Destination McDowell: Connecting Trails, Towns, and the Blue Ridge Experience

In this episode I am joined by Shannon Odom, executive director of the McDowell County Tourism Development Authority, to unpack why this corner of Western North Carolina is gaining serious momentum, and how it’s doing it in a way that feels rooted, welcoming, and real.

We talk trails first, because the growth is undeniable: new mileage on the ground, rebuilt sections after Hurricane Helene, and the validation that comes with Old Fort joining the North Carolina Trail Towns Network. Shannon explains the “trails for all” approach, from easy loops for beginners to the big headline project many people haven’t heard about yet: backcountry adaptive bicycling trails tied to the Wilderness Gateway Trail. From there, we zoom out into the long game, a connected network that could link Marion, Universal Park, the Thermal Belt Trail, and eventually the Fonta Flora Trail.

Then we go beyond the bike to the full McDowell County travel guide experience: Old Fort’s railroad and frontier history, Marion’s downtown businesses and brewery scene, Little Switzerland’s Parkway charm, and practical updates on Blue Ridge Parkway access. We also hit the must-see waterfalls like Linville Falls, Catawba Falls, and Tom’s Creek Falls, plus culture and festivals that make a weekend feel packed, from the Orchard at Altapass to Bigfoot sightings and gold panning.

Mike Andress
Host, Exploration Local
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mike@explorationlocal.com

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Transcript

Why McDowell County Matters

SPEAKER_00 0:00

McDowell County, nestled in Western North Carolina, doesn't need height. It just needs an insider's perspective, a good map, and a little time. Today I'm joined by Shannon Odom to explore why this corner of Western North Carolina is quietly building momentum and doing it in a way that feels rooted, welcoming, and real. From a growing trail network, an old Fort's place in the North Carolina Trail Towns network, to small towns, waterfalls, national forests, and a deep sense of place, this is a destination that reveals itself the longer you stay. And maybe more importantly, it's a place that's growing with intention, where access, community, and experience are all being shaped at the same time. This is going to be a good one. I'll meet you on the other side. You're listening to Exploration Local, a podcast designed to explore and celebrate the people and places that make the Blue Ridge and Southern Appalachian Mountains special and unique. My name is Mike Andris, the host of Exploration Local. Join us on our journey to explore these mountains and discover how they fuel the spirit of adventure. We encourage you to wander far but explore local. Let's go. There's a lot happening in McDowell County right now, from major trail development to small towns finding new energy, and I'm excited to have Shannon Odom, the Executive Director of McDowell County Tourism Development Authority, with me today to break down why more people are starting to take notice. Shannon, I'm so excited to have you here. Welcome to the show. Thank you. Thank you for having me. I'd love to know from your perspective what surprises people the most when they actually come and spend time in McDowell County.

SPEAKER_01 1:45

I think what I see a lot, uh, we have a visitor center in Old Ford, and so I get to spend time with people talking, and what I hear time and time again is that they they just didn't realize all the various things that we have to offer. And they also think it's like going back in time a little bit. We have this unique history, we have these wonderful country roads that you can drive through, the farming is just really top-notch. And so I think all of that really surprises a lot of people.

Trail Boom And Helene Recovery

SPEAKER_00 2:16

Our regular listeners are going to remember that we did an episode with G5 Collective, Eagle Street Market Development, the Forest Service, and we really talked about the trails that were coming. And this is before the trails were actually on the ground, and so there was a lot of excitement. Downtown development had a lot of things going on, but there is a tremendous amount of momentum around trails right now in McDowell County, aren't there?

SPEAKER_01 2:40

Yes, you're right. It and it really has been driven over a number of years, and even though Hurricane Helene came through, it it set us back, but it really didn't stop that momentum. So I'm I'm happy to say that. But you're right. We've had at least uh four to five years of steady trail building throughout the county, and it just continues to grow really.

SPEAKER_00 3:04

How many tra how many miles do you know are are actually down on the ground now, including the the trails that were there before and then all the new stuff that's been built?

SPEAKER_01 3:12

Yeah, right. We've had uh you know, I would say the initial phase one was I think about 42 miles of trails. They just added another eight miles recently off of the gateway trails, the Catawba View Trail is brand new, the Deep Cove Trail, uh Jared Mountain Connector, all three or four of those right there are brand new in the last couple of years. In fact, uh Deep Cove they had almost just completed prior to Halene coming through, and they had to uh rework that trail completely. So it is back open. In fact, the uh bridge over to the Gateway Trails is uh just about to reopen. The the bridge is open, but the uh parking lot they're still working on, doing some final touches there. They had the temporary parking area across Curtis Creek for a long time, and um that really helped us just get back open. And so for me, I think that's the biggest thing is is just that the trails continue to grow throughout the county, and there's more more on the way, I think.

Old Fort As A Trail Town

SPEAKER_00 4:15

Oh, that's so great. That's so great. Well, if you're in North Carolina or you listen to anything about North Carolina, you know that our trails are very, very special to us. In fact, we are the great trail state. And recently, Old Fort has been designated as a new part of this North Carolina Trail Towns Network. What does that do for the area and for the people visiting?

