I made it back late last night. If you've never cruised the Blue Ridge Parkway, I highly recommend going! It's almost like it was made just for buses. The pace is a perfect cruising speed for our air-cooled engines (max 45 mph) and there is plenty of scenery to take in. You can just relax and enjoy the ride! There is plenty to stop and see and at no point were we ever rushed or worried about "getting there". I quite like this type of travelling where we can take off with no real agenda and see where you end up. Plus once we got into the higher elevations it was instantly cooler, a welcome change from the hot July days we've been having!
Now onto the trip report!
I met up with Jonathan in Cherokee, NC on Wednesday morning. We fueled up and entered the Blue Ridge Parkway at its southernmost terminus. Along the way we stopped at several overlooks to take in the scenery and have a quick bite of lunch. Around 12:45 we made it to the highest elevation on the parkway (6053 ft) so we stopped for some more photos and the gorgeous view at the overlook.
About an hour later we stopped at Graveyard Fields for a quick hike and another break. By 3:00, we were close to Asheville and stopped at the Visitors Center to check out some maps and souvenirs. Around 5:30 we took a detour off the Parkway and went up Mount Mitchell. This is probably the highest elevation my bus will ever reach since it is the tallest peak East of the Mississippi at 6578 feet. We were able to take a brief hike up to the observation deck and enjoy the vast view of the Appalachian mountains.
After getting back on the Parkway, we drove for a couple more hours and decided to stop for the night. Around 7:30 PM we pulled into
Crabtree Falls. The campground offered primitive tent sites and RV spots but no water or electricity. We made some dinner and rested for the night.
On Thursday morning, we woke up and set out again on the Parkway. By 10:45 we had made it to Grandfather Mountain, one of the more popular attractions near Linville, NC. Grandfather Mountain features a mile-high swinging bridge which we walked across to get to the rocky cliffs which offered a spectacular view. What was particularly neat was a low-flying airplane we spotted and we realized we were actually higher in altitude than they were flying!
Close to Grandfather Mountain we stopped for lunch and then headed on our way. Around 2:00 we stopped at an overlook and took advantage of the decent LTE coverage to check our route and the weather. It looked like rain was headed our way but to the North it looked better and the forecast for Crumpler was clear. So we decided to make our way as far North as we could and escape the weather. We drove for a while longer and exited the Parkway onto Highway 16 which took us into Crumpler, so we decided to go on to the High Country Bus Festival that night. By 6:00 we had made it to Twin Rivers and escaped the rain!
We checked in at High Country Bus Festival and even for Thursday night, the campground was practically full! There was close to 200 buses there easily. Most were along the river in a big field they call the "city", which is where the few power and water hookups are. Many vendors were set up as well, selling t-shirts, parts, and other hippie items. The city was full but beyond that, there are primitive sites in the back. And by primitive, I mean you pretty much just find a spot along the river bank and park. We made it all the way to the end before we were able to find any place to camp! This actually turned out alright because the tree cover in the back offered shade and it was considerably cooler compared to the open sun in the city.
We took some time to walk down to the front and check out all the buses and campers. It was about a mile to the front from where we were parked so it was a good hike. Saw some old friends from previous campouts and met our neighbors, who were friendly. Most of the tags were South Carolina but there were campers from all over the US. We stopped and looked at a unique vintage trailer that caught our eye and as I looked down, I noticed a familiar name on the hubcap: Westfalia. As the owner explained, this was a 1957 Westfalia Anhanger camper which he imported from Switzerland since they were sold in Europe only. I forgot to take a photo but
this is similar to what it looked like. That night we cooked dinner and enjoyed our stay along the river.
The next morning, we got up and debated staying at High Country some more or heading back south towards Cherokee for the Georgia Dubs campout. We called Indian Creek to see if they had any spots open, but sadly they were booked. However, I think we were both itching to get back on the Parkway so we decided to hit the road and see how far we could get. If anything, we could stay at a nearby campground or find a forest service road and find a spot in the woods. We said goodbye to our neighbors and left around 11:00 AM.
Staying on Old Highway 16, we travelled for about an hour before we had cell service again. There was nothing but farmland around and you almost felt like this was a part of the country that time forgot. It was beautiful. Eventually we made it into West Jefferson, NC where we found an outstanding little family-owned BBQ restaurant. We checked the maps again and contemplated how far down the Parkway we could make it towards Cherokee.
After lunch we got on 221 and by 3:00 we made it to Asheville, where we stopped for fuel and got back on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Jonathan had made contact with Eric and Kelly who were staying at the GA Dubs camp out, and they agreed to come meet up with us outside of Cherokee.
Along the way, Jonathan called back to Indian Creek to see if any spots had come open and luckily, they had one cancellation!
Around 4:00 is when we made it back to Graveyard Fields, where they were waiting. We traveled together for a couple of hours towards Cherokee and stopped briefly at
Mile High Campground, which we wanted to check out. This looked like an amazing place to have a campout! Almost all of the sites sit right along the ridge and give you an eyeful of the Great Smoky Mountains. Plus there are elk that roam through which is neat. I would love to come back here and stay sometime, they mentioned there was a bus campout here in October. You have to book well in advance because they are only open from May to October (the roads are inaccessible in the winter due to snow and ice).
After leaving Mile High, we finally reached Indian Creek at 7:30 and found our spot was right in the middle of all the Georgia Dubs folk. We were greeted and introduced (I had never met a lot of them despite us all going to the same shows!). Shaky offered us some BBQ that he had made and Michael was preparing some dutch oven cobbler. Our spot backed up right to the creek so for the second night in a row, we were able to camp along the water.
We enjoyed the evening with new and old friends and the next morning, Jonathan left early so he could get back home for church. I stayed behind and decided to go to Gatlinburg with a few other folks, so around 1:00 we packed up our buses and left the campground.
There was about five buses that left out and we cruised through the mountains together, stopping at various overlooks for some photos and scenery. We entered Gatlinburg and parked, and then proceeded to hit the shops. I did a sample of all the flavors at Ole Smoky Moonshine, and for dinner we had reservations at Cherokee Grill for Kelly's birthday. After dinner I figured I was closer coming home from Gatlinburg and it was getting late so I came on home.
So in summary, we had a very successful and fun trip that took us all up and down the mountains. We stayed flexible so we could go where we wanted, and all our adventures worked out. I enjoyed this type of nomadic traveling/camping, where we never really stay put for more than a night. I got to see and do a lot of new things and I can't wait to hit the road for this type of trip again! I got a TON of great photos, which I'm going through and I'll be sharing as soon as I can!
