Experience North Carolina's Mountains
The weather is turning cold here in Glenville, and I am finally making some time to work on the website. It’s embarassing to admit, but two new vacation rentals have been going for months and I am only just now adding them to the website. I also had awesome photos by Sar Sheehan of the…
Late winter/early spring in the mountains is a wildly varying time of year with highs in the 80s and freak snowstorms. One pleasantly warm day we went for a hike with my mom up in Panthertown. Panthertown is a lovely piece of National Forest land straddling the border of Jackson and Transylvania counties. Called by…
The closest hike to the cabins is High Falls on the north side of Lake Glenville. It is also my favorite hike in the Cashiers / Glenville area, taking you down to a stunning box canyon with a double drop waterfall. The lakeside entrance to the waterfall was put in only a few years ago…
The rugged mountains of western North Carolina slowed the settlement of the region, but by the late 1800s it was starting to bustle. The town of Glenville was actually the largest in Jackson County in 1891. Cashiers and Highlands were also growing as desirable escapes from the lowland heat. In fact at one point there…
While the NC mountains are colder than most of the south, the weather is still pretty mild in comparison with the rest of the country. So when temps drop to the single digits, we hunker down, let our faucets drip, and dream of summer. But there is one perk to the extreme cold: frozen waterfalls….
The end of fall in the mountains spells an end to the tourist season. But what the average visitor doesn’t realize are the many spectacular secrets that the cooler weather reveals. Crystal clear vistas and hidden views, fall and winter around Lake Glenville are a reward for the off season traveler. Once such stunning cold…
Grouse are remarkable at camouflage. This NC spring they are quite plentiful if you know where to look. I have a friend who works for the Forestry service who says he has seen at least 20 this spring. My Dear Husband was out and about this week around Lake Glenville and found a grouse waiting…
Although the Glenville and Cashiers, NC areas are a tourist destination, some local residents still farm and raise cattle. Today I photographed some of the barns (mostly abandoned) on Cullowhee Mountain Road. This road goes from Lake Glenville down to Speedwell and Cullowhee, home of Western Carolina University. NC barn architecture is quite varied. Some…
River otters are elusive creatures, but they do live at Lake Glenville. I took a short walk to the dam in 8 inches of snow, quite difficult without snowshoes! After admiring the snow covered hills and mountains as well as the lake shore I started trudging back home through the snow. I decided to walk…
Several friends had been telling me to take a hike up to the top of Yellow Mountain, so when the weather warmed up for a day we did. Wow, was it worth it! The 360 degree views from the peak are spectacular. Yellow mountain is 5127 feet tall, making it one of the tallest mountains…