SPEAKER_01 4:38

For us, it really just validates that we are a trail town, that we take trails seriously, that we're doing the things that promote trails, that we're doing it sustainable, and that we also really are doing it in a way that it involves everybody. I think that's the the big thing that sets us apart is the fact that we we say it's trails for all. And so what we're building out there are trails that are going to accommodate all skill abilities. It's going to accommodate those that are not comfortable being out alone on trails. So we have shorter flat loops like the Meadow Loop, which really just circles a beautiful meadow along Curtis Creek. And then we're also building out new trails. In fact, just last week I was down with the Foothills Conservancy and they showed us the initial phase of the Wilderness Gateway Trail, which will be coming across the south part of the county, and they are building 10 miles of adaptive bicycling, bicycling trails. So the 10 miles of adaptive trail will be the some of the first backcountry trails in the country that are for adaptive bicycling. So we're really excited about that. Um that will be uh you'll hear more about that in October opening, but that is going to really open up the south end of the county that people just don't even discover when you talk about you know the South Mountain State Park and all that connectivity through the Box Creek Wilderness. Thank you to some big donors to the Foothills Conservancy. They have gone out and conserved that land. And so eventually we'll have another connecting state trail on the south end called the Wilderness Gateway Trail, which will really connect over to Cleveland County all the way to Hickory Nut Gorge.

The Long Game Trail Network

SPEAKER_00 6:19

Wow. Now will that tie in at all to the Fonta Flora, or is that something that's just entirely different, Shannon? Eventually it it will.

SPEAKER_01 6:27

Our our master plan shows another trail that connects Rutherford up to Marion called the Thermal Belt Trail. Yeah, yeah. And then right now we already have the first couple of miles of the Pine Trail built from Marion, headed out towards I-40, and right now we've also talked uh the McDowell Trails Association has a plan on the books. They just went to a couple of key partners like the county commissioners to ask for their support. We have this wonderful county land just off the Pivine Trail now. It's called Universal Park, and it is really 600 acres of unexplored territory. So an early phase of this build out of the P-9 Trail is to expand Universal Park, to add a disc golf course, more miles of trails. There's a fishing pier there, a small little lake, and that will eventually connect to the thermal belt trail, which will connect all the way to Rutherford. And then the Wilderness Gateway Trail will cross the south end of the county, and then the P-Vine will connect over to the to the Fonta Flora Trail on the north side of Marion. So in reality, you know, or feasibility, all these trails will connect one day.

SPEAKER_00 7:40

I absolutely love that. Yeah. The thermal belt, my wife and I had a chance to enjoy that not too long ago uh on our e-bikes, and we did a little 26-mile stretch out and back that we did. And yeah, it it definitely is um it allows you to connect all these little small towns to see places that you might not otherwise, or these places maybe that you just kind of drive by and pass through.

SPEAKER_01 7:59

Exactly.

Old Fort Marion Little Switzerland

SPEAKER_00 8:00

Yeah, that's that's really cool. Well, so let's talk about your towns. Let's talk about the towns in uh McDowell County because they are all very unique. They all have their own look, feel, taste, vibe. I mean, they're really, really cool. Of course, the Appalachian thread kind of goes through all of them. But let's kind of break down, we'll kind of go town by town, and you can kind of tell us sort of the geography starting from your visitor center, maybe of where these things are located.

