Our visit to Grandfather Mountain

Rain cut short our last camping trip. We'd planned to camp two nights, but it poured all night. We'd had a good time until the deluge.

So before the end of the summer, I wanted to try again. On the list of places our Tweetsie season passes earn a discount: Grandfather Mountain. I checked into it and kids get it free until they're 4 years old. That sealed it for me.

I also was excited that gave me a reason to camp at one of my favorite spots nearby: Linville Falls.

Sawyer and I set out early Thursday morning for the mountains with a car full of stuff. He started getting antsy about Wilkesboro, but we pressed on. We stopped at an overlook on the parkway because Sawyer was really getting whiny. We walked around for a few minutes and felt better.

We detoured through Blowing Rock to stop at the grocery store to pick up firewood and a few things. After a tantrum in the checkout line, I decided it was crucial to feed Sawyer lunch.

For some crazy reason (partly because the widening of U.S. 321 made a mess in Blowing Rock), I decided to take U.S. 221 to Linville. I clearly had forgotten how curvy it is. It was S-curves the whole way, but we did get to see quite a few roadside waterfalls.

We got to the campground about 2:30 and picked out a site in the middle of a grassy field. It didn't hit me until later, but it was the same site we once camped at when I was in high school. I had a few deja vu moments. We chatted with Joe, the campground host, who was from Newton.

After we got everything set up and I ate lunch, we drove a mile or so down the road to the waterfall. We put our backpacks on and set off down the trail. Everyone we passed smiled or chuckled at Sawyer and his mini backpack.





Sawyer was great about hiking. Even though it wasn't terribly far to the waterfall overlook, he didn't complain or ask to be carried, like I expected. He did want to hold my hand most of the way, until the steep stairs and treacherous spots ... where I actually wanted to hold his hand.

We chatted with several couples along the trail, thanks to Sawyer's outgoingness. One took our photo in several spots.









We hiked back toward the visitors center and stopped off at the upper falls, where Sawyer inspected an inchworm a woman had found. She let him hold it on his arm, and he insisted she carry it over to a leaf to let it go.



We returned to the campground, and it was still a little early for dinner. Sawyer played with his Thomas train and I read. It was very relaxing.



We built our fire and roasted hotdogs (though Sawyer finally gave up and ate his cold). We did marshmallows, too, but Sawyer also had no patience for letting them roast. So he'd wave them over the flames for about five seconds before eating them.

When the fire was low, I helped get Sawyer to bed, and then I read a bit more before turning in.

Friday morning, we woke up early. It was quite chilly, so I decided we'd drive into town and see if we could find coffee. We lucked out and saw six deer on the drive in. Five jumped out across the road and leaped over a split-rail fence. The fifth one was smaller and really had to work to get over the fence. A little further up the parkway we saw a bunch of wild turkeys. The coffee shop was crazy expensive, so we skipped it and ate cereal bars in the car.

We got to Grandfather Mountain about 9 a.m. It was very lovely. Our admission included this awesome CD that narrates your drive up the mountain. It was still chilly and very windy. We stopped first at the nature museum and checked out the exhibits inside. It showed birds, animals, mushrooms, flowers, gemstones and more that can be found in the diverse habitats at Grandfather.









After that, we checked out all the animals, but we realized that it was only an hour until the animal enrichment activities began. So we killed some time in the butterfly garden, which was full of June bugs, bumblebees and butterflies.









We walked down the hill to see two giant rock formations that are millions (billions?) of years old. Sawyer had fun climbing around and running through the "tunnel" in the rocks. He also spotted some millipedes that we inspected.





We went back and saw the "Mad Parrot" ... also known as a golden eagle.  (A week before we came up, I was showing Sawyer pictures of the animals we'd see and asked him what it was ... His answer was a "mad parrot."



We saw the bears and watched the keeper feed one tubes of blueberries as an enrichment. She explained that some of the older bears were there when they sold peanuts so visitors could feed the bears. One learned to stick out his tongue as a trick to get more peanuts, and he still does it when people come by.






The river otters were our favorite. Nottaway and Luna were very playful, and they clearly enjoyed having a crowd. Luna would pop her head up out of the water to see who's watching and then do backflips off the wall. Luna also came up to the glass and would stand up and check out the kids.











After that, we were ready to drive up to the summit and the swinging bridge. Unfortunately, our car would not crank. I had a moment of panic before remembering a line on the CD they gave us: "Let us know if there's anything we can do to make your visit better." After asking in the gift shop, several people came to our rescue. A very nice employee came out and jumped the battery, and we were back in business. We let the car run while we ate lunch, and then we drove up the craziest switchback road ever.

We bundled up against the wind and climbed up to the Mile-High Swinging Bridge, which Sawyer insisted on calling the "Sodor Expension (Suspension) Bridge," something I guess he's heard on Thomas.









You can scramble out to the very edge of the summit on rock outcroppings. Sawyer was dying to climb around on the rocks like everyone else. And I was terrified he was going to fall. We went about halfway, but I made him turn around. He was not happy, but I couldn't take the stress of him climbing around and it was starting to thunder. I figured a metal bridge on the top of mountain in a storm is not the place to be.





We bought a few gifts at the gift shop, walked back by the otters and headed down the mountain. Sawyer even asked to listen to the CD again on the way out.

We were both wiped out. We'd spent the better part of five hours walking around. I had promised Sawyer ice cream, but we couldn't find any in Linville. It was starting to rain, and I knew a drive would be the best way to get him to nap. So we drove into Boone.

There was no parking downtown, so I decided we could kill some time at the mall. We found ice cream there, and I found some new black shoes to replace a worn-out pair that I wear a lot to work. I had no desire to eat another crummy, lukewarm dinner at the campsite. So we caved and ate at Wendy's.

On the drive back to Linville, we sang songs and tried to top each other in silliness. We were able see the "face" that legend has it prompted people to name it Grandfather Mountain. We also caught a glimpse of the bridge.

The setting sun created a beautiful glow over the campground. We built a fire and roasted marshmallows again. The stars were just amazing.



After waking up, I packed everything up, still wet with dew. The morning was beautiful, but we were ready to go home.





Sawyer was desperate to go back to Grandfather Mountain. But I told him we had to go home. On the drive back up the parkway, Sawyer asked to hear the CD again. I asked why and he said because that's what you listen to when you go to Grandfather Mountain. I think he thought we'd go back if the CD was playing.

I asked him if he'd learned anything. I asked if he could remember any of the things the man had said, and he said yes. "What do you remember?" I asked. "Track 1," he said, giving me another really good laugh. 

The drive home along the parkway was lovely. I'm so glad that we live close enough to easily visit such beautiful places. And I'm thankful that my parents took me camping and taught me to appreciate the beauty of nature. I hope I can instill that love in Sawyer.

He told me three or four times during our trip that he loved camping. As long as he enjoys it, I'll keep taking him.