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DESTINATION: FLORIDA
Unlocking the charm of Gulf's Cedar Key
Vast, wild marshlands and an island of indolence prove to be fine nesting grounds for waterfowl and artists -- and tourists who appreciate both.
By Michal Strutin
Special to The Los Angeles Times
October 20, 2002
Cedar Key, Fla. -- "We came to Cedar Key from Tampa with an Audubon tour," said Connie Crane, an artist staffing the counter at the Cedar Keyhole gallery cooperative. "I saw a cat lying in the middle of the street nursing her kittens, and I said, 'Oh, that's the kind of town I want to live in.' " And now she does.
The former New Yorker is one of the painters, potters and photographers who have made this Florida city something of an artists' colony. A growing number of tourists has found it too, drawn by the quaint, off-the-clock town and the nearby national wildlife refuges and vast salt marshes teeming with fish and fowl.
Cedar Key is not the sort of place you stumble on. It's an island in the Gulf of Mexico, 20 miles from the nearest major highway and about 60 miles from the nearest airport, in Gainesville. It lies at the southern end of the Big Bend, where the state's panhandle makes a long arc down to the Florida peninsula.
In a state bursting with tourism, the Big Bend is one of the least visited areas, known for timber and cattle, not theme parks and golf resorts. But those who do venture here are rewarded with a taste of old Florida: Sinuous, watery channels part low marsh grasses undulating in the sea breeze, giving the landscape the look of a sensual jigsaw puzzle.
I've visited many times, most recently this summer when I fled with my friend Nancy Fischman from what had become a too-frantic summer at home in Tennessee. We had visions of palms and a lemon-yellow wash of sunlight on a turquoise sea, of pelicans sitting on piers and roseate spoonbills sifting through the shallows of a marsh.
As we approached Cedar Key on Route 24, the world slowed down. We passed a jumble of palms, bays, live oaks and red maples. Soon we could smell salt air. The forest ended, and a low bridge came into view, one of several connecting a cluster of islands to the mainland.
Pullouts here offer some of the best bird-watching in Cedar Key -- or anywhere in Florida. From both sides of the bridge, salt marshes stretch to the horizon. The shallow waters are a natural fish nursery and seafood supermarket, as rich in life as any habitat on Earth. At low tide, wading birds pluck fish, frogs and small crabs from the mud. Low tide also reveals the oyster bars that lie between land and water.
The first time I visited Cedar Key, in the mid-'90s, I was working on a nature book and decided to take my mother along for part of the journey. We reached the easternmost bridge, called the Fourth Bridge, and were compelled to stop when we saw herons, egrets, black skimmers and orange-billed oystercatchers. We explored Cedar Key for the day and were so taken with its waterfront and quaint historic center that I promised myself a return trip.
A couple of years later, while working on a book about Florida state parks, I stopped with my husband at Cedar Key's Island Hotel & Restaurant, built in 1859 and on the National Register of Historic Places. Our room's time-polished wood floors and four-poster bed swathed with mosquito netting put me in mind of a Humphrey Bogart movie, perhaps "Key Largo." The broad upper balcony fitted with rockers, the rattan-furnished lounge and the pale pink-and-white dining room cooled by ceiling fans all felt languid and tropical.
Back when the hotel was built, Cedar Key reigned as the premier port town on Florida's west coast. Ranchers and plantation owners shipped timber, beef, cotton and sugar cane down the nearby Suwannee River. After a railroad connected Cedar Key to the Atlantic Coast in 1861, the goods went out all along the Eastern seaboard.
Through the early 1890s, Cedar Key was chief supplier of pencil blanks for Eberhard Faber -- until the cedar ran out and a hurricane hit in 1896. The factories, on neighboring Atsena Otie Island, shipped pencils across the shallow channel to what is now Dock Street. Back then, Atsena Otie ("Cedar Key" in the language of Creek Indians) was where the town of Cedar Key and its industries lay. After the hurricane decimated everything on the island, the town moved to its present location. These days Atsena Otie is part of the Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge. You can boat out to the island, lie on the beach, bird-watch and hike.
Nancy and I stopped at Dock Street and its collection of seaworthy buildings. Built over water, the street is anchored by a broad pier where people cast for sea trout, redfish and flounder, and where tourists eat ice cream and watch pelicans. It's the place to be Saturday night. Live music pulsed from Frog's Landing the evening we arrived.