SPEAKER_01 8:23

Well, we um have the visitor center in Old Fort, and really we chose that town just because of its proximity to I-40. So we're actually able to have some visitor information signs on I-40, which will steer people off of the interstate into our visitor center. That's the smallest municipality in the county. There's only two that are incorporated towns. We have Old Fort and Marion. So Old Fort really uh r started as a manufacturing type of town. It had the old Ethan Allen factory was there. There are still Ari is still a factory there, but it really has relied on manufacturing for a long time until more recently when some of these plants started closing. And that's when I think the ideas spurred really almost more recently, but that's what really started the trail building itself. But Old Fort started in some ways as a railroad town. It has a deep connection to the history of the railroad in the fact that it was the sort of that first connection from the east part of the state up to the the um the French Broad and the plateau that were up in here in Asheville. So I think that it has that connection. It's it was built right after the Civil War. There is, you know, a lot of history surrounding how it was built through basically enslaved African Americans. So there's some wonderful markers and commemorative spots along the what we call the old Fort Loops, which connect up what used to be old US 70. That is now a greenway that you can actually walk. It's about a three and a half, four mile walk up to Ridgecrest area, and you uh you pass the Royal Gorge lookout there. And then you can also take the old Mill Creek Road, which actually turns into a dirt road up between Black Mountain and Old Fort. But a beautiful road with some trail access back there. It follows Mill Creek Road, but you'll go uh past the Old Fort picnic area, and then you'll uh see the Bernard Mountain Trail. And so, really, you know, that old railroad history, the old historic town of Old Fort also has the Mountain Gateway Museum, which is part of the state museum collection, and it really focuses on the pioneer history of Old Fort. So, you know, Old Fort gets its name from the fact that at one point it was the furthers west outpost for American civilization. So, you know, talk about America's 250th. Well think back at that time when it was called Davidson's Fort. It was the Davidson's family which sort of held up on the eastern side of the eastern continental divide, and uh it was a big feat to go over those mountains at that time, and so that really was the the last frontier before you ventured into Cherokee area. So there is a lot of pre-Revolutionary War history there, on into the railroad history, and of course now we have sort of this outdoor economy. Yeah. And then uh Marion is the town seat, it is the largest city in in McDowell County, and it has a beautiful main street. We can't say enough about the wonderful small businesses that we have there. We have two or three breweries that are really popular. There is um a brand new bookstore that's just opened called Bigfoot Books and Brews, which is uh just about to go under another expansion. We have a new hotel that's just about to open, which we're really excited about or get underway. It's about to groundbreak this year. And so that'll be the first sort of uh flagged hotel that we have, which will, I think, really bring more people into downtown. Uh we we love the fact that we'll have all these other restaurants and boutiques and bookstores to support that, uh, and it'll be nice to have a place to stay right in downtown. We also have, I would say the the next biggest area of that is called the Miller Entertainment Complex. And over there is a number of bakeries, there's places for kids to go, and then you also have a couple restaurants over there. So really Marion is full of uh what we call where Main Street meets the mountains. That's pretty much the tagline from Marion, and you will find that because really you can look up from Marion and see the the top of the ridge of uh up to Mount Mitchell. So just some beautiful mountain views from Marion. And then um as we work our way north towards the parkway, you come to a little area called Little Switzerland, which really was more or less developed as private land back in the early 1910, 1911. It predates the Blue Ridge Parkway. In fact, back in before the Blue Ridge Parkway, there was an idea to create the crest of the Blue Ridge Toll Road. And so that was uh a private enterprise that was going to be sort of a tourist attraction to to have a a road that went along the crest of the Blue Ridge and it would be a toll road. And and they started building that, and you can actually ride on just a little portion of what was the original crest of the Blue Ridge on the current parkway, right around Gillespie Gap, they call that. Um if you go up to just pretty close to where the Minerals Museum is in on the Blue Ridge Parkway, that little section right in there. That project was stopped during the war. The Switzerland End opened right about 1911, I think it was. And from there it also had homes and people that that lived just there. And then eventually, when the parkway was built, it was one of the few areas that they actually built an exit from the parkway to access. So think of that as a uh stroke of luck for Little Switzerland, but it is a wonderful community. It has uh again a wonderful bookstore, there's a couple of cafes, there's all kinds of inns and lodges that you can stay at along the parkway up there. And so we love that that area just for the fact of its beautiful views and then the wonderful hospitality that they bring to everyone that visits up there.

SPEAKER_00 14:17

We've mentioned the Blue Ridge Parkway a couple of times. You all have a really neat resource that's available. I think it's on your website, I've seen it on your socials. So there are some areas that are still closed, still under construction, but you have been able to kind of highlight how people can still get to places like Little Switzerland and other places on the parkway as well. I know the Maylin Meander has done the same thing kind of over in the the Burnsville area. I think that's a really cool thing that you do because people want to come. Obviously, the Blue Ridge Parkway is an enormous draw, but there are still some ways you can get to some of these places, and you're going to your website is a fantastic resource and a way to do that, I think.

SPEAKER_01 14:55

For sure. It it can be a little confusing with the fact that it is open from the north all the way down to Lindville Falls, and then you have to exit there because that section between Limble Falls and Little Switzerland is closed, with the exception of about four to I think it's about really about five or six miles between Little Switzerland, all the way over to the Orchard at Altopass.

SPEAKER_00 15:16

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 15:16

So you do have that section that's open right now with those businesses. And so we are trying to encourage people to, you know, come off the parkway, come down through North Cove, which is a beautiful section of the county. You have the North Cove Disc Golf Course up there and social club, and then you also have a couple of other little stores as you come in off of 221, and then you could take 226 right back up towards the parkway, and you'll be headed up towards Spruce Pine in that area, and then you can visit all those businesses along that way and and spend some time in those communities up along that area. And, you know, then you have to make a choice, yeah, whether you're which your what's your whole itinerary and what that looks like. So you can either head back down the mountain towards Old Fort Marion or you can continue on around through through Spruce Pine. So depending on really what your your goal is there. But the fact, yes, that we're you know, we're gonna be closed. We hope it will be open by late fall. That's sort of the the ideal, but they are promising right now to be open by the end of the year. So we'll have that access back up to Mount Mitchell from Little Switzerland, which is really important just because we do have some wonderful trails that take off from the parkway that head back down in towards uh the Curtis Creek watershed. Of course, that access to Mount Mitchell is just uh you know something that everybody wants to get up to as well.

Waterfalls Worth The Detour

SPEAKER_00 16:38

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. You also have some gems that are in your county when it comes to waterfalls. I know we talk about trails, and that's a huge part of the whole characteristic or the whole character of of McDowell County, but you have some pretty amazing waterfalls that are up there as well.

