- And here we have, once
again, those expansive views of the Smoky Mountains,
it's quite wonderful. This is where we left off, Newfound Gap, on the Tennessee/North Carolina border. Today, the journey will
take us to the northeast, Waynesville, the Blue Ridge
Parkway, The Blowing Rock, The Skyline Drive all on
our way to Harper's Ferry, where our Lewis and Clark
trail unofficially begins. ♪ I'm riding ♪ ♪ Riding riding ♪ ♪ Riding in my RV (my RV) ♪ ♪ Wherever I want to be ♪ ♪ You guys, I'm free in my RV ♪ (upbeat music) The North Carolina side of the Smokys is a little more laid back. The only real touristy town is Cherokee, located in the Cherokee
Nation Reservation. And here to the left is the
Oconaluftee Visitor Center, which can only mean we are almost there. Coming up here on the left
is the Southern Terminus of the Blue Ridge Parkway, one of the most scenic
roads in the United States. In fact, we're going to drive
a section real soon here in the next couple of days. And here we are Cherokee,
as I said, very touristy. I mean, not as touristy as Gatlinburg nothing beats Gatlinburg, even though there is gold
panning and all that, Cherokee, I believe is more
about outdoor activities and Native American culture. (upbeat music) Of course, there is a huge
casino, two of them actually. (upbeat music) To make a not so long story even shorter, eventually we made it to our friends, Robert and Sue, in
Waynesville, North Carolina. (birds chirping) Can you hear all the birds chirping? It's beautiful out here. By the way, good morning,
we spent the night here in Waynesville, North Carolina. Our friends, long time friends, the friends Robert and Sue's place here. Rob and Sue. Anyway, I lost my train of thought. As you know, you probably remember, I stayed here at the
beginning of the 2020 trip. And here was when I made the decision to continue all the way to
North Carolina and beyond. And now I think, I think
we're gonna have breakfast and tour the town a little bit. Let me tell you this place,
surrounded by mountains, this is beautiful, so beautiful out here. (upbeat music) Our first point of interest
is going to be Lake Junaluska, a manmade lake here in
the Blue Ridge Mountains. Driving on top of the dam. See the water level on this side. See the water level on this side. A perilous drive on Lake Junaluska. Unfortunately it is a little too hazy, so you can't really see
the tallest mountains. The original cross was
erected at this site in 1922, although it was replaced
by this one in 1994. Such beautiful views of
the Blue Ridge Mountains. And what do we have here? Hmm, a bald eagle. Those are not easy to spot. So this was a very lucky sighting. (upbeat music) Everybody was hoping for the
eagle to fly, but it didn't. (upbeat music) Oh yeah, this is called
inspiration point here in Lake Junaluska. Very nice. A cross there. I'm sure it looks great
illuminated at night. So... Let's continue exploring. (upbeat music) This is aptly named the Rose Walk. (upbeat music) As much as we would like to linger here in Lake Junaluska, let's get into town. (upbeat music) And here's the sculpture where everybody has to take the mandatory selfie, and who are we to argue
with tradition, right? Wine Seller, that's a cool place. But first it is time
for some Cuban coffee. Cuban Coffee in Waynesville. And back to downtown. And you know, I love a
town with street musicians. (street musician singing) (upbeat music) Next stop, Frog Level. And we've been here before. It is a very cool brewery. Sometimes they even have
music in the afternoon. In fact, during the pandemic, it was one of the few places
in town that had live music because it was outdoors. What could be better
than an IPA by the creek? Zoe is our DD, so she's
having a local soda. So yeah, Frog Level, pretty cool place. I've seen it on a Friday evening
and it gets pretty crowded. But today, it is just a
quiet day by the creek. Away we go. We stopped by the Wine
Seller on our way to dinner. Here's the Cuban guy We're eating at the Blue Rooster tonight. Fried green tomatoes. You got the pulled pork. We went to the Blue Rooster, it was good, good Southern food but right now we're getting soaked. - So this is food coming from
heavens, coming from heavens. - What's coming from the
heavens, is the rain, the rain. Let's go, we have to go. (upbeat music) This stretch of I-40 here between
Waynesville and Asheville, what a gorgeous drive this is. Well, we had a fabulous time with Robert and Sue here in Waynesville. And now we continue. Check in time is not until 1:00 PM. So we're gonna kill some
time by taking once again, Blue Ridge Parkway You know, it's one of my favorite roads in the United States. So that's what we're gonna do. (upbeat music) We're going to join the Blue Ridge Parkway at the Asheville Visitor Center which I believe is the largest. (upbeat music) Well, here we are at
the main visitor center for the Blue Ridge Parkway
near Asheville, North Carolina. And we've been here before,
but let's just walk in, you know, it's a nice visitor center. And then we're just gonna
do the Blue Ridge Parkway for a couple of hours. You know, depending on our ETA to Boone, which is where we staying tonight. Welcome to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Yeah, this is definitely one
of the nicer visitor centers. I mean, it is part of the
National Park Service, actually, considered
America's longest linear park at 469 miles from Shenandoah
National Park in Virginia, to the great Smoky
Mountains in North Carolina. Yeah, I recall being here back in 2017, they've got all these displays
about the fauna, the flora, the history. But yeah, we are here on the Blue Ridge. This would be south, that
would be north, actually. The last time I was
here, this was like part of a super fancy display with
like a screen and everything, I guess that stopped working
or maybe they removed it when COVID hit. But we're gonna do this
part of the Blue Ridge now, maybe to the Linn Cove Viaduct. I would like to see that again, we've been to this area many times. Okay, who wants to go back in time and see the fancy display? - What is it?
