Ashville, NC
After four months of quarantine in our 800 s.f, condo, Anna, Leia, and I decided we needed a little vacation. Like any true dog parents would do, we planned the trip around our little pup, Leia, and decided to go to Ashville, NC, from 7/12 to 7/20. The drive took us about 10 hours in all, with some gas stops and lunch in between in Cincinnati. Ashville is a hidden gem in the United States, and I am quite surprised how few people have actually visited the city. It is a cute hippy town situated in the blue ridge mountains offering endless outdoor activities, breweries, art, and fantastic food.
We booked a cute Airbnb right outside of Ashville, closer to the Blue Ridge mountains in Weaverville, NC.
We selected this place specifically for Leia as the Airbnb came with a fenced-in acre for our pup to run around and explore the woods and she took full advantage of this fenced in yard and didn't let one square inch go un-explored.
As you can see in the video below, our princess has definitely outgrown the condo and needs a backyard to run sprints on a full-time basis.
After a long drive, the 1st stop we made before we got situated at our Airbnb was a restaurant right in downtown Weaverville, called the Glass Onion. I'd highly recommend the beef & cheese ravioli and getting it to go and sitting in the Main Street Nature Park right across the street for a nice picnic if the weather permits.
On Monday, after a long night's rest, our first stop was the Sunny Point Cafe. Being south of the Mason Dixon line, you are almost required by law to have fried food for one meal, and this was our choice. One of the best chicken and waffle sandwiches I have ever had and would recommend anyone traveling to Ashville to add this to your list.
After letting our breakfast settle and getting groceries for the week, we headed to Catawba Falls for a hike and to let Leia get some swimming in. This hike had several creeks accessible on the way to the waterfall, which Leia took full advantage of swimming in. This was a perfect afternoon hike, with it only being two miles and elevation being minimal.
After the hike, we decided to check out the Arboretum, where we got another hike in and took in the gardens and sculptures.
After the Arb, we went to one of the more unique taco places we have ever been to, right on the French Broad River with fantastic outdoor seating was White Duck Taco and would definitely recommend the Bangkok Shrimp tacos. A beer truck was also right next to the Taco shop, and this area would make anyone from Austin, Tx feel right at home with the food truck feel.
On Wednesday, we took a study day and relaxed at the Airbnb so that Anna and I could take care of some homework.
On Thursday, we did a hike at Lovers Leap Trail, which is part of the Appalachian Trail and the trailhead is a common pickup point for river rafting in the area (my last trip to Ashville, this is where I was picked up at). Leia struggled the most with this hike as it was very hot, humid, and rocky. The hike was definitely worth the views.
On Friday, we went to another great restaurant in the river arts district called 12 Bones for lunch. This BBQ joint had some fantastic ribs, and the smoked turkey sandwich is also a must-try. The damn good corn pudding, mac and cheese, and baked beans are sides that will blow you away. After finishing up lunch, we walked around several art studios, amazed at everything from the pottery to the woodworking to the paintings of the local artists. You could easily spend two days taking classes and checking out local artwork in this area.
We had dinner at Isis Asheville and a folk lawn concert by Belle and The Band. We thought the venue was perfect, and it was so lovely to hear live music in an outdoor, social distance setting. Leia joined us and was on her best behavior, enjoying the music with us.
We splurged for breakfast on Saturday. We had breakfast tacos at TACO Billy and then doughnuts and coffee at HOLE. The plantain tortillas at TACO Billy are amazing, and the toasted almond sesame cinnamon doughnut at HOLE might have been the best doughnut I ever had in my life.
After eating enough food for four, we went on a hike at Crabtree Falls, which got extended, and Leia got her first experience of getting lost in the woods.
After playing in the water and taking in some views at the parkway, we splurged and got Vinnie's Italian. We would have easily gotten this place twice in a week, it was that amazing. Between the cannoli, the garlic knots, vodka penne, and chicken parm, I can honestly not specifically point out one thing on the menu we tried. Next time we are back in Ashville, we will definitely go back to Vinnie's.
