Chimney Rock State Park

More hiking??? said my boy Maximo at that time around 8 years old. We headed to the Chimney Rock State Park another attraction from the area for nature lovers like me. Chimney Rock is 553 million years old monolith (can you believe that) From its top, you’ll be amaze by the 75-mile panoramic views of Hickory Nut Gorge and Lake Lure. You can use the trail made (most of it) of floating stairs (no good if you are afraid of heights, my dog couldn’t make it) or you can use the elevator at site.

We took the stairs all the way to the highest peak of the park (2,480 feet) following the exclamation point trail (around 30 min) at the top you’ll start finding different spots that offers the most amazing views of Lake Lure and Hickory Nut Gorge, Opera Box for instance, is a spot surrounding by stone (like a cave) pretty much a balcony where you can appreciate the beauty of mother nature.

Other key point is Devil’s Head which is literally a mirador to a stone shaped almost sculpture of a living Devil (not fabricated) they just believe part of the rock slid down and erosion made other features of this Devil’s Head.

Downtown Asheville

We ran short in time while exploring Downtown Asheville but that didn’t stop us to see and check the most important spots, grab a snack and do some shopping.

As I said at the beginning there is a hipster atmosphere everywhere in Asheville and I love it! the streets are full of locally-owned shops and boutiques, you can find very cute coffee shops and restaurants, gallery arts, handmade gifts and antiques. We had the chance to pass by Tupelo Honey and grab a nice cup of hot chocolate (it was about 27F that night).

All in all, theres is so much to do in Asheville, these trip felt short for the amount of things we missed at this occasion, I definitely have to come back to keep exploring this fantastic region.