#13 - Blue Ridge Parkway, Mt. Mitchell, NC, Crab Tree Falls, Linville Falls, Another Powder Blue VW Bug, Thursday June 30, 2011

 

We were on the road reasonably early today and enjoying another clear and sunny day.  By the end of the day we had traveled all of 85 miles, as I took more than 300 pictures while I hiked to top of Mt. Mitchell and to 4 different waterfalls along the way.  Beautiful, beautiful day. 

0831 was time when took this picture to start the day



Rhododendrons



Mt. Mitchell State Park is just off the Parkway.  You can see the approach road along the ridge.

It's a short walk to the top here. 



I took the Nature Trail back down to the parking lot.



On the Nature Trail,

New growth.

One of many varieties of lichen growing on the rocks and trees along the trail.  60"  of rain per year will do this it seems.

Trees knocked down by high winds over Mt. Mmitchell.

Back on the Parkway.

Rhododendron buds about to blossom.

It’s 1.0 miles down a steep trail to the falls.  Then another 2 on the loop to get back or back up the steep trail.  I should have gone straight back up, but the loop trail was nice.

Did I mention 60" of rain per year?

The trail is steep enough to rate stairs.

Crab Tree Falls

 

More fungi

this guy was worth the trip and the long way around on the loop trail

Along the trail.  Kind of straight down off to the left.

Wild flower that looks like hydrangea

Hydrangea

Linville Falls

Linville River about to go into deep chute/gorge 200 yards downstream from the Falls.

Quite a narrows has been carved by the River

View to where the River pours out of chute downstream from the Falls that you can see above and in the background.

Our campsite at Julian Price Memorial Park  -  we are 85 miles from Asheville where we started this morning.  Price purchased the 4200 acres to provide a recreational retreat for his employees.  Upon his death in 1946, his heirs donated it to the Parkway.  Lovely area right on the Parkway.

Earlier in the day we saw this other powder blue VW heading south on the Parkway just north of Asheville.  We waved and honked but missed picture.  Was quite surprised to see him this evening when he stopped to say hello.  He said he had heard us and knew it was another VW bug.  The campground is large with 4 different areas with 50 or 100 campsites in each among the mountains, so small world that he came over to find us and say hello.  I figured he drove about 300 miles that day as he told us he went all the way to Great Smoky Mountains National Park and then turned back north.  We shared a few beers around that campfire that evening, where I learned that he’s from Pennsylvania and had been on a road trip for a week in his newly rebuilt/restored bug – did it himself including the painting.



Next morning adios.