On Sunday, we did some packing, more studying, and drove through the parkway one last time.
Here are some random shots Anna took while we were driving to hikes and stopped off at the Blue Ridge Parkway throughout the week.
We booked a cute Airbnb right outside of Ashville, closer to the Blue Ridge mountains in Weaverville, NC.
We selected this place specifically for Leia as the Airbnb came with a fenced-in acre for our pup to run around and explore the woods and she took full advantage of this fenced in yard and didn't let one square inch go un-explored.
As you can see in the video below, our princess has definitely outgrown the condo and needs a backyard to run sprints on a full-time basis.
After a long drive, the 1st stop we made before we got situated at our Airbnb was a restaurant right in downtown Weaverville, called the Glass Onion. I'd highly recommend the beef & cheese ravioli and getting it to go and sitting in the Main Street Nature Park right across the street for a nice picnic if the weather permits.
On Monday, after a long night's rest, our first stop was the Sunny Point Cafe. Being south of the Mason Dixon line, you are almost required by law to have fried food for one meal, and this was our choice. One of the best chicken and waffle sandwiches I have ever had and would recommend anyone traveling to Ashville to add this to your list.
After letting our breakfast settle and getting groceries for the week, we headed to Catawba Falls for a hike and to let Leia get some swimming in. This hike had several creeks accessible on the way to the waterfall, which Leia took full advantage of swimming in. This was a perfect afternoon hike, with it only being two miles and elevation being minimal.
After the hike, we decided to check out the Arboretum, where we got another hike in and took in the gardens and sculptures.
After the Arb, we went to one of the more unique taco places we have ever been to, right on the French Broad River with fantastic outdoor seating was White Duck Taco and would definitely recommend the Bangkok Shrimp tacos. A beer truck was also right next to the Taco shop, and this area would make anyone from Austin, Tx feel right at home with the food truck feel.
On Wednesday, we took a study day and relaxed at the Airbnb so that Anna and I could take care of some homework.
On Thursday, we did a hike at Lovers Leap Trail, which is part of the Appalachian Trail and the trailhead is a common pickup point for river rafting in the area (my last trip to Ashville, this is where I was picked up at). Leia struggled the most with this hike as it was very hot, humid, and rocky. The hike was definitely worth the views.
On Friday, we went to another great restaurant in the river arts district called 12 Bones for lunch. This BBQ joint had some fantastic ribs, and the smoked turkey sandwich is also a must-try. The damn good corn pudding, mac and cheese, and baked beans are sides that will blow you away. After finishing up lunch, we walked around several art studios, amazed at everything from the pottery to the woodworking to the paintings of the local artists. You could easily spend two days taking classes and checking out local artwork in this area.
We had dinner at Isis Asheville and a folk lawn concert by Belle and The Band. We thought the venue was perfect, and it was so lovely to hear live music in an outdoor, social distance setting. Leia joined us and was on her best behavior, enjoying the music with us.
We splurged for breakfast on Saturday. We had breakfast tacos at TACO Billy and then doughnuts and coffee at HOLE. The plantain tortillas at TACO Billy are amazing, and the toasted almond sesame cinnamon doughnut at HOLE might have been the best doughnut I ever had in my life.
After eating enough food for four, we went on a hike at Crabtree Falls, which got extended, and Leia got her first experience of getting lost in the woods.
After playing in the water and taking in some views at the parkway, we splurged and got Vinnie's Italian. We would have easily gotten this place twice in a week, it was that amazing. Between the cannoli, the garlic knots, vodka penne, and chicken parm, I can honestly not specifically point out one thing on the menu we tried. Next time we are back in Ashville, we will definitely go back to Vinnie's.
On Sunday, we did some packing, more studying, and drove through the parkway one last time.
Here are some random shots Anna took while we were driving to hikes and stopped off at the Blue Ridge Parkway throughout the week.
Comments
Post a Comment