SPEAKER_01 16:54

We do. We are really fortunate to have at least uh four that I can think of just off the top of my head. Of course, the the most well-known would be probably Linville Falls, right off of the Blue Ridge Parkway, which you can access right off of the old Highway 105. They call that the Kessler Memorial Highway, or um it's definitely uh I wouldn't call it a highway by today's standards, but uh it's a dirt road right off of 183 off the Linville Falls, so you can access those trails from the forest service side of the the uh park of the falls area. The Blue Ridge Parkway section they hope to have open by the summer. So that spur road off of the Blue Ridge Parkway that takes you down to the National Park Service parking area, they hope to have open by the summer here. So you will be able to walk back across the Lynnville River to access the falls in that direction. But right now you still need to access it off of um the old Highway 105 from the Forest Service area. And then the the the uh the second would be the Catawba Falls, which is back down in Old Fort. It uh comes off of the Eastern Continental Divide. It really is the headwaters of the Catawba River, which uh is is just hard to believe that you can go really from all the way from Old Fort to Charleston via water if you really wanted to, but starting with the Catawba River. But that's a 280-foot waterfall. We just made some massive improvements uh right before Helene with the Great American Outdoors Act, had some big funding that renovated the trail, it made it safer, made it more accessible for people to reach the upper falls, because what you really have are two falls, a lower falls and an upper falls. And now there's a complete loop trail that used to not exist either. So you used to go up to the falls, but you had to come back down the same way. So now we do have a series of stairs and viewing platforms, which has made it much more enjoyable to get up to the upper falls. And then you can take a loop trail back down, um, I think it's called Betsy's Ridge or Young's Ridge. I can't quite remember the ridge there, but it brings you back down to the parking lot, so it does make a nice loop there. And then one of the more accessible falls, which really uh is only about not even a mile, is Tom's Creek Falls.

SPEAKER_00 19:14

Very popular.

SPEAKER_01 19:15

Yep, just off of Highway 221. Beautiful waterfall back in the Piscah National Forest as well, just off of the Mountains to Sea Trail, which of course crosses the entire county as well. And then um last, we're hoping once the parkway's back open, we have Crabtree Falls just off of the parkway, which has been closed for uh what since Helene, so we haven't been up there in a while. But looking forward to get back up to Crabtree also, hopefully by the fall.

SPEAKER_00 19:43

That's gonna be wild to kind of see that after this much time, growth, all those sorts of things. I'm sure it's got to be green, moss coming back on the rocks. You know, that's gonna be pretty amazing to see.

SPEAKER_01 19:53

Right. Yep. I know some probably some changes we'll all be in for a surprise for, too.

SPEAKER_00 19:58

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure. The uh well, those are amazing. Um, Catawba Falls, maybe you can give us a little bit of pro tip on the best times to visit. I know that that place can get pretty busy, of course. It's right off 40, it's right near you, it's not too far away from the visitor center. But there are some cheat codes. There are some ways you can get around it and still enjoy it without having 3,000 of your best friends. No, I'm just kidding.

SPEAKER_01 20:19

You're right. No, I mean, there's definitely its peak weeks throughout the summer, so you know, Saturdays and Sundays, you'll you'll have a crowd. But honestly, uh weekdays, you know, you'll you won't see that. And also I found going out later in the day is is a great time because right now the sun's not setting till close to eight. You know, you can set out by five o'clock or so and get up there, enjoy a beautiful evening, and be back down. So you'll miss some crowds later in the day, and then of course on the weekdays for sure. But what has happened, I think, is with the improvements to the trail, it's also spaced people out. So you you really have more room up there. The trail is wide, so you can pass people in two directions. So it's really a wonderful experience still. I think to me, it it it really has enhanced the experience just to have that accessibility. Because it is, you're right, it's right off of I-40, so it's a you know a very accessible place to visit.

SPEAKER_00 21:16

Absolutely. And those upper falls, I'm full disclosure, I've never even visited the upper falls until you made all those improvements, to be honest with you. I just wasn't gonna the the the time I was there and with kids and everything, I wasn't gonna sort of rock scramble to get all the way up there.

SPEAKER_01 21:29

Sure, yeah. That you know, it was an unsafe situation. It was uh causing a lot of erosion, tearing the side of the mountain up with um the number of people that were attempting to do that. So all those things were taken into account when they decided to make the improvements to the trail.

SPEAKER_00 21:43

Yeah, just bring water, bring water, those steps. There's a lot of them.

SPEAKER_01 21:46

That's right.

SPEAKER_00 21:47

Do you know how many they are? I know it just putting you on the spot. It's a lot.

SPEAKER_01 21:51

I think there are over five hundred. I I think there's about five hundred and thirty, i uh is one of my guesses.

Alta Pass Apples And Music

SPEAKER_00 21:57

Uh so well done. It's so well done, all of them. That are so well done. You mentioned uh Alta Pass uh a little bit ago. So you've got your waterfalls, but we also have some culture there and history. The Carson House, uh the orchards at Alta Pass. Um do you know that was my first exposure to that entire area was the orchard at Alta Pass when my kids were tiny, you know, kindergarten, first grade kind of a thing. And then it just from there we just kept exploring and kind of opening up that area. But let's talk a little bit about that because there's a lot of heritage just in those two areas I mentioned.