We had booked a room at Harbour Master Suites, next door to Frog's, and worried that the music would keep us awake. But Harbour Master's rooms are a couple of stories above the street and turned out to be quite private.
The best part was the balcony, which looked directly down into the Gulf of Mexico and out toward Atsena Otie. We could see the pier to our right, pelicans sitting smugly atop pilings and a great blue heron waiting for an angler to throw a fishy snack. We sat briefly to enjoy our view of dolphins breaching and royal terns on the wing.
After unpacking, we set off for a drink at the Island Room Restaurant at Cedar Cove, a great place at sunset because of its expansive view of the water. We were feeling so relaxed in the airy bar that we decided to stay for dinner. (The Island Room and the Island Hotel are the two top restaurants in town.)
I had a smoked chicken ravioli appetizer and a main dish of grouper piccata. Nancy had littleneck clams in a white wine sauce with fettuccine. The food was fine, but the wild mushroom soup was outstanding: smoky, earthy and thick. I would have been satisfied with a huge bowl and the restaurant's crusty rolls.
Wowed by the roost
The next day we were ready for the sea, so we caught a tour aboard the Lady Pirate. Our boat mates were a fellow from St. Petersburg and a couple looking for a good beach on which to be married. Nancy and I intended to take the tour, then be dropped off at Atsena Otie for a few hours on the beach.
Our captain took us to Seahorse Key, where the University of Florida has marine labs and, more important, where hundreds of birds mate and nest. As he edged toward shore, we saw dozens of magnificent frigate birds, "littering the trees as if they were common crows," the captain noted. The birds are large and black, with deeply forked tails and enormous red neck pouches on breeding males. We barely noticed the immature bald eagle, ibises, cormorants and others crowded on the island.
Nancy and I were foolishly willing to brave summer mosquitoes to lounge on the beach at Atsena Otie Island, but a summer squall loomed. After a quick stop to admire the beach, sea oats and palms, we beat the rain back to Cedar Key and spent the rest of the day browsing galleries.
Cedar Key's artist-colony ambience is neither as bohemian as Silver Lake nor as upscale as Carmel but somewhere comfortably in between. Avoiding souvenir shops reeking of incense, we headed to two galleries on Dock Street, where we admired glassware and copper lamps at Sawgrass and linen clothing and jewelry at Suwannee Triangle.
Second Street, the town's main street, is the best place to browse and examine historic buildings. Cedar Keyhole and Island Arts carry a mix of oil paintings, mixed media, pottery, garden art and basketry. Natural Experience keeps odd hours but exhibits fine photography as well as wood sculpture.
Two museums can offer more background on the area. The Cedar Key State Museum displays the most complete Florida shell collection I've seen. The Historical Society Museum has artifacts dating from prehistoric peoples who lived here 11,000 years ago. The John Muir exhibit caught my eye. Yes, California's most famous early naturalist was here too. In 1867, less than two years before he saw Yosemite, Muir walked from Indianapolis to Cedar Key, where he recovered from typhoid fever. He wrote "A Thousand-Mile Walk to the Gulf" about that adventure and his time at Cedar Key.
That night we dined at the Island Hotel: soft-shell crab glazed with sherry, rich crab bisque and succulent fish en papillote, aromatic with East Indian spices. The hotel's hearts-of-palm salad lived up to its reputation as a novelty: crunchy hearts of palm and fresh fruit atop greens with a scoop of frozen dressing that combines vanilla ice cream, lime sherbet, mayonnaise and peanut butter. The dressing sounds weird but tasted so good we asked for the recipe.
The next day we went by Manatee Springs State Park. In winter, the park is one of the most reliable places in Florida to see manatees, the aquatic mammals that can grow to more than 3,000 pounds. Visitors can swim the crystalline spring waters, hike and bike along trails, check out the cedar swamp boardwalk and canoe into the Suwannee River -- as long as they keep a respectful distance from the gentle, endangered manatees.
Nancy and I stopped at the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge, whose headquarters lie on Route 347 about seven miles from Cedar Key. The refuge's nine-mile wildlife drive took us past pinelands and swamp but not much wildlife. Perhaps our timing was off.
Near dusk, we went to the Fourth Bridge to loll and watch birds. We saw great white egrets, little blue herons and a clutch of red-billed white ibises. A roseate spoonbill, dipping for dinner, swished its bill through the shallow water. Then it stopped, lifted its pink wings and flew into the gathering blue-gray night.