- A billboard. That's where we're going tomorrow. Asheville area. They probably spent a
lot of money on this. Yeah, one of these days we're
gonna do the whole thing. That'll be really cool. Although we've done sections of it. And maybe the day after tomorrow, we'll do a little bit
of the Skyline Drive, which is the continuation
of the Blue Ridge through Shenandoah National Park. Right, let's continue. You think this is me?
- Yeah. - I think this is me. (upbeat music) The Blue Ridge Parkway, so lush, and so green this time of the year. Which for reference we
are here in mid-May. Here we have one of the many overlooks, but we're gonna continue a little farther. (upbeat music) Oh, Minnie needs an RV wash for sure. Check out this view. (gentle music) (upbeat music) Such gorgeous views to our right of this whole stretch. And we have the Craggy
Gardens Visitor Center here, as we keep on getting higher
and higher into the clouds. And here's our first
unobstructed view to the left. (upbeat music) Check it out. Yeah, I can never get
tired of these views. And look at the low hanging clouds, do you think we'll get that high? (gentle music) (upbeat music) Amazing. Well, elevation 5,160, no wonder it is a little colder up here, but oh, look at that view. (upbeat music) I feel tempted to stop
at every single overlook, but at some point today we have
to make it to Boone, right? And eventually the final
goal for this leg of the trip is Harper's Ferry. Lots of graffiti on this signs here on the Blue Ridge Parkway. And oh yeah, not much of
a view from this side, it's getting increasingly cloudy. But on that side, on the other
hand, take a look at that. (upbeat music) We're almost immersing
ourselves in the clouds, almost. By the time we're reach Mount
Pisgah, we probably will, that is if we make it to Mount Pisgah. (upbeat music) And the sun came out again. (upbeat music) Wherever you stop, it is a new, beautiful,
mountainous landscape. We've never been able to
do the whole Blue Ridge in one shot just because it takes forever, especially if you're gonna
stop at every opportunity. So this is about it for today. We might make one more stop but if we don't take a faster route we're never gonna make it to
our destination for today. (upbeat music) This is it, this is going
to be our final stop. (upbeat music) These just called a Little Switzerland. Let's see what it looks like. (upbeat music) Occasionally Google Maps
will send you through one of these steep mountain dirt roads. I do not recommend it. There should be an avoid
dirt roads setting. Then again, I should probably
be using an RV GPS system and not Google Maps. So do as I say, not as I do. (upbeat music) Sometimes it'll also send you under a low clearance bridge. And even though I am
technically under 11 feet, I don't wanna risk it. (upbeat music) Well, this is where we are
in Boone, North Carolina. And we have a nice view from our campsite. Check that out. Well, yeah, very nice
view as I was saying. Relatively inexpensive
by today's standards, 2022 here. It's a little off level and I think we have bad weather coming in. In fact it is kind of, I mean, chilly, compared to what it's been, it's probably in the
50s right now and yeah. And Minnie is in desperate
native of good car wash or RV wash rather, but we're gonna do that
the day after tomorrow, as we continue. Let's see, Boone wasn't
part of the original plan, so I have no idea what I'm gonna do. I know I have certain points
of interest around here. And if the weather cooperates, we'll enjoy a little bit of
what the area has to offer. Well, we slept most of the afternoon. We were that tired, I guess. But now we're going into town
because that's what we do. There's a brewery in town and hopefully, we can, you know, get the
vibe, the vibe of the town. Let's go to Boone. (upbeat music) Here we are, Booneshine. Seems very nice. It's a Trail Mojo IPA. (upbeat music) We're having some poutine
and pizza and hmm, so good, sausage. What a perfect way to end our day. Well, hello, good morning, and greetings from Boone, North Carolina. We're not gonna do a whole lot here, but there's this place
called The Blowing Rock, and it's supposed to be North Carolina's first tourist attraction. So that's where we're gonna go. You know, it's that point in the trip where we need like at least one down day, just to get some work done and whatnot. And that is today. But since it is going to
rain in the afternoon, like yesterday, let's take advantage of the
few hours of nice sunshine we have left here. (upbeat music) This K08, not bad, kind of different but it's not bad. Sites are a little tight,
it's the only thing. And it's a little off level. But other than that... Let's go see The Blowing Rock. I kind of like that silo
there at the entrance. It's very unique. Never seen one so up close. Oh, and I was gonna say there are more famous tourist
attractions in this area, namely Grandfather Mountain, which is right on the, very close to the Linville Viaduct, Linn Cove Viaduct in
the Blue Ridge Parkway. But we were there a couple of years ago, so I'm not gonna repeat
that one on this trip. If I find a link to that
