This beautiful distinguished city is full of upscale dinning and shopping locations and surrounded by some of the south’s most prestigious golf clubs.
This historic city offers a hometown experience where your family can watch local craftsmen demonstrate and age-old technique.
Deep Creek, located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, has a campground complete with showers if you like spending the night in the great outdoors.
The North Carolina Bartram Trail, blazed in yellow, crosses over some of the most scenic mountains of the state.
Located on a historic corner of downtown Bryson City, right next to the old county courthouse, the Cork & Bean has not only good food but a great atmosphere.
The Green River Narrows Race happens once a year in November and is probably one of the most exciting kayak races to watch in the southeast.
Western North Carolina is home to some of the most beautiful and exciting single track trails in the Southeast.
Known as “The Crown of the Blue Ridge”, Blowing Rock is a special place to many visitors and residents alike.
A collection of over 250 rare antique American Motorcycles and Automobiles.
For great family rafting fun enjoy the Class I rapids of the Tuckaseigee River.
Cataloochee is a ski area located near Maggie Valley, North Carolina. The area has fourteen ski slopes and trails.
The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad winds up, down, and around the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina.
Tsali has 39 miles of trails in a four loop system that wind around the Fontana Lake and through US Forest Service Land.
Located on a 42-acre Natural Heritage site the center has many species of wildlife, gardens, trails, indoor exhibits and farm animals.
Discover America’s largest home, magnificent gardens, award-winning winery, great shopping and delicious dining.
Enjoy a soaring and gliding experience naturally fueled by a gradual elevation change at Nantahala Gorge Canopy Tours.
The Panthertown Valley is one of those unique places that are well revered by hiking and outdoor enthusiasts, as well as ecologists, in the Southern Appalachian mountains.
Skiing and Snowboarding is a great winter activity here in Western North Carolina.
The creek can have a decent flow during wet weather, but it spreads out wide across this bumpy rock outcrop, forming lots of little falls over the mini ledges and giving it lots of character.
The Hazel Creek area inside the Great Smoky Mountains National park is rich with history about Western North Carolina and early Appalachia.
Surrounded by the Appalachian mountains Waynesville has so much to offer within a short drive from outdoor activities to shopping and dinning.
Offering up Italian favorites to locals and visitors to Bryson City, NC.
Leaf Lookers come from all around to see the Appalachian, Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains of Western NC as they change colors in the Fall of the year.
Bent Creek’s watershed contains a collection of trails for all kinds of hikes, for beginners and familes to advanced hiking groups.
Sitting on the banks of Deep Creek, Camp Living Water offers week-long Christian camps and High Trek Adventures for various age groups from 7 to 18.
Located in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, Franklin is a city filled with many things to do for the whole family within the city.
The fresh smell of hops and everything else that goes in to a great craft beer fill the air when you approach doors of the Nantahala Brewery.
A mecca for outdoor adventure lovers makes Boone a great place to visit and live.
The Cherokee Skate Park is not only a great place to skateboard, bmx, or ride anything with wheels.
This impressive, multi-streamed cascade has a roadside view, but accessing it can be dangerous. US Hwy. 64 has cliffs on both sides and is narrow and curvy here.
The Diner, as locals refer to it has been serving up traditional breakfast dishes and lunch specials to patrons for many years.
Indian Creek Falls is the largest waterfall in the Deep Creek area when it comes to the volume of water flowing across it.
A valley full of historic buildings, wildlife, and beauty, this is a great family destination inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
In Western North Carolina you will be able to find a very calm river or one that is a little more raging, depending on what suits you best.
This area of the Pisgah National Forest, located along the upper reaches of the Ivy River, has long been known by locals as the Coleman Boundary.
The Choo Choo Coffee Company is not just a coffee shop, it offers much more than that to its patrons.
A small mountain town rich with history and a love for the mountains that surrounded it.
A “planned community” or small downtown area not far from the Asheville Airport that was designed to make you feel like you where in a actual city once inside.
This falls is named for its shape, sort of like the domed shell of a turtle. It drops into a deep pool and some people use it for sliding.
Situated in a valley surrounded by the Smoky Mountains, Maggie Valley is a fun city to visit for the entire family.
The beautiful valley of Shelton Laurel Creek – and the coves, tributaries, and mountains lining it to its North – comprise a remote part of the Pisgah National Forest, known as the Shelton Laurel Backcountry Area.
The 4500-acre Needmore Tract was purchased by the State of North Carolina in January of 2004 as a nature preserve.
This city is set up beautifully along the banks of Lake Lure, offering visitors a great balance between outdoor adventure, rest, and relaxation.
Dillsboro is a small city where you can take a step back in time and tour around the downtown area visiting shops, restaurants, and art galleries that are held within historic buildings.
With an elevation of 6,593 ft Mount LeConte is the third highest peak in the national park, it is however the tallest peak in Tennessee.
Blowing Rock is an interesting place where folklore and history abound.
At 4629 feet elevation, this grassy summit is not the highest mountain around, but it is considered by some to be the “crown jewel of the Appalachian Trail”.
