Mini Road Trip - Pisgah National Forest

Our last full day in NC with our family started out with another beautiful sunrise. I was going to miss having my coffee and cereal on the deck as the sun rose over the mountains in front of us. Today's adventure would involve a trip to the Pisgah National Forest but first, it was Wednesday--Pancake Day.

All of the grandkids love to cook and their kitchen skills are quite impressive. This morning, my grandson decided he would make the pancakes so in addition to my usual cereal, I was treated to an artistic creation, plated perfectly and served with syrup on the side. Did I mention that though he lives in Florida his heart is with the OSU Buckeyes?

After we gathered kids and lunch, we headed for the Blue Ridge Parkway and followed it to our destination--Graveyard Fields with a stop at the highest point (6,053 feet) of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The kids had been to the Graveyard Fields (so named because an area of tree stumps resembles gravestones) last year and wanted to see the second falls rather than the upper falls which had been quite a trek the year before. There were a lot of steps getting down to the waterfall which was quite nice. After enjoying the falls for a bit, we found some flat rocks and spread out our lunch.

Nourished, we started back up the steps, some of us a little slower than the others. Near the top I paused to catch a few pictures of some pretty butterflies that took a moment to pose for me. Then we were off to the highlight of the day--Sliding Rock.

It took us a while to find Sliding Rock. Our phones were rather useless for mapping our route since there was no service in most of that area we traveled through. Eventually we found Looking Glass Falls that was near our destination and we took a few minutes to explore that. Then the anticipation grew as we neared the Sliding Rock parking lot.

The season was over so the dressing rooms and restrooms were closed and there was no lifeguard so it was slide at your own risk. My clever daughter-in-law had brought a tarp and draped it over the back door of the van to create a private dressing area where everyone who was sliding changed into their bathing suits. 

Sliding Rock is a smooth waterfall that you can climb and then slide down the 60 foot boulder into an eight foot deep pool of chilly 50-60 degree water. The outside temperature was about 78-80 so at least when the adventurers got out they could warm up some. There were few people there when we arrived so the kids got to go as often as they wanted without having to wait long.

The youngest grandkids found a small smooth spot in shallow waters where they could take a mini-slide. Everyone had fun and Grandma and Grandpa enjoyed watching it all.

As it was getting close to dinner, we decided to make a stop at Ingles, the large grocery chain, and pick up some fried chicken, potato salad and beans for a quick easy dinner. We needed to finish up in time to see the space shuttle pass overhead at 7:45.

As we watched in wonder as the bright spot in the late evening sky passed overhead, I thought it the perfect ending to a perfectly fun day.