Roan Mountain

 Well, it rained non-stop till about noon Tuesday.  We'd had enough of it and got in the car to take a drive up the mountain.  The road goes very near to the top of Roan Mountain where you cross over the North Carolina State line and decend for miles.  I got a low fuel level warning but there was a gas station about 8 miles away, all downhill.  I put in $20 worth (at $4.209) and continued along.  We eventually came across a familiar little town we visited in the summer during our Blue Ridge Parkway adventure.  Spruce Pine N.C. is a nice small town nestled in the mountains between Roan Mountain and the Parkway.  By this point the rain had ceased and we were nearing the Town of Roan Mountain.  Google told us about a highly rated place to stop for lunch, and we did. Smokey Mountain Bakery turned out to be as good as its rating.  An off the beaten path, quaint little spot you won't find without GPS, we had a wood fired pizza that was just right to liven up a weary body.

We drove back up to the top of Roan Mountain again today, The shot above was about a mile and a half from the top but I had to stop and get a shot of that view.  Good thing I did because when we arrived at the top, a cloud bank was rolling in and soon visibility was too poor to get much more.

Part of my reasoning for driving back to the top of Roan Mountain was to get a good shot of the early fall colors that we've gotton to see during our little trek.  Unfortunately every time we would have one of those OOooh moments, there was nowhere to pull off and get the shot.  Too often on a 2 lane road with a steep wall on one side and guardrail with a steep drop on the other.  I did take a stroll around the campground though and took a few shots for the scrapbook.

By most accounts, the fall colors will peak about the time we get back home. I expect we'll get a few more chances in the week ahead.  I'll be sure to post them if I do.

We'll be here till Friday, check-out is by noon but I'm planning to head out by 10am.  Then it's about a 2 hour drive north to our next destination, which I'll reveal in another post.  Till then, Happy Hump Day! :-)