Winging to the Key
GETTING THERE:
From LAX: Delta and US Airways offer connecting service (change of planes) to Gainesville, about 60 miles northeast of Cedar Key. Restricted round-trip fares start at $447.
Delta flies nonstop to Tampa, about 100 miles south of Cedar Key. Southwest and US Airways fly direct (at least one stop, no change of planes), and America West, American, Continental, Frontier and United offer connecting service. Restricted round-trip fares start at $198.
WHERE TO STAY:
Island Hotel & Restaurant, 373 2nd St.; (800) 432-4640 or (352) 543-5111, fax (352) 543-6949, www.islandhotel-cedarkey.com. Laid-back, tropical, 13-room B&B on the National Register of Historic Places. Doubles begin at $80 per night.
Harbour Master Suites, 390 Dock St.; (800) 559-6327 or (352) 543-9146, www.cedarkeyharbourmaster.com. Comfortable rooms with kitchenette. Our balcony looked down into the Gulf of Mexico. Doubles begin at $70 per night.
Old Fenimore Mill, 11 Old Mill Drive; (800) 767-8354 or (352) 543-9803, www.fenimoremill.com. Condos available for daily, weekly or monthly rental. A good choice for families and those planning an extended stay. From $105 per night.
Cedar Cove Beach & Yacht Club, 192 2nd St.; (800) 366-5312 or (352) 543-5332, fax (904) 543-6269, www.cedarcove-florida.com. At $109 a night, rooms are reasonably priced, though they only have a partial view of the Gulf; two- and three-bedroom townhomes with better views start at $165 a night.
WHERE TO EAT:
Island Hotel & Restaurant, address and phone above. Seafood specialties and an intriguing hearts-of-palm salad. Dinner entrees $16-$27.
Island Room Restaurant at Cedar Cove, 192 2nd St.; (352) 543-6520, www.islandroom.com. One of the best restaurants in town. Wild mushroom soup is outstanding. Dinner entrees about $12-$28.
Blue Desert Cafe, 12518 Route 24; (352) 543-9111. Burritos, crawfish etouffee, classic seafood dishes. Dinner entrees $8-$22.
TO LEARN MORE:
Cedar Key Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 610, Cedar Key, FL 32625; phone and fax (352) 543-5600, www.cedarkey.org.
Visit Florida, 661 E. Jefferson St., Suite 300, Tallahassee, FL 32301; (888) 735-2872 or (850) 488-5607, fax (850) 224-2938, www.flausa.com.
Michal Strutin is the author of "Florida State Parks: A Complete Recreation Guide" (Mountaineers Books, 2000).
Originally published in the Los Angeles Times. Printed with permission.
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RED SEA HOLIDAY
Unwinding in the port city of Eilat.
By Michal Strutin
May 18, 2001
NOBODY TAKES Eilat too seriously — which is a good thing. Poised on the cusp of the Red Sea, this resort city at the southern tip of Israel is where Israelis and others go to unwind. During the short, cold days of winter, northern Europeans by the planeload come to soak up the guaranteed sunshine.
Although Eilat is also a port, its resort attractions have caused a building boom. Bright white hotels in every conceivable style have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain — although with an average of less than two inches precipitation per year, there’s little chance of rain in Eilat. As a result, the city has expanded: north into the Aravah Valley and up the lower slopes of the Eilat Mountains, which stand in garnet-colored ranks along the city’s western edge. The focus, however, is still the narrow curve of the Red Sea.
A broad, busy promenade swings along part of Eilat’s shoreline. Here tourists lounge in cafes, children clamor for rides on the Ferris wheel, street vendors sell T-shirts and tchotchkes, and tony shops display upscale goods. Beyond the bustle, the Eilat area offers a wealth of natural beauty and human history.
Where sea and sand meet are beaches, aqua waters and vivid coral reefs. At the city’s back, the rugged Eilat Mountains are a desert tapestry of sculpted canyons and scenic panoramas. The sweep of the Aravah Valley provides shelter for wolves, gazelles and hyenas, as well as ostriches and countless other birds. In fact, the Eilat area is a birder’s dream. One of the world’s greatest flyways, the Aravah sees more than a half-billion birds fly along its length during spring migration.
