The Appalachian National Scenic Trail is a 2,159.1-mile foot trail along the ridge crests and through the major valleys of the Appalachian Mountains.
The Cherokee Indian Museum contains a unique collection of original artifacts used by the Cherokee Indians many years ago.
Rising 6,643 feet above the Great Smoky Mountains, Clingman’s Dome is the highest point along the Appalachian Trail and provides a 360 degree view of the surrounding mountains.
Waterfalls and many cascades are located in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Nantahala National Forest, around the Blue Ridge Parkway in the Pisgah National Forest and the Appalachian mountains of Western North Carolina, including the 411 feet Whitewater Falls which is the tallest series of falls east of the Mississippi.
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.
The Cradle of Forestry in America is a 6,500 acre Historic Site within the Pisgah National Forest.
This city is set up beautifully along the banks of Lake Lure, offering visitors a great balance between outdoor adventure, rest, and relaxation.
Discover America’s largest home, magnificent gardens, award-winning winery, great shopping and delicious dining.
A beauty worth visiting. A steep cascade drops over a ledge onto an outcrop among boulders before shifting right, and dropping over another, smaller, cascade into a deep and wide pool.
Blowing Rock is an interesting place where folklore and history abound.
The ultimate Western North Carolina destination for gambling and late night entertainment.
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.
The Grove Park Inn is a Beautiful Resort and Spa that attract thousands of visitors every year.
A community that takes pride in it’s small hometown atmosphere makes Canton a city full of heritage and history.
Some of the most beautiful golf courses you will ever play on can be found amongst the mountains and valleys of Western North Carolina.
“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
The North Carolina Bartram Trail, blazed in yellow, crosses over some of the most scenic mountains of the state.
This historic city offers a hometown experience where your family can watch local craftsmen demonstrate and age-old technique.
Visiting Weaverville means having a chance for you and your family to experience life at a slower pace.
Bridal Veil Falls is unique in that you can drive behind them. US Hwy. 64 used to pass behind the falls until it was rerouted in front of the falls for safety.
A city filled with a rich history and lasting culture of the Cherokee Indians. This city has much to offer from outdoor activities, cultural arts and crafts, to family entertainment. This popular stop in Western North Carolina is sure not to disappoint.
This excellent loop, designated a National Recreation Trail, climbs to the top of Whiteside Mountain, with its spectacular 700′ high cliff walls lofting the hiker for amazing views.
A valley full of historic buildings, wildlife, and beauty, this is a great family destination inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
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.
A short falls but in a cozy setting, this one is worth a stop if you’re on the main trail.
Tsali has 39 miles of trails in a four loop system that wind around the Fontana Lake and through US Forest Service Land.
The Choo Choo Coffee Company is not just a coffee shop, it offers much more than that to its patrons.
A city with something for everyone! Whether you enjoy art and music, the outdoors, eating and shopping local, or all of the above.
Bryson City’s most unique ice cream parlor takes you beck to the old days right when you step foot inside the door.
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.
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.
The water is clear, and in higher water the falls feels pretty powerful despite the creek’s relatively small size.
The area around Hot Springs is full of opportunities to get outdoors and have a blast.
Nature trails, parks and scenic roadways abound in Western NC. Walk the Appalachian Trail; explore the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest, Nantahala National Forest, or Pisgah National Forest; or drive the Blue Ridge Parkway, Cherohala Skyway, or Mountain Waters Scenic Byway. There is fun for everyone in Western NC.
The highest dam east of the Rockies is located just 35 miles West of Bryson City, North Carolina.
This small town located in the heart of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is literally a ‘base camp” for anything outdoor related.
Do you remember the atmosphere that was portrayed on the show “Cheers”? Well, if you do Mountain Perks is Bryson City’s Cheers.
A relatively large creek pours over a nearly vertical bluff into a big, deep, beautiful pool, complete with a sandy beach, before spilling over some smaller cascades and into a dark, rocky cove.
A collection of over 250 rare antique American Motorcycles and Automobiles.
The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad winds up, down, and around the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina.
This falls is not high, but it’s absolutely beautiful and accessible via a fairly easy hike.
Located in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains atop a plateau, Cashiers is a great spot for the whole family to visit and experience the beauty of Western North Carolina.
Darnell Farms offers many weekend festivals: Strawberry Jam Festival, Tomatoefest and Timberfest plus a Corn Maze depending on the season.
Famous for its Catawba Rhododendron gardens with its brilliant purple flowers in spring, the Roan is a wonderful place to visit and hike any time of the year.
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.
A small town located deep in Western North Carolina offering a charming small town experience for all visitors.
The Lake is 3,000 feet in elevation and offers to visitors many activities ranging from boating and fishing, to swimming and sightseeing.
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.
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.
Wayah Bald provides a beautiful view of Franklin and the surrounding Western North Carolina Mountains.
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.
Asheville, NC – This 18 hole disc golf course is one of the most played courses in Asheville. It features a wide range of obstacles and is pretty difficult as you throw through the woods, over valleys, and down ridges.
Enjoy a soaring and gliding experience naturally fueled by a gradual elevation change at Nantahala Gorge Canopy Tours.
Deep inside of Humpback Mountain lie the Linville Caverns, North Carolina’s only caverns.
Known as the “Little Charleston of the Mountains”, Flat Rock is a small community filled with historic inns, shops, restaurants, and galleries that will keep you exploring the area for days.
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.
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.
Shining Rock became one of the original components of the Wilderness System in September 1964. It is the largest Wilderness area in North Carolina.
The Pisgah National Forest consists of over half a million acres of forest surrounding Mt. Pisgah.
Offering up Italian favorites to locals and visitors to Bryson City, NC.
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 […]
Bent Creek’s watershed contains a collection of trails for all kinds of hikes, for beginners and familes to advanced hiking groups.
A family Theme Park and Zoo, Santa’s Land is an enchanted Christmas theme park everyone will love.
The Hazel Creek area inside the Great Smoky Mountains National park is rich with history about Western North Carolina and early Appalachia.
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.
Specializing in fresh baked Amish style goods, the Stoltzfus family has been baking great things for Bryson City for a long time.
Known as “The Crown of the Blue Ridge”, Blowing Rock is a special place to many visitors and residents alike.
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.
Saddle up for some of the most beautiful horseback ridding that you have ever done!
The Nantahala River offers the thrill and excitement of riding river rapids in a raft, canoe or kayak while enjoying the scenic Nantahala National Forest that surrounds it.
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.
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.
Sylva is the closest city to Western Carolina University; and is another great location for exploring the great outdoors.
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”.
Surrounded by the Appalachian mountains Waynesville has so much to offer within a short drive from outdoor activities to shopping and dinning.
This very popular activity is mainly enjoyed in the water of Deep Creek in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
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 […]
Cabins in the Appalachian, Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina are as unique as each family who owns them.
For great family rafting fun enjoy the Class I rapids of the Tuckaseigee River.
Located at the top of this mountain, in Maggie Valley, is a mile high fun center with an old west setting.
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.
Sometimes to see the things you want to see in Western North Carolina it requires you to hike for multiple days, and we love it.
Pisgah View Ranch is a Western North Carolina Dude Ranch that offers a horse ranch get a way for Family and Guests.
A historic shopping center located downtown Asheville that is famous for its beautifully restored architecture from the 1920s.
The Cherokee Skate Park is not only a great place to skateboard, bmx, or ride anything with wheels.
Indian Creek Falls is the largest waterfall in the Deep Creek area when it comes to the volume of water flowing across it.
