months ago.


The land is a "wooded area with a stream and waterfall, known locally as Otter Falls Park, according to Town Manager Ed Evans."

The grant is for $135,800 and is contingent upon a 50/50 match with local government funds. The total cost of the acquisition is expected to cost $271,600 – that includes $265,000 for the purchase of the 9.78-acre tract and several thousand for due diligence such as an appraisal, survey and title search.

Clyde David Little is the seller of the property, which, according to a resolution adopted by the Seven Devils Town Council, has historical significance for its usage by Native Americans and for being a track bed for the original Tweetsie Railroad. 

Evans said that portions of the funds for the purchase of the property could come from a lender, general fund balance and/or donations. Before applying for the grant, Evans said citizens were asked how they felt about the project.

“Actually every comment, email and letter we received was positive,” Evans said. “That doesn’t mean there wasn’t opposition, but if anyone was opposed, they didn’t voice their opposition.

Residents were also asked if they were willing to donate funds and the majority of people expressed a willingness to contribute financially to Seven Devils first potential natural park area.

“We are hoping a portion of it can be funded through donations,” Evans said.Currently, the village has two tennis courts with a small playground nearby. That is the extent of the public land in Seven Devils. 

“That is one reason this is important to so many of our folks … This 9.78-acre parcel is the midway point in town. It’s all wooded, natural, has a small stream, a small water fall. It’s a very pretty piece of property,” Evans said. “In my opinion, it’s an ideal parcel to keep natural [with] trails.” 

Seven Devils' hummingbirds

I've said it before, but God bless Google Alerts. Without them, I would never have come across this 40-second clip of some hummingbirds in beautiful Seven Devils.

You never know what wildlife you'll see in the High Country: bears, snakes, chipmunks, wild turkeys ... and now hummingbirds.

Enjoy!

A new/old park in the works?

The town of Seven Devils was not initially created to offer the standard "perks" of being a town. (Heck, it wasn't even conceived as a town but as a resort community.) But the town has changed its destiny over the years to that of a municipality. With that comes a responsibility to offer amenities, such as good roads, police protection and parks.

That's why it's nice to see Town Manager Ed Evans and his staff looking into the idea of finding land for new parks, according to the Watauga Democrat.

The town of Seven Devils is working to buy a nearly 10-acre tract complete with waterfall for use as a community park.
Town residents have been interested in the Otter Falls area for several years, but a previous attempt to buy it fell through. 
Now, the town is waiting to see whether a grant from the N.C. Parks and Recreation Trust Fund will aid in the purchase of the wooded parcel, said Town Manager Ed Evans.
"I think everybody would enjoy having this as an area where they could walk and picnic and just enjoy the scenic beauty of the waterfall itself," Evans said.
The land is located off Lillian Drive in Seven Devils, about a mile from the Town Hall. A path guides visitors through the steep forest toward Otter Falls, which drops about 10 or 12 feet off a boulder as Valley Creek sloshes downhill toward Foscoe.
...
The town is asking for $135,800 from PARTF, to be combined with a local government match of the same amount. Seven Devils should know in late May whether the PARTF grant is awarded, Evans said.
Evans said he's heard from numerous community members who have indicated a willingness to make donations toward the town's match. The town also might consider a short-term loan to secure its amount.
If the PARTF grant is not awarded, the deal likely won't happen, he said.
"Coming up with the full amount, I suspect everybody would say, we're just not in a position to do that," he said.
While they're waiting to hear, residents are already discussing how the land might be used to complement the town.
Seven Devils currently has a public area with tennis courts and a playground. Bear Paw State Natural Area also pokes into the town, but the area is undeveloped, Evans said. Otter Falls would be unlike any other public space the town currently offers, he said.

Whether it happens or not, it's still nice to see that town leaders are trying to make the area the best it can possibly be.

Hey, look! Snow!