SPEAKER_01 22:28

There is. It's it's really a jewel for us, and we're so thankful for Bill Carson, who unfortunately passed away earlier this year, but the founding director of the Carson House really took uh excuse me, of the orchard at Altopass took that orchard and made it something that is really special. He he kept the the heirloom apples that were up there and really to uh enhanced the the music that was up there as well. So that is really a big thing that people love to to visit. It's uh it's one of our marquee attractions, I would say. It's beautiful views right on the parkway. They have special events throughout the year. In fact, coming up in June, they have bagpipes on the parkway. So cool. Keep an eye out on their website because, yes, music is also super popular up there throughout the entire summer. They have traditional Appalachian music almost every Saturday and Sunday. And then they also have special events throughout the year, particularly right at the beginning of the season when they have their the really that is probably one of their marquee events, too, is the bagpipes on the parkway. Wow. So uh look for that. I think that is on June the 6th this year. Then in the fall, they are doing their hay rides and their fall festival, which is sort of coinciding with the harvest season, obviously. You gotta get up there early though. Some of the best apples go quick. So, you know, those are to me, besides the fall, would be the early spring, I think, when you have some of the blooms on the trees. So um they uh do welcome people to walk the trails when the orchard is closed. So you can stop in there and walk. They have trails that you can go out through the orchard. So if you're up there, say in a March or April, you can walk through and see some of the beautiful blooms on the apple trees. They they really focus on heritage. The gift shop has a wonderful display that talks about the heritage of the orchard in there, so make sure you go into the orchard. And then again, on Saturday and Sundays, that traditional Appalachian music you can't find Harley in a lot of places now.

SPEAKER_00 24:31

Oh, that's so true. And it's authentic. You've used that word a couple of times, and that is exactly spot on. One of my very core memories, the fall is a very, you know, living here, the fall is a very special time to many of us. When the kids were growing up and we would go to the Altopass, that's the one thing I remember. Like I still hear the sounds of the gravel, the car going across the gravel, the smells of the fire that are there, and then the sounds from the from the music that are coming out from the little center there. It is all authentic, nothing is put on for a show. Really encourage people to just strike up conversations with the musicians, strike up conversations with the people in the store. If you want a really you know true taste of Appalachia, it's not manufactured, it's it's authentic.

SPEAKER_01 25:12

Exactly. I think so. They have a wonderful butterfly garden, pollinator garden up there as well. So they really have something a little bit for everybody.

Bigfoot Gold And Trail Festivals

SPEAKER_00 25:19

That's so cool, man. I love it. And like a lot of places here, you have your own set of festivals. We already mentioned one with the bluegrass festival kind of coming up and getting ready to kick off. But there's a lot of other things you have up there, including the WNC Bigfoot Festival. Let's talk about some of the festivals you have.

SPEAKER_01 25:37

For sure. That is the most popular festival we have, the Bigfoot Festival that will be coming up in late August. And I think for me you just got to get out and experience it. You know, they have these uh excursions during the day, so there'll be some opportunities to get out and go look for Bigfoot. And then you also got some really unique art and artists that come in for the festival. And then there's also people that travel around to Bigfoot festivals and really they have uh evidence of seeing Bigfoot. So it's it's for the believer and the non-believer, so you don't have to totally believe in it. But if you come and experience the festival, you might walk away believing there might be Bigfoot out there somewhere. Uh there's been some sightings, you know, throughout the years. We have a a really unique brochure called the Haunted Haulers, which will take you beyond the festival. So you can also visit some of the mysterious and spooky things throughout the county by following our haunted haulers brochure. Uh it'll it'll take you over to like the brown mountain lights that you can see across from the Lynnville Gorge.

SPEAKER_00 26:47

Have you ever seen those?

SPEAKER_01 26:48

I have not.

SPEAKER_00 26:49

I have not either, and that is on my my my my mom even reached out to me and said, Have you seen this? I'm like, no. That is on my bucket list for the summer.

SPEAKER_01 26:56

Right. And uh and the gorge is, you know, apparently where some of the sightings for Bigfoot have happened too. So it could all be connected. We don't know. Beyond the Bigfoot Festival, we have coming up what we call the trifecta of festivals coming up in June. We have in Old Fort, June 4th through the 6th, is the Old Fort Trails and Trains Festival, which is really three days of interactive trail uh hiking guides that will take you out. There's a yoga festival that's going on. It all culminates on Saturday with the Vendor Village, where we'll have outdoor manufacturers, there will be trail organizations, there'll be anyone that really is aligned with the outdoors. We really have that festival just on Saturday for that purpose. And then on Thursday and Friday, you'll see the guided hikes. We have a wonderful talk with John Kelly, who runs a unique ultra race called the Barkley. If you never heard of that, look it up. John Kelly will be there to talk about it as one of the most unusual races of all time. And he'll be out on Thursday to talk about his experiences with that race. And then on Friday, we have a bike film festival going on over at the watershed, which is a new bike park and brewery that has opened just off of Catawba River Road. Um so if you as you go to the Cotawba Falls, you'll see the watershed on the on the left. But they have a bike park there that they've built, I think, close to 13 to 15 miles of bike trails. And so it's a the super bike-centric place, and they'll have a bike film festival on Friday evening. And then on Saturday, two more festivals are going on that you've probably heard of as well. One called the Liver Mush Festival in downtown Marion. We're celebrating all things liver mush. And if you've never had that, that is the place to try it. You'll have a couple of options to try different styles of liver mush, as well as some traditional food as well. So if you're not a true liver mush fan, there'll be other things for you to do. And then the last festival going on that same day is down at Lucky Strike Gold Mine, and it's the North Carolina Gold Festival.

SPEAKER_00 29:11

No way.

