Elevate your High Country experience at
Grandfather Mountain
BY JAMIE SHELL
PLAN YOUR VISIT
mong High Country landmarks, perhaps no place more typifies the sentiment of the great conservationist Muir than Linville’s Grandfather Mountain. John Muir, nature connoisseur and founder of Sierra Club, upon visiting the great mountain in 1898 while ill with a cough, wrote his wife saying, “The air has healed me. I think I could walk 10 miles and not be tired.” Muir is one among many notable visitors to Grandfather Mountain, whose name was derived from pioneers who recognized the face of an old man in one of the cliffs. Many vantage points reveal different faces, so there is no one official profile of the mountain, but the most popular can be seen from the community of Foscoe, seven miles north of Linville and 10 miles south of Boone on N.C. 105. Grandfather is among the most recognizable and visited attractions in the state of North Carolina for myriad reasons. From its unique and lovable animal habitats to the op-
The entrance to Grandfather Mountain is located on U.S. 221, two miles north of Linville and one mile south of the Blue Ridge Parkway at Milepost 305. Admission to Grandfather Mountain (accessed via automobile through the entrance gate) is $22 for adults (age 13 to 59), $20 for seniors (age 60 and older), $9 for children (age four to 12), with children younger than four years of age admitted free. Grandfather Mountain is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, and is open every day of the year, weather permitting, except for Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. The Mountain also closes early on Christmas Eve and occasionally on other dates for staff training. Grandfather recommends visitors schedule their visit before 11 a.m. or after 3 p.m. on summer weekends to avoid busy times at the Entrance Gate. If you can only schedule your visit for midday, the staff is always ready to take care of your travel party. During times of inclement weather, the park may close early or delay opening until conditions improve. On occasion, weather may cause the mountain to close halfway (past the Nature Museum to the Mile High Swinging Bridge), during which half-priced admission will be charged. For more information, click to www.grandfather.com or call (828) 733-4337.
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PHOTO BY MONTY COMBS | GRANDFATHER MOUNTAIN STEWARDSHIP FOUNDATION Yonahlossee, one of Grandfather Mountain’s resident black bears, enjoys the view from a treetop in her environmental wildlife habitat. It is rare to see a bear in the wilderness, as they tend to avoid human contact, according to wildlife authorities.
portunities for visitors to experience hands-on opportunities to get up close and personal with nature in a summer climate that beckons tourists to escape the heat of the lowlands to the cooler climes of a mile-high elevation, Grandfather Mountain combines the thrill of experiencing the fun of
the great outdoors with educational experiences with no equal. “Grandfather Mountain is a special place, and it always has been, even before Hugh Morton established the park as a nature preserve and attraction in 1952,” Frank Ruggiero, director of marketing and communications with the
Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation, the nonprofit organization that oversees and operates the park, said. “Here, you can experience and embrace nature at your own pace, even if you’ve never so much as looked at a hiking boot. Or if you enjoy climbing ladders up mountainsides more than
a mile above sea level — and all points in between. You can come face to face with a black bear in our environmental wildlife habitats, watch river otters frolic, cross the Mile High Swinging Bridge and make mountains of memories.” Among the mountain’s newest offerings are both unique educational opportunities, as well as a few new residents. The popular “Grandfather Presents” Lecture Series offers a number of lectures and workshops
through the summer featuring experts discussing topics ranging from ecology to ocean conservancy. The mountain also offers educational workshops through the summer and fall with topics that include methods of teaching environmental education and workshops all about elk and black blears. “On the mountain, we like to bridge outdoor fun with education,” Ruggiero said. “With our ‘GrandSEE GRANDFATHER ON PAGE 35
SUMMER TIMES 2021