Seven Devils, N.C., "enjoys" quite the range in elevation. This range results in some quite severe (for North Carolina, at least) weather patterns. It could be pleasant and nice in nearby Wilkesboro, N.C., yet windy, brutally cold and snowing up at Our Mountain Place, which is up near the top of Hanging Rock Mountain (and near Hawksnest).

Some good friends of ours stayed at the old Honey Bear House recently -- right when 7D was "blessed" with about 14 inches of snow(!).  Fortunately, this was good; our friends were up there to do some skiing. Hooray!

Anyway, this footage (from YouTube, not from our friends) doesn't really illustrate 14  inches of snow, but it does give a glimpse of what it would look like right around town hall.

Enjoy!

Get your winter on

The good folks at VisitNC.com have put out a great resource on winter goings-ons in North Carolina. You can view it here. A number of the hot spots are in the N.C. High Country. Among them ...

Appalachian Ski Mountain
Blowing Rock 
Appalachian Ski Mountain dates back to 1962. The resort features 12 slopes, including three terrain parks, an ice arena, ski shop, gift shop, nursery and free Wi-Fi in its restaurant. Additional offerings include night skiing; ski, snowboard, skiboard, ice skate, helmet and clothing rentals; and group and private lessons.

Beech Mountain Resort  
Beech Mountain 
At 5,506 feet, Beech Mountain Resort is the highest ski and snowboard destination in eastern North America. In addition to day and night skiing and snowboarding, it offers two terrain parks, a 7,000-foot outdoor skating rink, gear rentals, private and group lessons, food, lodging, shopping and a nursery. The resort also features an adaptive learning center where volunteers teach children and adults with disabilities how to ski and snowboard.

Beech Mountain Sledding Hill
Beech Mountain
This free sledding hill is located next to the Beech Mountain Chamber of Commerce and Town Hall and features its own snowmaking machines. Open to children 12 and under. Plastic sleds and parental supervision required.  

Hawksnest Resort
Seven Devils 
Hawksnest Resort is a family-friendly winter area that’s home to the largest snow tubing park on the East Coast as well as the longest zip-line tour in the nation. The tubing park is comprised of four areas and more than 20 lit lanes ranging from 400 to 1,000 feet in length. The zip-line course features 19 cables covering four miles and is open year-round.

Sugar Mountain
Sugar Mountain 
Sugar Mountain features 20 slopes, 15 of which are lit for night skiing and riding. The resort also features the NASTAR public racing program, a terrain park, snowshoeing, snow tubing and ice skating at a 10,000-foot outdoor ice rink. In addition, Sugar Mountain offers equipment rentals, private and group lessons, food, lodging, shopping and daycare.

A mid-November opening for (some of) the slopes

Despite all the autumn snow up in the High Country, it looks like many of the area's ski and tubing slopes will open next weekend. Opening day at Appalachian Ski Mountain is set for November 16, while Hawksnest Resort (tubing) is scheduled to open the next day. (Have we mentioned before that Our Mountain Place is right beside Hawksnest? Oh, we  haven't? Now you know!)

Of course, none of this is written in snow -- er, stone.

From Hawksnest's website:

We are targeting the weekend of the 17th to open, but it will depend on the weather.  Please watch our webcam for snowmaking progress.  We will be open daily for zipline tours, weather permitting.  Please call ahead for zipline reservations.


Sugar Mountain IS already open, according to its website:

Snowmaking in progress as temperatures allow.

THIS is a good sight to see!

We talked yesterday about the crazy weather that Superstorm Sandy has brought us. One of the benefits is the early snow on the area's ski slopes! Here's an image from the webcam* at Appalachian Ski Mountain, via Ray's Weather Center%.



*The High Country is blessed with a host of great weather-related webcams. For conditions closer to Our Mountain Place, be sure to check out the Seven Devils webcam, looking back toward town hall:

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%And no trip to the mountains should be complete without first checking out Ray's Weather Center. Bookmark it TODAY!