SPEAKER_01 29:12

And we have a huge gold history right in the southern part of the county as well. Um, right around the county line are a couple of gold mines that you can gold pan, and they have the festival there on uh the June the 6th this year. So that will have an opportunity to go back into places in the mines that you normally can't go. They have a trail network where they used to go back into the mountain and mine. So they'll show you some of that. There'll also be authentic gold demonstrations of how to pan, and then there's people that really know a lot about the history and how to find it. So it's it's really an another unique festival. Like I say, going back in history a little bit, that's one of the places you can really experience something that you you don't see every day either. So all three of those we really call the the festival that you can do all three in one day. You can go early on over to the Trails and Trains Festival, work your way over to Marion, taste a little liver mush. And then the gold festival is also two days long. So uh between trails and trains and goldfest being two days long, you can really make a weekend of it.

SPEAKER_00 30:16

Oh, yeah, that's great.

SPEAKER_01 30:17

There'll be mountain bike rides for people that are wanting to get out on a bike. There, of course, there are the guided hikes, and then there are also uh more films on Saturday as well. The um Mountains of Sea Coalition is showing a film about the Mountains of Sea Trail, and then there's more outdoor-oriented films as well. So, yeah, please look at OldFortfest.com for the full schedule of events there.

SPEAKER_00 30:43

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 30:44

Of course, our website will have information for the Gold Festival and the Livermush Festival.

Old Fort’s Downtown Second Wind

SPEAKER_00 30:48

That's fantastic. Before we leave from Old Fort, I'd love to talk a little bit more about what is going on down in Old Fort. I'd mentioned we did an episode several years ago before the gateway trails were were actually built, it were just sort of in conception and just getting ready to be built. And you had companies like Kitsbow down there and Hillman Brewing. There are other companies, there are other businesses that are opening up downtown uh uh in in Old Fort right now, and it really is starting to hit sort of that second stride. That may not be a good way to put it, but I feel like the first stride was kind of before Helene and then Helene and then the recovery from that. But there's like this second stride that's happening now, and there's a lot of activity going on in Old Fort.

SPEAKER_01 31:33

There is. There's uh a lot of energy really from new entrepreneurs that are moving in and taking some of these old historic buildings that we have and revitalizing them. So, yes, just really in the past year, even since Haleen, you've had uh B-side books open up. It's a uh bakery and bookshop, some wonderful, authentic, locally made bread, and then some unique books and vinyl records that they're selling there. Then you have Old Fort Yoga, which is just opened as well. So a full slate of programming there, which is right on Main Street. You also have Udawine, which is uh just really opened right as Helene hit, and they were they were um heavily damaged, but they have completely reopened. They're just about to roll out some of their new rose, I think it is, and some of the sparklings that um you always have to keep an eye on what that uh Michael has ready to roll out. And then you also have more shops, Davis Country Store just opened a new antique mall, which uh cool. Haven't even had a chance to go into, but right next to the old Davis Country store is a new place there. And then you've got just around the corner from that, of course, the old Fort Bike Shop, and then I mentioned the watershed, which is over off of uh Catawba River Road. And so, yes, I think you know.

SPEAKER_00 32:52

Secret coffee. Yep. You got diners, it's a lot.

SPEAKER_01 32:55

Exactly, you really do. Modern Alchemist just opened with a new distillery there.

SPEAKER_00 32:59

Oh, I did not know that.

SPEAKER_01 33:00

Yep, they um are doing now their own tequila and some of the sort of Mexican-style beers so you can come enjoy that as long as some as well as some wonderful food. So, yes, I think you know, the the trails was the first wave. That really started people seeing that there is some momentum here. And since then you've got uh really, like I say, all of those businesses really since Helene have just opened an old fort. There's a lot to do besides, you know, just hiking. You've got other things to do as well.

SPEAKER_00 33:30

I don't know why I ran across this quote, but I wrote it down. It says McDowell County is what happens when trails don't just bring people in, they build a community around them. And that is really what you just said. It has come into life, it's sort of putting flesh and color on that. Uh that's cool to see.

SPEAKER_01 33:45

Yeah, I I agree. It's it's a lot of energy throughout the entire county, and we have uh that same type spirit really, you know, going on in Marion and and up at Little Switzerland. There's new things always happening up that way as well. So you have to get out and explore the entire county from one end to the other.

SPEAKER_00 34:02

Let's talk about the best times to visit. And I know that could be different for the different regions and the different areas, but what is the really good time to visit besides every day?

SPEAKER_01 34:11

Well, you're right, you're right. We we're a four-season destination, so that's one thing we have. And it it depends on what your activity is for sure. You know, if if you're a lake person, summer is the time to hit Lake James. You've got all your water skiing, your standout paddle boarding, great fishing access at Lake James. So summer is is prime season for for that area. If you're more a winter person, Little Switzerland is great to go to for a cozy little winter getaway. You know, you've got the fireplace there, you've got access to a closed Blue Ridge Parkway, which can then open up new possibilities. Uh on a on a winter day, you can go cross-country skiing or you can go snowshoeing on the on the sections of the parkway that are closed. And then, of course, the fall is everyone's favorite time to visit the mountains, your your peak leaf season. And we do have that massive elevation change in McDowell County. So, you know, your um towns are around eleven hundred, twelve hundred feet, and then you go all the way up to the parkway and up to Mount Mitchell, which reaches five, six thousand feet. So our leaf season is really long. You have, you know, up at the upper stretches of the parkway, you'll start to see the leaves change, and down in the lower areas, it's it hasn't changed yet. So it gives you a long option there in the fall to visit and see leaf season. And then spring brings its whole other season out with beautiful wildflowers. You've got rhododendrons which bloom, the mountain laurel, you know, just taking walks out in the woods right now. I've seen mountain laurel and the wild azaleas blooming right now, too. So you you do have that. So you're right. It's it's uh what you're really looking for, of course, are historic attractions like the Carson House, like the Orchard Alta Pass, are pretty much open um throughout the year. I would say they're maybe close a couple of months in January and February, so do check the website. The Carson House has a brand new visitor center that's just about to open in May.

