We drove to Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest that morning in Robbinsville, NC. The drive itself is breathtaking. Winding countryside with a canopy of green trees that feel as though they wrap all the way around you. All the plants were alive and thriving in the early summer weather. We reached our destination and found that one trail was closed due to some damage from recent storms, but there was another route to our destination. We headed up a beautifully kept trail that felt both well managed and wild at the same time – a combination that is very appealing. The forest was full of vibrant green. There was the distant sound of a running creek. Not too long into our hike, we came to a bridge that crossed over that water. The bridge was rustic, and had unfinished timber for rails, and the water was rushing through rock and passing under a tree that has fallen across the creek. It was all so beautiful and aesthetically pleasing…peaceful. It excited me and we continued on ascending rocks used as stairs and other small bridges crossing gradually smaller parts of the creek. We passed large trees that have fallen to the sides of the trail. Moss carpets the trees in a vibrant green only disturbed by the growth of small orange mushrooms. At another creek crossing, there was a very large tree that had been uprooted, showing us its maze of roots and rocks that the tree had grown around. The creek seemed to pass underneath where the tree once grew. We then entered the forest of giant trees. They were awe inspiring, large enough that it would take all of us joining hands to ever wrap around them and were taller than the eye can see. They seemed to reach up to heaven. It was a warm day, but the discovery of this forest excited us and the desire to take it all in pushed us on. We found giant tree after giant tree each having its own interesting features. The trail was covered in winding roots that were at times used as stairs as we ascended further into the forest. We crossed rock covered dry creek beds and found large rocks that seemed to have been carved out over time making what looked like a bowl in their center that is filled with water from recent rains. We heard the singing of a variety of birds in the trees above and saw bugs wandering around busy at work. My eye then caught something on a plant as I passed and I stopped to examine a large snail resting on a branch. The trail wrapped around and we descended back the way we came, occasionally passing a fellow hiker. This hike was beautiful and I breathed in the peace and tranquility that nature had to offer. Jay, the kids, and myself headed back towards our van and on to the next adventure quite thrilled at our find.
Our next goal was to find lunch and as we were somewhat unfamiliar with this area, we hoped that a lodge Jay remembered down the way was open. To our delight it was. We all piled into the Historic Tapoco Lodge, which was built in 1930. We descended to the bottom level to eat at the Tapoco Tavern. It sits on the side of whitewater. The lodge and its grounds are stunning. We took it in as we discussed maybe a long weekend stay in one of their cabins sometime in the future. We were quite pleased with the atmosphere and views as we ate our black and blue burgers and the kids downed chicken wings and chicken tenders. All were happy with their choices. We headed back upstairs to look at the lodge store and then back to the car and towards the next adventure of the day.
We headed towards “The Fugitive” dam. It’s the one that Harrison Ford jumps from as actor Tommy Lee shouts in disbelief “The guy did a Peter Pan right here off this dam right here” in the movie The Fugitive. This just happened to be Jay’s favorite movie and he has been wanting to take me to this dam for sometime. We traveled on, finding small water falls running down the sides of the hills as we passed. We reached our next destination: The Fontana Dam. Built between 1942-1945, the dam is 480 ft tall and 2365 ft wide. When we rounded the corner and were face-to-face with the bottom of the dam, there was a chorus of “WHOA” as it was shockingly large. It looked like something from a movie that you’d never expect to be real. The things we humans think up and then make work is quite amazing. We got out and examined it from the bottom, and then drove to the top where we walked the dam and looked down with just as much wonder and maybe a bit of fear at the height. The lake above the dam is gorgeous. It’s a blue/green color the seems to meet the trees all the way around. We all stood and took this view in.
Next, we were headed to Bryson City for ice cream from a local shop that we had promised the girls. As we headed back towards home, we stumbled upon part of the Nantahala River that we had never seen. We were all thrilled and promptly pulled off to take in these beautiful falls. We decided to head to Franklin, TN. At this time, we managed to take a wrong turn that turned out to be a lot of fun. Jay, a bit nervous we would get stuck out in the middle of nowhere and I, totally enjoying the unknown and beauty of this overgrown, tree covered, absolutely uninhabited at times dirt road. We came around a corner to an incredible view of the nearby mountains, and the cloud covered skies that were letting us know rain was likely coming. We enjoyed it and then moved on down the road coming across a winery that seemed to be in the middle of nowhere as it took us awhile to get back to a main road. With that being said, its grapevines and the grounds of the winery, were very pretty.
Once we arrived at Franklin we stopped and ordered pizza for the hungry bunch and took a short break. It was now very dark and time to start the trip back home. The kids all fell asleep as the night air cooled and Jay and I reflected on the day, both extremely happy with our adventure.