South of the promenade, the place to sample the coral reef is Coral Beach Reserve, one of Israel’s many protected natural areas (www.parks.org.il ). The reserve rents snorkeling equipment, and it is just a few steps farther to the reef, which parallels the shoreline. A footbridge spanning the reef ends at a ladder that allows you to step into an enchanting underwater garden full of corals, clownfish, wrasse and parrot fish, among hundreds of species in a kaleidoscope of colors. For those who want more, dive companies take both snorkelers and scuba divers out to reefs.
CoralWorld displays many of the same fish — with IDs — as well as sharks and rays. One exhibit tells how CoralWorld’s research team restores populations of large, endangered sea turtles. Aside from the gift shop and cafeteria, the most popular spot is the marine observatory. Sunk deep into the Red Sea, the observatory lets visitors peer into the actual reef (www.coralworld.com ).
Nearby, Dolphin Reef Eilat offers another Red Sea adventure. This complex includes a beach, restaurant, dive center, and activities for young children. The real activity is in the water, where visitors, accompanied by guides, snorkel and dive with dolphins. Don’t know how to dive? They’ll teach you (www.dolphinreef.co.il ).
Eilat’s southern beaches are the best for lounging on warm sand. Here the sea is floored with sand rather than coral, which makes it a good spot for swimming. If it’s birding you want, go to North Beach. Dawn and dusk are the best times to see birds; spring and fall migrations are the best seasons to see them, seemingly without number. During migration, birders from around the world go to North Beach and the adjacent salt marshes to spot herons and buzzards, bee-eaters, kingfishers and hundreds of other birds.
Follow signs north along the sandy road from North Beach to Eilat’s International Birding and Research Center’s bird-ringing station, where visitors and schoolchildren learn how researchers track birds from here to Europe and Africa (www.arava.org/ birds-eilat). The birding center’s office in Eilat sells a guidebook to other good birding spots in the southern Negev Desert.
Not far from Eilat are a number of great day trips. Timna Park, about 16 miles north of Eilat, is the site of one of the world’s oldest mines. Look for the turnoff to Timna on the west side of Route 90. At the park entrance, purchase tickets and maps, and check the schedule for park interpreters’ demonstrations of how miners used the simplest materials to smelt copper 5,000 years ago.
From the visitor center, a drive winds past dramatic boulders and cliffs. At a handful of stops along the way, short self-guided hikes and interpretive signs present views of soaring Solomon’s Pillars, ancient mine shafts, and a temple to the hawk-headed goddess Hathor, complete with rock carvings. Back at the visitor center, a snack bar, small lake, and picnic grounds wrap up a pleasant trip.
About five miles north of Eilat, also on the west side of Route 90, the road to Amram’s Pillars is a bit rough, but not too bad. Where the dirt road splits, the right-hand track leads to a small parking lot, views of the wildly crenellated cliffs, and hiking trails that wind through part of the Eilat Mountains.
Yotvatah Wildlife Reserve lies on the east side of the road about 25 miles north of Eilat. The reserve, which protects, breeds, and reintroduces wildlife native to the Negev, allows visitors close-up views of elegant caracal cats, Negev wolves, striped hyenas and huge lappet-faced vultures. An interpreter-guided car caravan takes you through part of the vast reserve. Here, ostrich, oryx, desert asses and gazelles roam, at home in the Aravah (www.parks.org.il ).
Traveling west from Eilat, Route 12 passes the Mount Yoash observation point. On a clear day, you can see Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia from its broad back. Farther up the road is the turnoff for the Red Canyon, a short and easy walk away and remarkably scenic. Its serpentine twists and turns, softly sculpted by wind and water, are shades of red, while the upper canyon glows stark white.
Although you can experience the southern Negev from the back of any number of camels, one of the best camel outfits is Camel Riders Desert Exploration Tours. Their trips last anywhere from a couple of hours to a couple of weeks, from a quick snapshot trip to a journey tracing biblical routes. They are a bit out of the way but worth the journey (www.camel-riders.com ).
After adventuring, it’s nice to return to a clean room and sit-down meals.
Of Eilat’s many accommodations, here are a few suggestions. For completely extravagant accommodations at prices to match, the Eilat Princess (www.eilatprincess.com) has built a fantasy land with pools, grottoes, theme rooms, and restaurants with views worth the price of the meal. The Marina Club Eilat and the Riviera Apartment Hotel (www.kibbutz.co.il) have lots of amenities — including pools and kitchenettes — but are moderately priced. For a low-cost, clean, well-lighted place, the best bet is the Eilat Youth Hostel, which has dorm rooms with a bathroom down the hall but also has family rooms with private bathrooms (www.youth-hostels.org.il ).
