Y'ALL NOT GONNA SEE THIS IN IOWA!

I'm not gonna lie. I could move down here.

It was really Chimney Rock State Park that did it for me. We drove from Asheville after eating (again) at T's newest and most favoritist (okay, not a word) restaurant (I'm talking Louella's BBQ) to Chimney Rock State Park. So breathtaking. We hiked up to Chimney Rock.

Then. I talked Terry and Eden into moving on up...1,500 feet or so.

In the end we climbed the equivalent of 46 stories (which is half of the Empire State Building). Seriously Heidi had nothing on me at this point. I could have crested the mountain and kept on going singing and herding sheep all the way.

But.

Did I mention Terry and Eden?

They did great but they were pretty much done. While I was excitedly chirping about heading down the skyline trail to a waterfall, they looked at me with dead eyes. Zombies. I capitulated. But it was okay. It was late. The park was closing. We realistically could not get there and back in time.

Next time.

We are going the distance, BABY!

We also rode the rapids on the French Broad River.

Normally we are told this river (which is a class 3 rapids for the most part) is packed with rafters and all sorts of watercraft.

We had the freakin' river to ourselves.

It was gorgeous. The rapids were fun enough to be exciting, but not intimidating enough that you were worried.

After rafting, we hit the downtown where we met Abby the Spoon Lady.

She and partner, Chris Rodriques, rock the downtown with their own special brand of music. These two were literally stopping people dead in their tracks in downtown Asheville. Including us. So I videotaped a quick segment so y'all could see what all the excitement is about.

In retrospect, this was an awesome vacation for us. It appealed to the adults in the family and the kid (aged 13). We participated in the wedding of our dear friends. We saw a part of the country we had never seen. And. I climbed a mountain!

Terry is rested and ready to roar. He has frankly been tracking the weather like a bloodhound to a dead rabbit. He's ready to give you his perspective again.

Thank you all for being apart of tswails.com.

Means the world.

Best,

Carolyn

PS: Here are some photos from North Carolina....hope you enjoy!