video, I will put it somewhere. But yeah, we're not gonna do that. And there's the Linville Caverns. There's a bunch of other
tourist attractions in this area that we're not
gonna be able to to see. So we have to pick one, and Blowing Rock is the
closest one to the campgrounds. (upbeat music) The price of admission for
adults in the summer is $9. And besides the actual Blowing Rock, which we will see here soon, there are some short trails, gardens, manmade waterfall, picnic area. But of course the main attraction is going to be all these overlooks with commanding views of
the Blue Ridge Mountains. The park is also very popular for weddings and other special events. (upbeat music) There it is, The Blowing Rock. Here we go, here we have
Grandfather Mountain, Linn Cove Viaduct, let's
see if we can find it. Well, that's Grandfather
Mountain for sure. Now the Linn Cove Viaduct,
where could that be? It is quite the engineering
marvel actually, but I can't see it. One of those mountains back
there is supposed to be Mount Mitchell. (upbeat music) It is said that because of
the prevailing wind current this is the only place in the world where the snow falls upside down. I don't know about that,
but it would be cool to see. (upbeat music) Well, just for the views alone, right, it would be worth coming
here, which is by the way, $9. I believe they have
discounts for like veterans. That's quite a view. And we're back in full circle, and I'm going to climb at my own risk. Everybody's doing it, so why not? It is not like the views are any better, but it is the thing. Well, yeah, this is it, the
top of the rock right here. Very cool. And here they have the marker.` The geodetic survey mark. Oh yeah, it is definitely a thing to take a picture up there
with the Blowing Rock. Now let's go to the end here. Here we have a cafe, gift shop. Let's go to the observation tower. (upbeat music) Plus you can see we came
in the nick of time, now Grandfather Mountain is
already covered in clouds, and we've got bad weather coming actually. (upbeat music) Yep, spectacular views, even though it is getting
cloudier by the minute. Let's see what else is there to see here. (upbeat music) Okay, there's Tower Trail
and Robbins Ridge Trail. Let's check it out. This is an equally spectacular
view, that's what this is. Very nice, I can see why
people do events here at The Blowing Rock. (upbeat music) And of course you exit through
the photo gallery and museum and the gift shop, of course. (upbeat music) I used to have one of
these when I was a kid. Hello there, you live here? And here we've come full circle. Overall, very nice place,
beautifully landscaped, besides the natural beauty of the area. The Blackberry Valley Overlook. Yeah, there's a view to this side too. Wildlife. (upbeat music) Yeah, here's the view of the
mountains on the other side. And here's that manmade waterfall I mentioned at the beginning. If you ask me whether
it is worth it to visit North Carolina's oldest
attraction, I'd say yes. Yeah, it is a little kitschy, kind of in a Rock City kind
of way, a bit smaller too. But if anything, just for
the views of the Blue Ridge, I'd say it is worth a visit. I'm so glad we decided not to visit Grandfather Mountain today. (gentle music) We continue on our north easterly route, hugging the spine of the Appalachians, inching our way to the beginning of the Lewis and Clark journey. (upbeat music) Today, we're gonna be
staying at a Harvest Host, and that is Skipping Rock Brewing Company in Staunton, Virginia. (upbeat music) This is very nice actually. And to be able to park right here. Cold, hazy IPA, worry less, live more. That's a good motto to live
by and we're having pizza. We got pizza. Oh yeah, as you saw, it's turned out to be a beautiful day and I decided to come to
the Blue Ridge Parkway. In fact, tomorrow, we're
gonna take probably a little bit of the continuation
of the Blue Ridge Parkway which is the Skyline Drive
at Shenandoah National Park. But I wanted to stop here,
this is the Rock Fish Gap area. And how about a Lewis and Clark reference to finish this day? It was around this area, I
don't know exactly where, but it was around this area
that Meriwether Lewis was born. And as I've been reading in that book that I've been reading,
"Undaunted Courage," this area would've been close
enough to the big cities like Charlottesville
or Richmond or whatnot. So he could get a proper
education, like city education, if you will, for lack of a better word. But it was close enough to the frontier that he would be able
to develop those skills, you know, hunting and hiking and survival skills basically. So he would be close enough
to Jefferson at Monte, which is what, 20 miles from here, where he would eventually, learn, become educated in all the sciences, biology, botany, and the
cartography, all kinds of things. But then he would've known
all the survival skills to survive out there, you
know, in the mountains. On the next episode, we
really begin retracing the Lewis and Clark journey. first at Harper's Ferry, and then a quick visit to Washington DC, the other DC, if you will. Until then, thank you so much for watching and see you on the road. (upbeat music) ♪ I'm riding, riding in my RV. ♪