Restaurants abound, but the Last Refuge is among the best for fish and Au Bistro for French cuisine. Mai Tai has good Thai food at moderate prices, as does the Golden Duck, which is kosher. For parents of fussy eaters, there’s the ubiquitous Pizza Hut.
Michal Strutin’s new book, "Discovering Natural Israel" (Jonathan David Publishers), will be a main selection of the Book of the Month Club/Traditions.
Originally published in the Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles. Printed with permission.
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THE FIRST FRONTIER
In the Blue Ridge Mountains, a culture Daniel Boone
helped start continues to flourish
By Michal Strutin
April 26, 1998
STRAIGHT ROADS don't exist in North Carolina's high country. The mountains don't allow it. The road through Pisgah National Forest in northwestern North Carolina follows one rippling trout stream, then another along languid, linked curves. Groves of hemlock and rhododendron shade the highway, the dense foliage broken by homes clinging to the cliffs of the southern Appalachians. (That's ap-pah-LACH-ins, the correct pronunciation around there.) Side roads into ''hollers'' that narrowly part the mountains are named for the families that settled there, and families with those surnames, Scotch-Irish names for the most part, live there still.
For decades, the hills and hollows of the Appalachians kept this region out of America's mainstream and sustained an indigenous culture illuminated by expertly crafted pottery and woodwork, intricate bluegrass-tinged music and, yes, moonshine madness. But the area around the historic towns of Boone and Blowing Rock, about 85 miles due west of Winston-Salem just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, has not hidden in the past. There, quaint and contemporary mix.
Turning west off Route 321-421 one breezy day last summer, I followed the main highway through Boone and Blowing Rock onto Route 194, a curving, graceful road that glides by old barns, porches filled with flowers and rockers, ''enhanced'' trailers and sections of the Watauga River. Soon, the terrain opened onto Valle Crucis, a village next to Boone that is partly a State Historic District. It dates from the 1880's, when the valley's streams formed a cross; since then, the streams have been altered by flooding.
At the village center is the Mast General Store, built in 1882 and on the National Register of Historic Places. Before work, folks stop by for coffee (a nickel a cup) around the pot-bellied stove, or later, pick up mail from the tiny post office. Posted inside, around the front door, are notices of events from the 1950's as well as next week's community concert. A checkerboard lies on a table between two stove-side chairs: one set of pieces cola bottle tops, the other ginger ale.
The Mast Store bills itself as having everything from cradles to coffins, and I saw both on the second floor. Time-polished wooden cabinets match the floors of the store's five rooms, which are filled with Brillo and cake mix, enamelware and wash tubs, mouth harps and hoes. I found cheesecloth, homemade oatmeal bread, hand-churned butter and a few other things I didn't know I wanted.
On summer Saturdays, silversmiths, basket weavers and other artisans take turns exhibiting their skills on the Mast's back porch. Down the road are crafts shops, clothing stores and a couple of inns, including the historic Mast Farm Inn. Once the homestead of cousins of the store's owners, this bed-and-breakfast echoes the late 1880's -- but with modern conveniences. There are nine rooms in the main house and four cottages, one originally the blacksmith shop, another the loom house, a log cabin built in 1812. A spring house and gardens, which nonguests can walk through, complete the homestead.
More authentic is Hickory Ridge Homestead, a living-history museum with cabins and outbuildings just east of Route 321 on the south side of Boone that presents mountain life of the late 1700's. No bigger than a medium-size suburban living room, the Tatum cabin must have been a tight squeeze for the Tatums and their 13 children, even with its sleeping loft. When I visited, a weaver who said she grew up near Boone in a Gaelic-speaking home, sat at a spinning wheel playing out yarn and explaining how mothers worked at their wheels in the evening, ''spinning yarns'' for the children.
Another presenter demonstrated how the straight aim of the American sharpshooter's rifle was a match for the faster-loading scatter-shot muskets of the British redcoats. On the day I was there, the sound of the guns got the attention of visiting schoolchildren, and one boy asked whether the deerskin-clad presenter ever had to shoot a bear, which are plentiful in Appalachian forests. In his best mountain twang, he answered: ''I've never been in those circumstances. But we can dream, can't we?''