SPEAKER_00 36:16

Okay, good.

SPEAKER_01 36:17

Um it will have some brand new exhibits really tied to the history of McDowell County and sort of the greater south in general. And then there um so I would say year-round for all of that for sure, and then hiking year-round as well. You've got, of course, in the winter, no leaves on the trees, so the views are better. Um, and then the summer, though, you can escape some of the cool the hotter weather and the higher elevations of the county.

SPEAKER_00 36:43

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And one thing that is running through my mind as we talk about all of this, and you've kind of alluded to it. There this is really anywhere from an individual going out to an entire family to an extended family, being able to go out and enjoy all of these areas. I mean, there's a lot of things you could do, even the mountain biking, for example. You can take, you know, if it's through watershed or the gateway trails, you can go as hard as you want to go, or you can go as easy as you want to go on some of these trails and still have fun. But there's a lot of things that families and individuals can do, which in all the towns that we talked about, I mean, there's something. And and little bits of my experiences are sort of popping up, running a reel across my head about and my memories about things that I've done with my kids and that and and then how that's evolved to different experiences with the kids as well.

SPEAKER_01 37:31

Without a doubt, I think so. Like you, you know, you mentioned the mountain biking, you've got beginner trails at at um particularly Lake James has some great beginner trails, slightly too beginner intermediate are those gateway trails. But then if you're not into mountain biking, you might be a rock hound and you want to go gym mining or gold panning. So you do have the um gym mines up along the parkway, like Emerald Village, Gym Mountain, where you can actually go and look for those rocks that people love, the sapphires and the emeralds. And then, of course, you've got your your gold mines down on the south end of the county. Those are great family things to do because it really you're getting out and experiencing something that people don't even know how to do anymore. And it they they guide you and and do that. And so you know, you've got fly fishing. People haven't uh we haven't even talked about that, but we've got three or four great fly fishing creeks and rivers that you can go with. Um in fact, Mill Creek is a um, they're all really stocked creeks, fly fishing. We've got some wonderful guides there that can take you out and get you out in nature and show you some of those places that you might not know about. So a lot of family things to do, whether you're just walking around Marion for the afternoon and having Artisana ice cream, which is some locally made ice cream, or you're up on the parkway, you know, gym mining, you you've got a lot to do in the county.

Where To Stay From Inns To Glamping

SPEAKER_00 38:54

Yeah, there's a whole lot to do. And we really haven't talked about places to stay, but there are places that you have in some of your cities that you have your hotel or your towns, you have your hotels, obviously Little Switzerland. You're gonna have one that's going up in in Old Fort, but there's a lot of camping that's anywhere from primitive to tents to you know RVs. There's a lot of different options that one can choose. And you actually, in your your guide, your travel guide, you actually have a whole list of all of these places that that one can lodge and camp.

SPEAKER_01 39:22

Yeah, you you know, we we mentioned some of the businesses that have opened in Old Fort, but we didn't touch on the lodging businesses that have opened for sure. There is a great new resort off of Curtis Creek Road called Wonderland Resort. Yes, yes, which is a glamping resort, which has some cabins, but it also has some glamping pods, so you've got a choice there, or they also offer tent camping. And then you also have Greer Village, which is a new development just off of Mill Creek Road. That's a project of Camp Greer, where they're going to have more of a luxury-style homes to rent for larger families, so five-bedroom homes that you can now rent. And then you've also got Gold River Campground. Uh, really, I hadn't even mentioned that one, but it's really set along the old South Broad River there, where you can go and camp right on the river. It's a glamping pod as well. So we have those glamping type places, but we also have a lot of short-term rentals. So if you if you want a home, we've got those spread throughout the county. We've talked a lot about Little Switzerland, but you also have them up towards the Linville Falls, the North Cove area. And then your traditional lodging is in Marion. That would be where you can find wonderful places like the Tabletop Inn, which is a couple of board game designers from Asheville moved down and took over an old beautiful home and have made it this board-themed inn that you can actually stay in. So if you're a board game enthusiast, that's your place. But if you're also looking, you know, for a one or two-night basic stay, we've got your traditional holiday in expresses and Hampton Inns as well. So a a good variety for everyone, I I would say, whatever your taste is.

SPEAKER_00 41:04

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Well, I you know, one of the things that's been going through my mind too, as we've been talking, you really know your area. And I know that's your job as executive director, but you know, you intimately know these towns, and you must get out and really kind of network and talk with them. And obviously you're experiencing them, and I know we share a passion for skiing and outdoors together, you and I, but but yeah, like you really know you're an embedded part of this community, Shannon.

