Chinquapin Mountain & Highlands

July 22, 2022                                                                        Most Recent Posts:
Riverbend Campground                                        Moore Cove & Cove Creek
Lake Toxaway, NC                                                   Three Lakes & Bridal Veil

I really love the little town of Highlands and wasn’t able to see everything I was interested in the first time I went.  So today I went back to hike up the mountain for the views and then check out some spots in town including another restaurant.

I started out at the same parking lot I went to for Glen Falls  You can find that post here.   This time I’m going to actually take the trail up Chinquapin Mountain that I mistakenly started off on when looking for Glenn Falls.

Today was a bit wetter than the last time I came.  But the trail was still lovely and I crossed the bridge over the stream at the bottom and began my climb up.  I’ll just let the pictures tell most of the story.  The Rhododendron were fading but there were some blooms though you have to look closely to see them in the pictures.   The hike was wild, green and wet.

Do you suppose anyone lives under there in the winter?

There were multiple stream crossings.

Striped wintergreen was just coming into bloom on the ground.

The biggest waterfall I saw today.

Eventually I got high enough to see my first look out sign - Lookout 3.  Did I miss #1 and #2??  I followed the arrow and went down and down and wondered about climbing back up until I came to this view obviously not at the top of Chinquapin mountain but on the side.

I hiked back up to the main trail and continued up.  Still looking for the view from the top.   I decided to skip all the other “Lookout signs” and just get to the top and catch them on the way back down.

I didn’t realize I’d reached the top until I started down the other side.  I wasn’t sure what to do.  Would the trail go back up in a bit.  As I wondered I cam to a sign for Hwy 100.   I knew that wasn’t where I wanted to go so I climbed back up and at “the top” before heading back down to Ruby, I took this picture of “the view” from the top of Chinquapin Mountain.

Today’s token fungi picture for this hike.  There are more but. . . .

On the way down I thought I should at least try for one other view.  So I followed the sign for Lookout #1

Another lovely view from the side.  

On the way back, I looked more closely.  It turns out that the sign for Lookout 4 was on the ground.  I saw but skipped views 3, 4 and 5 deciding with the other things I wanted to do this afternoon I’d better not. Each of the previous lookout  trails was a minimum of 1/2 mile one way.  Thus I’d already added 2 miles to my hike for those views.  Good thing I skipped them since at the end of the day I had over 8 miles.

Feeling exhausted and a bit disappointed.  I drove back to Highlands and had a late lunch/early dinner at The Bridge at Mill Creek.  I find 2 or 3:00 to be the perfect time to eat.  You often can still get lunch prices but the restaurant is not busy.

You can eat inside or outside.

I chose outside where I had delicious North Carolina trout pan-seared and roasted with a wine butter and shallots sauce, cous cous and fresh broccoli.   And once they brought it, I didn’t take a picture of the fabulous looking plate.  Boy am I sorry.   My lunch companion, as usual, was a book.

Afterwards I wandered around the restaurant which was a few blocks off the Main street.  I had walked and was in no hurry.

There is an outdoor wrap around deck next to the mill stream for having cocktails.  I would highly recommend The Bridge and especially the trout.

From The Bridge I walked back up to Main Street for a return visit to Kilwins’ Ice Cream.  No pictures of me with my ice cream this time.  You’ll have to look back at my previous post.  I put the link above.  I can’t do a decent selfie even when I’m not holding an ice cream cone.

In addition to their ice cream, Kilwins makes fudge in house.  I resisted.

This photo is for my friend Pam, a dog’s best friend.  This fella was getting a ride while his lady waited in the ice cream line.

Highlands is awash with flowers.  Everywhere you look.  It’s just a darling town.

Those of you who have followed me for a while know that I am an incurable bibliophile and nearly always stop at the library in the towns I visit.  Highlands Library was fantastic both outside and inside.

If my childhood hometown library had had a reading nook like this I would have been sitting there for hours and probably brought my own pillow.  Outside reading….what could be better??

So many places to sit and read.  Why are these spots empty I wonder?

A cozy fire in the winter?

The children’s area was wonderful.  Huge stuffed friends to read to were on top of nearly all the book cases.  I’ll take the sheepdog please.

Hats off to the head librarian and all those who have planned and maintained this magic place.

It was late afternoon by this time but since it is also getting late in my time here in this part of North Carolina, I wanted to make sure that I at least saw the Highlands Biological Station even if I didn’t have time for a proper look around or hike before they closed for the day.

What a shame that I am not staying closer to Highlands so that I might have been able to take advantage of the wonderful programs advertised. 

 

Yesterday’s talk was  by a woman I had coincidentally heard speak at Ivy Creek during the Festival of the Book in Charlottesville back in May.  She was excellent and the talk very interesting.   So many other interesting presentations coming up.  Lucky Highlanders.

I reluctantly skipped the inside exhibits and headed out on whatever walk through the gardens I had time for.

Lovely paths through the woods.

Benches for contemplation.

A nice pond with water lilies.

Green tunnels to walk through.

And a boardwalk to send me back to my car after a wonderful day in Highlands even if the top of Chinquapin  Mountain has no view.