In this most beautiful, unmarred, and natural setting, that was the uncharted hunting ground of the Cherokee Indians, virgin trees grow more than 100 feet tall and some 20 feet around the base.
North Carolina’s longest trail, the North Carolina Mountains to Sea Trail, is an ambitious project to provide a foot path linking the Mountains in the West to the Coastal Plain in the East.
This waterfall is a narrow tumble and cascade into a deep trough, that opens up and spills out into a deep pool – a fantastic swimming hole (if the water isn’t super high).
The Asheville Art Museum is the single visual arts facility serving Western North Carolina.
Deep inside of Humpback Mountain lie the Linville Caverns, North Carolina’s only caverns.
This paved two-lane road climbs to elevations over 5300 feet and extends over 50 miles. In April 1997, the state of North Carolina declared it a Scenic Byway.
Bryson City’s most unique ice cream parlor takes you beck to the old days right when you step foot inside the door.
Shining Rock became one of the original components of the Wilderness System in September 1964. It is the largest Wilderness area in North Carolina.
Cherokee Bear Zoo & Exotic Animals is the home of many native Black Bears along with non-native Grizzlies, Lemurs, a Tiger, and a Monkey.
“The Road To Nowhere”, as most local residents call it, is a 6-mile scenic drive into the North Carolina side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park where it dead-ends
This is one of the most popular destination for visitors to the park, attracts more than two million visitors a year because of its well-preserved homesteads, scenic vistas, and abundant display of wildlife.
This village is an authentic replica of an 18th century Cherokee community.
Lying in the mountains and valleys of western North Carolina it is the largest of the four national forests in North Carolina
The area around Hot Springs is full of opportunities to get outdoors and have a blast.
Soco Falls is located on the Qualla Boundary (Cherokee Indian Reservation) just beside US Hwy. 19, between Cherokee and Maggie Valley, NC
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, established in 1934, covers 520,408 acres of land with heights ranging from 840 feet at Abrams Creek to 6,643 feet at Clingmans Dome.
Marked by charming rural character and the scenic beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Mars HIll is a great stop and play location in Western North Carolina.
List of cemeteries that are located on the north Shore of Fontana Lake and the surrounding area which were eventually taken over by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park Service after the Tennessee Valley Authority built the Fontana Dam. Bradshaw Cemetery: On Possum Hollow Branch on Hazel Creek. Hickory Bottom Branch on Possum Hollow. On […]
A scenic roadway, which travels 469 miles to connect the Shenandoah National Park in Virginia with the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee.
A combination of free falls and cascades. This is one of the most photogenic waterfalls around.
Stand Up Paddling is one of the fastest growing water sports today. It fun, healthy, and can help improve the overall quality of a persons life. Strengthen your core, improve your balance and get to know a part of nature you may be unfamiliar with. Bryson City Outdoors – Come see what all the fuss […]
The highest dam east of the Rockies is located just 35 miles West of Bryson City, North Carolina.
Water is one thing there is not a shortage of when you come to the mountains of Western North Carolina.
Located between Asheville and Hendersonville, Fletcher is a place where you can enjoy the thrills of the city within a short drive while still feeling like you are tucked away in a quiet mountain hide-away.
The Spectacular Mingo Falls located in Cherokee, NC are over 120 feet high and are rated one of the most impressive falls in Western North Carolina.
Do you get a hint of what this place serves from the name? Well, you should because they serve up fried goodness every day of the week.
The Lake is 3,000 feet in elevation and offers to visitors many activities ranging from boating and fishing, to swimming and sightseeing.
Pisgah View Ranch is a Western North Carolina Dude Ranch that offers a horse ranch get a way for Family and Guests.
The water is clear, and in higher water the falls feels pretty powerful despite the creek’s relatively small size.
Glen Falls is three tiers of 70, 60, and 15 feet in height for a total of about 145 feet of falling water.
The historic town of Hendersonville offers visitors many different recreational activities for the entire family, along with local festivals that will satisfy any apple craving you have ever had.
Surrounded by mountains exceeding 6000′ in elevation, the base of the valley is itself over 5000′, which accounts for some of its unique characteristics. A variety of hiking trails wind throughout the valley for your exploration.
A beautiful disc golf course located on the property of Fontana Village only minutes away from Fontana Dam. The course is 18 holes and is made up of par 3 and par 4 holes that offer players a diverse course of trees and open field to play on. This is a great course to play, […]
Nestled in the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains, across from a mountain where God revealed a vision, lie the world’s largest set of the Ten Commandments.
Thousands of miles of trails can be found to hike in Western North Carolina, whether you find yourself in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park or one of the many National Forests. There are tons of trails to choose from that vary in length and difficulty, but no matter which one is for you there […]
This river has become the centerpoint for a visit to the Grandfather Ranger District
Visitors are invited to view their family tartan, connect with their clan, and learn about the history of Highland Dress.
One of the most compelling outdoor dramas, Unto These Hills, tells the tragic story of how the Cherokee ancestors were forcefully driven out of the Great Smoky Mountains.