SPEAKER_01 41:34

I I just love it. I I do, you're right. I get out as much as I can to visit with people, to talk with the business owners, to see it that's the way you find out where people are coming from, you know, whether they're having a good time. But to me, McDowell was sort of the reason for all of us to to be here, really, is the fact that you've got all of this access to outdoors. And you do have the history, which I love as well. You're right, you know, that you can talk all day about Pisgah National Forest history in our area, you know, some of the the first tract of uh Eastern National Forest right in the Curtis Creek watershed there. So fascinating. We've talked about the railroad history and of course the Blue Ridge Parkway, and uh all that history to me just m melds into the the outdoor theme that we have going on too. So to me, it's it's um a very special place. The fact that we have everything and such a wide variety, I think, is is really what makes it unique.

SPEAKER_00 42:35

Yeah. I would be remiss to not mention the fact that the resiliency in the people in Old Fort in that whole area too, coming from Helene. I know not just Old Fort, but I'm thinking of that because I did and I went and helped to serve food at uh Camp Greer with the G5 Collective and so forth. But the town really stepped up. The people themselves really stepped up and looked after one another. And then now that we're on the back side of that experience, you see excitement, revitalization, vibe, energy, all those things that happened before Helene. And it really speaks, I think, to the grittiness and the wherewithal really of the people of Appalachia.

SPEAKER_01 43:13

Yeah, we've got some wonderful people that live there that really care about the community. The the people that have moved in, the entrepreneurs are uh are really at the forefront of that too. And then you've got those longtime residents that really support the businesses day in and day out. They bring, you know, the the music that we have, that those are the people that are are performing. They're the ones that are giving that wonderful hospitality that we have in our small businesses throughout the county. And, you know, we have are so fortunate to have a a wonderful EMS director that really led us through the the recovery effort. Also, some great partners that you know we've all relied on, like just getting the roads back open. So you're you know. Department of Transportation, things like that really have pulled through to get us back where we are. And I would say, you know, once we get that parkway back open, we'll be about 100% back open.

Trip Planning Resources That Help

SPEAKER_00 44:11

Love it. Well, let's end where we started, which is at the McDowell, the destination McDowell, your visitor center, and the um the beautiful renovation that you all have done inside. I was down there what just a couple of weeks ago and had a chance to see that. It really is beautiful, and it really is a great representation of our area or this area, McDowell County. Where can people go other than stopping in, where can they begin this whole journey of discovering all these things we've talked about today? Your website, I would imagine, socials?

SPEAKER_01 44:44

We've got some great resources. Uh obviously our website, destinationmcdowell.com, has the most current up-to-date information, whether it's on the what's open along the Blue Ridge Parkway or the latest businesses that are have opened as well. So we really have some wonderful blogs on there that we try to update regularly with content. And then we also have a wonderful, I would say, new visitor guide that has just we've just published. We're very excited about it. Just came in last week, and it will really open up the the county to someone that's not as familiar with what we have. So if you are completely in the dark and don't know, the visitor guide would be a great resource just to narrow things down for you because we do have so much. If you're already sort of you have an idea what you want to to look at, our website will probably be the best resource for that. And yes, our visitor center was just remodeled to really give an orientation for each of those towns that we've talked about and and a little bit of the history and why those are such special places. And then we also have some great um, I would say obviously our social media too would be a a place to follow with our uh Instagram and s and Facebook accounts.

SPEAKER_00 46:03

When people come to visit any part of of McDowell County, let's say it's a first-time visitor and they're on their drive home. What do you hope they're talking about?

SPEAKER_01 46:14

To me that they were surprised at the friendly people we have and the fact that we have this deep history and that you can actually still experience it. You know, I th I think that's what's still what surprises people when they come in, or they we've had people that come in, we've explained to them some things to do, and they've come back with thank you notes to our staff members to say, thank you so much for talking about Tom's Creek Falls or telling us about these places that we didn't know existed. So really that's the exciting part of our job is getting out and telling people the beautiful things that we do have and and the undiscovered areas. Really that that is the key, I think, for a destination marketing organization is to spread that around so it's not the same things that we're talking about, that we're really diving deep into a destination and showing people, you know, here's the little unique things that we have. And I think that's what uh we hope people walk away with is that they that we gave them some good advice if they came into the visitor center.

SPEAKER_00 47:17

Absolutely. And I know they will because I know you and um the everything that you're doing in this space and your love for it, it just oozes out. Shannon, man, this has been great. Um, it really is important work that you all do, and for the very reason that I think you just summed up, people might be surprised about what all is there to experience in this county. And um there's a lot, and a great place to start is with you all, and I thank you for the work that you all do to promote your place in a very responsible, sustainable way, too.

SPEAKER_01 47:45

I appreciate you, Mike, for having us out here for Exploration Local. And uh it's been great. Yeah, I I really think and hope we've opened up some eyes to people. Hopefully. And um given some new ideas about what they might want to see and do.

Share Follow And Closing

SPEAKER_00 47:58

Love it. Thanks for listening to Exploration Local. If this episode got you thinking about a trip to McDowell County or anywhere that rewards a little extra time, share it with someone you'd explore it with. And if you haven't already, follow the show so you don't miss what's next. You can connect with me on Instagram and Facebook, or reach out to Mike at explorationlocal.com if you ever have an idea for an episode. That's gonna do it for this one. Until next time, wander far, but explore local.