Streaming On The Parkway, Part 3: Adventures in Asheville, N.C.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This guest blog series is being provided courtesy of members of the Wally Byam Caravan Club International (wbcci.org) who are currently participating in the 2019 Taste of the Blue Ridge Caravan between late May and mid June. Their 500-mile journey began in Cherokee, N.C. and will end outside the historic towns of Charlottesville and Staunton, VA. We hope you’ll enjoy following along!

The 2019 Taste of the Blue Ridge Airstream Caravan made it to Asheville. This was our introduction to North Carolina barbecue ribs with traditional Carolina sauce. We were happy when Ray and Carol Combs, the leaders of our caravan, promised that we will taste Carolina barbecue again. 

Of course, our first group activity had to be a tour of the Biltmore Estate. What’s a trip to Asheville without dropping by George Vanderbilt’s 250 room castle in the North Carolina mountains? Our Biltmore tour included the rooftop, which was interesting and toasty warm. 

The next stop was a city tour on the Gray Line Trolley. Our guide was excellent and really knew the city’s history. 

There are many great places to eat in Asheville. Our caravan enjoyed the amazing Sunday Brunch at Grove Park Inn and their world-class service. 

After being a tourist in Asheville, our caravan returned to the mountains by zip-lining above the trees at Navitat Canopy Adventures. That was exciting and brought us back to the natural beauty of the Parkway area. There were times while on the zip line that we felt the illusion of flying. 

Our Asheville stop concluded with the Blue Ghost Tour at the Cradle of Forestry. There’s nothing like watching lightening bugs searching for true love. Yes, the blue ghosts were active that night, but the synchronized lightning bugs tried to steal the show. We were very fortunate to have been in the Asheville area during the small time span when the Blue Ghosts were active. 

After five days in Asheville, our caravan returned to the Blue Ridge Parkway to head to our next stop at Linville Falls National Park Campground. Our adventure continues as we head north.