Hickory Ridge also presents the play ''Horn in the West,'' the Revolutionary War story of how Daniel Boone, for whom the town was named, and mountaineers fought off redcoats. Boone and Davy Crockett loom large in this first frontier, where North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia meet.
Next to Hickory Ridge, the Daniel Boone Native Gardens shows why the southern Appalachians are among the world's most botanically diverse places. The iron gates were forged in the 1960's by Daniel Boone 6th, a direct descendant of the pioneer, and inside, quiet ''rooms'' are full of mountain laurel, mountain ash, ferns, trillium, pink shell azaleas, flame azaleas and dogwood -- accompanied by the sound of a stream.
Also on the south side of Boone is the small, quirky Appalachian Cultural Museum, in University Hall off Route 321. Novel exhibits show how the madly jumbled mountains were born, how Indian history evolved, even how moonshine is made. One exhibit displays self-portraits of North Carolinians in a wide range of artistic styles, from expressionist to caricature.
After visiting the museum, I backtracked to the historic center of Boone for lunch at the Caribbean Cafe: authentic jerk chicken with coconut rice, black beans, fried plantain and a choice of hot sauces, and more than three dozen beers to cool the fires.
The cafe attracts students and professors from Appalachian State University, a few blocks away. King Street, bordering the university, is the main artery through Boone's historic section, and is lined with restaurants, a blues club and natural food stores.
In summer, the university's annual Appalachian Summer Festival draws people from across the country. The festival offers a month of dance and theater, symphony and jazz concerts, workshops and art exhibits. The 1998 season includes Willie Nelson (Aug. 1), the pianist Andre Watts (July 25), the Preservation Hall Jazz Band (July 16), and the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra (July 11).
A HALF-DOZEN miles south of Boone, off Route 321, is Blowing Rock, a mountain resort dating from the 1880's. Blowing Rock takes its name from a dramatic rock formation atop John's River Gorge, long a tourist stop with the requisite lovelorn Indian princess legend.
Between the towns lies Tweetsie Railroad, a relaxed amusement park with a narrow-gauge train, gold panning, a petting zoo and shows of old-time music and fast-footed clogging.
Another popular attraction is Art in the Park, one of the nation's oldest juried art festivals, with exhibits this year on May 16, June 13, July 18, Aug. 15, Sept. 12 and Oct. 3 -- all Saturdays. The event has outgrown the park on Main Street and now fills a nearby parking lot. The crafts are exceptional: hand-carved wooden bowls, fused glass in colorful, edgy patterns, jewelry by master silversmiths. Many skilled potters live nearby and some show their wares at the festival.
Expressions Gallery on Main Street also carries a sampling of the creations. The gallery is wedged between a variety of antiques stores, espresso bars and upscale boutiques, including Appalachian Rustic Furnishings, offering handwoven blankets and peeled-log beds.
My favorite store is Trading Roots, owned by a woman trained in anthropology and committed to searching out high-quality goods hand-crafted without exploitation. A Guatemalan women's cooperative made the store's furniture, and there were Hidalgo pottery from Mexico, shell belts and sarongs from Bali and stylish shirts from Sumatra.
Off Main Street lie restaurants and the Inn at Ragged Gardens, a lovely turn-of-the-century manse of a bed-and-breakfast, full of stonework and polished wood. Next door is Crippen's, which serves innovative dishes like grilled grouper with coconut-curry sauce and wilted spinach.
Although restaurants and lodgings seem to outnumber Blowing Rock citizenry, the town works hard to maintain its scenic grace. Rustic stairways lead from the center of town to a path around Mayview Lake and Annie Cannon Gardens, starting point for the Glen Burney Trail, which winds 1.6 miles through verdant woods along a stream embellished by waterfalls.
Beyond the town limits, two places in the highlands stand out: Moses H. Cone Memorial Park and Grandfather Mountain. Just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, the 3,600-acre Cone Park offers cool refuge on 25 miles of shaded carriage lanes that meander down to Bass Lake, a one-acre basin surrounded by a walkway and a fringe of trees. The historic 22-room manor house, built in 1908, interprets Appalachian culture and, on the broad porch, tinsmiths, potters and other members of the Southern Highland Handicraft Guild show visitors how they create Appalachian crafts.
