North Carolina High Country Bike Tour

Takes us out of the artsy town of Weaverville, a small bedroom community near Asheville, NC. We follow the shady creek front roads along Paint Branch and slip into Burnsville on the west end of town.

Takes us out of the town of Burnsville with it’s town square and mountain top village of Mountain Air, a fly-in, fly-out resort. On to the remote towns of Bakersville and Penland. Penland is home to one of the country’s oldest arts and crafts school. There we tour the campus and its art studios and enjoy a lunch on the Green. We work our way to Spruce Pine. Redundant in name, yes there are Christmas tree farms. Then on to The Blue Ridge Parkway for the evening in Little Switzerland.

We head out of Little Switzerland through the tiny village of Linville Falls. For those who would like, we can take a few hours break and do a bit of trekking through the high country’s claim to fame hiking destination. We skirt around the west side of Grandfather Mountain. From Grandfather Mountain, we follow the river beds to North Carolina’s ski country, riding in the shadows of Beech Mountain, Sugar Mountain and Seven Devils. Banner Elk, another upscale resort town is our stay for the evening.

We want you to keep your eyes wide open. Leaving Banner Elk, you may see elk and bear and we don’t want you to miss the white dots in the road that we refer to as towns. Valle Crucis is home to the south’s oldest general store. Following a visit to Mast General Store, we sneak past some upscale country club communities so perfectly placed in the the local valleys. We now climb out of the valley to Blowing Rock, “Crown of the Blue Ridge.” Here you’ll find popular family attractions including Tweetsie Railroad and The Blowing Rock, a plethora of unique downtown shops, exquisite dining and outdoor adventures ranging from hiking to spelunking and nearby waterfalls. Dinner will be on your own tonight as the selection is varied within the small upscale village.

We can take hiking time near the Moses Cone Manor or head straight out on the bikes. Then we make our way to a southward hop along the Blue Ridge Parkway to the most pictured spot in North Carolina, The Linn Viaduct, an amazing engineering feat of the road as it suspends over the rocky cliffs of Grandfather Mountain.The Viaduct is a worthwhile stop to enjoy the magnificent views. Grab a few pictures of the small villages of Pineola and Crossmore before we reach our park lodge in Little Switzerland.

Our final day out of Little Switzerland, on morning six, we are on the Blue Ridge Pkwy passing the infamous Mt. Mitchell State Park. Locals and cyclists from around the world participate in the Assault on Mt Mitchell every year. Don’t forget your head light and tail lights. We have numerous tunnels to pass through before we head off the parkway and finish our ride back in our starting town of Weaverville.

50 miles; 5445′ elevation

You will definitely feel a sense of accomplishment after logging your miles in these beautiful mountains over the last six days.