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t had been a while since we went roaming up on the Blue Ridge Parkway. In fact, it's usually closed in the winter because of icy roads. But it's been so warm this winter that we were able to get up to Craggy Gardens and Craggy Pinnacle just before New Years. Totally worth it, and highly recommend.
It has been way too long since I went on an aimless wander - just to see what's going on, and let the creative well fill up a bit, and basically enjoy myself for no other reason than the fun of it. This morning I rectified that situation. (click title to continue reading)
Right before Spring Break I decided to volunteer at an aid station for a local ultra race - the Hellbender 100 Trail Race. Yes, these people actually run 100 miles. Mainly on trails. And to the top of Mt. Mitchell - tallest peak east of the Mississippi. I figured if they're going to do something so... inspiring? crazy? interesting? Then I'd love to witness it, and help a little if possible.
I love Austin Kleon's books - and in particular recommend them for anyone engaged in a creative field, or wanting to explore their creativity - and his new one was just released last week. Yay! I took it with me up to Craggy Gardens last week, and it was exactly the thing to sit and read while looking out at the mountains.
This morning I headed for the Blue Ridge Parkway and turned North. First stop: Craggy Gardens. This overlook is overflowing with people in the summer, but on a random Thursday morning in April I had it all to myself, and it was glorious.
As mentioned a few days ago, it was time for me to head back out for a wander. Not for any particular purpose - just to see what happened.
It's slowly coming towards spring here in Asheville, and I'm getting the itch to head back out for some weekly wanderings.
You know how you can get in these weird patterns that don't seem to have any logical basis, but have been around so long they seem like fact? That's how I am with the Blue Ridge Parkway. I get on it, I head south - towards Mount Pisgah. Probably because when I was a kid that was our thing - we went to Mount Pisgah, or Graveyard Fields, which is close by, and that was that. But this week, I was headed out on a long overdue meander and when I pulled on to the parkway I turned the other direction - and realized that while it is kind of bizarre I haven't done this before, it also means I have basically a whole new parkway to discover. Score. My slightly nonsensical habit has left me with lots of room for new discovery. Happy accidents are my favorite.
If you're ever in Asheville and you like both coffee and rivers I've got the perfect coffee shop for you. High Five Coffee has a couple of locations near downtown, and also one in a tiny (exceedingly cute) building right on the bank of the French Broad in Woodfin. So I headed out there on a bizarrely warm and lovely February day to do a little scheming and daydreaming, and then fill my seed list for 2018.
Last week's post about the Parkway closure snapped me out of my weekly excursion malaise - basically, I decided sulking was unseemly, and it was time to get off my ass and find something interesting to do. This town is overflowing with fun things, so it was just laziness - or inertia?- that was keeping me stuck.
With that in mind, I stuck with one thing that works - Taco Billy - and got my breakfast taco and headed out. Instead of walking along the Parkway (which I'm still going to do - park at a gate and start meandering), I decided to flow with the seasons and head downhill - to the river.