Just southwest of Blowing Rock, Grandfather Mountain is so full of natural diversity and rare species it has been designated a United Nations International Biosphere Reserve, one of only 324. It is, at 5,964 feet, the highest peak of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Its 4,000 acres are covered by natural gardens of rhododendron and azaleas, trails that lead to dizzying views by way of ropes and ladders, and forests full of bird song.
Grandfather Mountain is also the site of the annual Highland Games the second weekend in July, when Scottish dancing, piping, drumming and athletics make it clear who settled this corner of the country.
A few 'hollers' in the hills
The easiest way to learn about the attractions, events, restaurants and lodgings in the Boone and Blowing Rock area is to contact these groups:
Blowing Rock Chamber of Commerce, Post Office Box 406, Blowing Rock, N.C. 28605; (800) 295-7851. Its Web site, www.blowingrock.com/ northcarolina, has a calendar of events.
Boone Convention and Visitors Bureau, 208 West Howard Street, Boone, N.C. 28607; (800) 852-9506; www.boonechamber.com.
What to see and do
Mast General Store, Highway 194, Valle Crucis, N.C. 28691, is open Monday to Saturday 7 A.M. to 6:30 P.M., and Sunday 1 to 6 P.M.; (704) 963-6511.
Information on Moses H. Cone Memorial Park and other Blue Ridge Parkway highlights is available by calling the parkway automated information line at (828) 298-0398. Ask specifically for the Cone Park brochure. The crafts center in the manor house is open 9 A.M. to 6 P.M. daily; (828) 295-7938.
The Appalachian Summer Festival runs July 5 to Aug. 1 at Applachian State University. Tickets: $7 to $25; (800) 841-2787 or (828) 262-4046.
Hickory Ridge Homestead, Post Office Box 295, Boone, N.C. 28607, is open Saturday 9 A.M. to 4 P.M. and Sunday 1 to 4 P.M. until June 19, then Tuesday to Sunday 1 to 8:30 P.M. From late June through mid-August, the play ''Horn in the West,'' is performed at 8:30 P.M. daily except Monday. Tickets, $12, and $6 for children, includes the $2 admission fee to the museum. Reservations and information: (828) 264-2120.
Daniel Boone Native Gardens, Horn in the West Drive, Post Office Box 2885, Boone. N.C. 28607, is open 9 A.M. to 6 P.M. May through October. Admission: $2; (828) 264-6390.
Admission to Grandfather Mountain, costs $10 and $5 for children 4 to 12. For brochures, maps and a calendar of events, call (800) 468-7325 or see www.grandfather.com. For information on Grandfather Mountain Highland Games, July 9 to 12, including concerts, dancing and competitions, call (828) 733-1333; adult tickets are $8 to $20.
Where to Eat
Caribbean Cafe, 489B West King Street, Boone, serves burgers, pasta and dishes like jerk chicken, grilled salmon tomatillo and beefsteak with rum butter. Dinner for two with beer, about $25; (828) 265-2233.
The menu at Crippen's Country Inn and Restaurant, 239 Sunset Drive, Blowing Rock, changes daily, but has included grilled chicken with polenta, lobster with cognac butter, and pecan-and-goat-cheese-crusted rack of lamb with merlot sauce. Dinner for two with wine is about $80; (828) 295-3487.
The Riverwood, 7179 Valley Boulevard (Highway 321), just north of Blowing Rock, serves such entrees as roast half duckling with peppered peach-ginger glaze, baked trout with apple-almond-basil stuffing and vegetarian dishes like grilled seasonal vegetables with a sauce from sundried tomatoes, Kalamata olives and capers. Dinner for two with wine, $60; (704) 295-4162.
Where to Stay
The Inn at Ragged Gardens, Box 1927, 203 Sunset Drive, Blowing Rock, N.C. 28605, is a seven-room bed-and-breakfast, but will grow to 12 by July. Rooms are furnished with antiques, all but one have Jacuzzis. No smoking. Rates: $140 or $150 a night. Contact: (828) 295-9703.
The Mast Farm Inn, Box 704, Valle Crucis, N.C. 28691, has nine rooms and four cottages. Rates: $100 to $195. The restaurant offers upscale versions of down-home favorites, like sauteed shrimp with white cheddar grits. Dinner for two, about $60, but you must supply your own wine; (888) 963-5857.
Originally published in the New York Times. Printed with permission.
Last updated 11/06
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