Mini Road Trips and Seasonal Celebrations

While it may be an exaggeration to characterize trips lasting fewer than 48 hours as “road trips,” we rounded out our 2025 travel with two short road trips to the mountains. While brief, our third and fourth mountain getaways of the year took us back to places we visited earlier in the summer, but with a different objective: seasonal highlights.

Quick Trip to Blowing Rock

With a drive time of under 2 hours, the charming little mountain town of Blowing Rock is an eminently reachable destination for us and can easily be visited during a day trip. However, we wanted to explore the area in a little more depth and combine some hiking with a scenic drive along a recently-reopened section of the Blue Ridge Parkway. We planned this trip at the end of the first week in October in hopes of seeing some of the famed fall colors in town and along the Parkway.

An easy morning drive brought us to Moses H. Cone Memorial Park by midday. This recreation area is directly adjacent to both the town of Blowing Rock and the Blue Ridge Parkway, and since the trails on this former summer estate were originally well-graded carriage trails, the hiking here is relaxing and pleasantly root-free. It’s no surprise, then, that the park is extremely popular. As usual, getting a short distance away from the parking area means getting away from most of the crowds. With perfect hiking weather (sunny, 60 degrees, and low humidity) we enthusiastically tackled the full-property loop around the lake, up to the manor house, and back down to the lake. Adding in a little extra loop around the lake brought our mileage to just over 7 miles, making for a very satisfying outing.

 

 

After checking into our hotel, the quaint and well-located Hemlock Inn, we spent a few hours browsing in the boutique stores along Main Street, marveling at the immense variety of kitchen towels adorned with black bears and cute sayings. We enjoyed an early dinner of seasonal fare at Bistro Roca before turning in for the night. We were up before sunrise, so we decided to make the 10 minute drive to the nearby Thunder Hill Overlook, reportedly one of the best sunrise-viewing spots on the Parkway. As the photos demonstrate, the experience did not disappoint.

 

 

After stopping at Bald Guy Brew for some excellent coffee and checking out of our hotel, we were ready for the Parkway drive portion of our adventure. We meandered southwest from Blowing Rock about 15 miles to the Grandfather Mountain area, since the stretch of the Parkway between Boone and Linville Falls had just reopened. We stopped at every available pull-off (several were still being repaired and reconditioned after damage from Hurricane Helene) to take in the views and snap photos. We were reminded of the changeability of mountain weather, since we experienced everything from brilliant sunshine to dense fog over the course of the relatively short drive. Unfortunately the face of Grandfather Mountain, a likely spot for seeing dramatic fall colors, was totally shrouded in fog.

 

 

Although fall colors were just starting to appear — we saw far more gold than orange or red — we greatly enjoyed our leisurely crawl down the parkway. We then had a second chance to visit all the same pull-offs as we retraced our route northeast toward Boone, exiting the Parkway to jump on US421 for a direct route home. While the fall colors were decidedly not at peak strength yet, we still enjoyed the taste of cooler weather and the opportunity to take in mountain scenery.

Overnight Visit to Asheville

About seven weeks later, we made a similar trek to Asheville. Our drive time to Asheville is about 2.5 hours, making it less convenient for a day trip, but since our visit in November was centered on an evening event we knew that we would be staying overnight. Our primary reason for visiting was to take in the annual Winter Lights display at the North Carolina Arboretum. This seasonal light show runs from mid-November through early January and makes the Arboretum a compelling destination in a season when the outdoor gardens are not very showy.

Adding to the interest this year is a temporary exhibit of works by sculptor Thomas Dambo. His whimsical, large-scale trolls are made from discarded wood like shipping pallets and twigs, and they are designed to communicate messages about upcycling, reducing waste, and protecting the environment. The Arboretum show includes 12 sculptures, with half located along the trail network surrounding the formal gardens. Since these areas would not be accessible at night, we knew our trip would include two different visits to the Arboretum. Arriving at the Arboretum at midday, we strolled around to visit all 12 trolls and the formal gardens before picking up the pace for one of the many scenic hikes available on the Arboretum property. We quickly discovered that children and adult humans can’t resist interacting with the troll sculptures, particularly by copying their poses for photos. I’ll bet you can guess from the photos below which troll was most-emulated. We also enjoyed learning about the Echoes of the Forest project, which is turning thousands of trees downed by Hurricane Helene into public art, supporting local artists while also creating beautiful (and sometimes functional) pieces. Several eye-catching examples of these works are on display at the Arboretum, which lost over 10,000 trees across its 400+ acres.

 

 

After hiking we headed to our hotel, a Hampton Inn located just 2 miles from the Arboretum, to shower and grab some food before returning for the Winter Lights at 6 pm. As if we hadn’t already taken enough photos of the trolls earlier in the day, we proceeded to go wild photographing the breathtaking displays of lights. We loved the variety of colors and shapes, and especially the charming nature-themed displays of plants and animals.

 

 

The following morning we journeyed into Asheville proper to spend time checking out the tremendous art scene. Our first stop was at the stunning Lexington Glassworks, a glassblowing studio that produces truly remarkable works in a variety of styes. We followed this up with a visit to the River Arts District, where hundreds of different artists have studios and galleries. We focused on the Wedge Building, a new-to-us location that introduced us to quite a few very fine artists working in paint, ceramics, and other media. We intended to then visit several nearby glass and ceramics studios, but by midday we were approaching sensory overload. We took the start of a drizzly rain as a sign to head home, satisfied with another successful trip.

 

 

Local Colors and Thanksgiving

We balanced our short trips out of town with local activities in spots where we could appreciate the colors of the season. Our fall wrapped up with a low-key but delicious Thanksgiving meal in which the role of leading poultry was played by a Costco rotisserie chicken. Now it’s time to jump headlong in to the most exciting, but also the the most exhausting, season of all: holiday season!