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| The Chimney Rock with Lake Lure. |
On Wednesday, June 20th, your favorite blogger once again took to the road -- this time with my nephews J.T. (Jacob Tyler) and Caleab Morris along for the ride -- for a nice day trip to Chimney Rock State Park in Rutherford County, North Carolina.
The 6,807 acre park is located 25 miles southeast of the city of Asheville, North Carolina. The most prominent features of the park include the 315 foot tall granite Chimney Rock itself with a stunning 75-mile view overlooking Lake Lure and the beautiful Hickory Nut Gorge.
Located on the edge of the Blue Ridge Escarpment, the Hickory Nut George itself starts at the Eastern Continental Divide in Gerton, North Carolina about 20 minutes from Asheville, and runs through the communities of Gerton, Bat Cave, and Chimney Rock, and ends 10 miles later at Lake Lure, dropping about 1,800 feet. Route 74 runs along it with 14 hairpin curves, so please drive carefully.
Another prominent feature of the park is the 404 foot tall Hickory Nut Falls which feeds into the Broad River.
National attention came to the park and the falls when it was featured in the 1992 film The Last of the Mohicans. The park was heavily featured at the end, and the final fight scene between Chingachgook and Magua was filmed at the brink of Hickory Nut falls.
Nearby Lake Lure was also prominently featured in the 1987 film Dirty Dancing. Scenes in Lake Lure were filmed at the old Boys Camp, which is now a private, residential community known as Firefly Cove. These scenes included the interior dancing scenes, Baby carrying the watermelon and practicing on the signature stairs, Johnny's cabin, the staff cabins, the golf scene where Baby asks her father for $250, the "log" scene and the famous "water lift" scene.
Other films made at Lake Lure include: Thunder Road (1958), A Breed Apart (1984), Firestarter (1984), and My Fellow Americans (1996).
Tens of thousands of nature lovers, tourists and hikers across the country visit Chimney Rock State Park every year, -- especially in the autumn months when the mountains around Hickory Nut George and Lake Lure are bright with orange, red, yellow and golden fall leaves.
The following are the pictures I took on my day trip with my nephews to the park. Please enjoy them.
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| Chimney Rock State Park and Hickory Nut Falls as seen from Chimney Rock Village. |
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| Uh, hiya Yogi! |
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| My nephews are so anxious to get in the Broad River and take a dip. |
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| Super Caleab! |
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| Actually both of them are pretty super. |
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| Gorgeous Hickory Nut George in early summer. |
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| Yours truly in front of the Chimney Rock. |
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| View of the Chimney Rock and Lake Lure from the Opera Box. |
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| Caleb was ready to get down to the lake by now. |
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| A view of Chimney Rock Village from the Opera Box. |
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| People and ducks sharing the beach at beautiful Lake Lure. |
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| J.T. and Caleab playing around in Lake Lure. |
Overall the boys had a great time, and so did I -- despite the fact we got back to the lake too late in the day to get kayak or canoe rentals. Next time though I plan to get out on that lake myself. Maybe next trip I will rent a kayak and paddle the whole length of Lake Lure from one side to the other all around? If I do y'all know were to find the photos.
Well I hope y'all enjoyed taking this trip with me and my sister's boys, and hopefully soon I will have some more travel photos to share to y'all. Until then have a wonderful Dixie Day and y'all come back now, ya hear?
