I drove about two hours and arrived in the mountain town of Asheville, NC around 4pm. I was about to park downtown but then I realized I need to find a place to stay, so I looked up the closest camping site and they were about to close, so I rushed out of my parking spot and over the the campsite to check in. I booked a night, and as I walked out of the office the view was breathtaking. You'll see the pics in my previous posts, but wowee (love that word) it was one of the best views I've seen in all my travels. This campsite, Campfire Lodgings, is apparently very sought after in the RV community (who woulda thunk?). There were campers and huge RV's all over, and one guy told me that he and his wife had been there for three weeks. What a find?! Ha. The spot for my tent was extremely remote and at the end of the cars and RV's, which was even better for me. I setup my tent and then drove back downtown, which was only about 10 minutes away. I park my car in the same spot I was about to park earlier, and as I get out I hear a guitarist playing outside on the next block. I walk towards the sound and come to a guy playing acoustic guitar while blowing into a didgeridoo at the same time. He's got a few guitars behind him as well. Another great find! The restaurant was called Southern, and the guitarists name was Tyler Hereing - check em out. I hung out with the guitarist after his show, and we had a few drinks before I called it a night and headed back to the campsite to sleep under the stars. It's so peaceful and relaxing sleeping outside. The only hitch about sleeping in this particular campsite is the fact that black bears had been seen just a few nights prior walking through the campsite. I'm pretty sure they wouldn't bother me, but it was definitely on my mind when I slept there. In the morning on Thursday I walked around the campsite and then grabbed some breakfast at a local eatery that the staff of the campsite told me to try: Granny's Kitchen. Biscuits with gravy and a biscuit breakfast sandwich. Not a bad start to the day! I head from there and drive around downtown Asheville, getting lost in the side streets. I checked out some art shops, and then hung in a little park listening to a great guitarist play. Around lunchtime I decided to try the best BBQ spot in town: 12 Bones. Wow! Fantastic vibe and great pulled pork, mac n cheese, and jalapeño grits. Classic southern BBQ. After that I drove around the river arts district, which is a very cool artist area of Asheville. I preferred this to the downtown scene because it felt more rustic and real. Great art. Cool people. No pretension whatsoever. My kind of place. After that I headed back to the campsite with some candy and some firewood and hung out as the sun went down over the smokey mountains. What a sight. I took some pics and included them in a previous post, but this was definitely one of the most beautiful things I've seen in the US. I passed out listening to the roar of the cicadas. Friday morning I got up and had my car checked out because (of course) it's making some noises and the "check engine" light was coming on. The guy at the fixit shop said all was ok - apparently these Ford cars have a very sensitive sensors, so any little thing turns your warning lights on. Ok. Fair enough. I get the car back and then head back towards Charlotte.
Oh! Forgot to mention. I was walking through the campsite on Thursday at some point and two guys were standing and talking just in front of me. I said hello and then they engaged me in conversation, and it was fun to hear about their adventures on the road. One had been on the road for 9 years! The other had been on the road for 2 years. No bills. No mortgage. Just a moving home. Not sure I could do that lifestyle, but maybe it's something I entertain in retirement. Who knows. As I'm talking to these two guys, one of them nods over my shoulder and I turn around to see a 5-6ft black snake sliding across the road. The snake was no more than 3ft away from us, so it was obviously not intimidated by humans. Apparently these guys had seen another snake come through just a few minutes prior, so this was no surprise. Haven't seen a snake like that since I was in southern Italy. Definitely a crazy animal - still hard to imagine that they move by flexing almost every muscle in their body at different times.
Oh! Forgot to mention. I was walking through the campsite on Thursday at some point and two guys were standing and talking just in front of me. I said hello and then they engaged me in conversation, and it was fun to hear about their adventures on the road. One had been on the road for 9 years! The other had been on the road for 2 years. No bills. No mortgage. Just a moving home. Not sure I could do that lifestyle, but maybe it's something I entertain in retirement. Who knows. As I'm talking to these two guys, one of them nods over my shoulder and I turn around to see a 5-6ft black snake sliding across the road. The snake was no more than 3ft away from us, so it was obviously not intimidated by humans. Apparently these guys had seen another snake come through just a few minutes prior, so this was no surprise. Haven't seen a snake like that since I was in southern Italy. Definitely a crazy animal - still hard to imagine that they move by flexing almost every muscle in their body at different times.
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