Carvers Creek State Park

Pasture road leading to the Rockefeller House and Woods
Last month, North Carolina's newest state park opened just a few miles north of my house (Cumberland County's first state park.) Carvers Creek State Park is a former farm that has been transformed into recreation area for the people in the Fayetteville area. Although the mill pond located on this property has existed since the mid-1800s, it gained larger fame when the farm was purchased by the famous Rockefeller family (so that John S. Rockefeller would have an escape while he was serving his military duty on Ft. Bragg during World War II.)

John S. Rockefeller House
Although the state plans to eventually expand the park, it currently has just 1.75 miles (2.8 km) of hiking trails. The park begins with a half-mile walk along an overgrown pasture (with thicker forest in the distance.) Sadly, this "trail" apparently served as the original road to the Rockefeller House, so it a wide, featureless expanse of sand. Fortunately, when you finally arrive at the forest (and the Rockefeller House), you are greeted by a more welcoming environment.

Sadly, the Rockefeller House is currently closed to the public. However, the true highlight of the house is actually the mill pond located immediately to the back of the house. This small pond is the true highlight of Carvers Creek! To the left of the Rockefeller House is the second trail in the park, the Cypress Point Loop Trail. This short loop trail circles along the pond's banks before turned into the woods for a short return trip.

Pond formed by the damming of Carvers Creek
While the two trails are an enjoyable little trek (and would be perfect for those living in the immediate area who just want a little afternoon exercise), the main activity at this park seems to be fishing. The entire pond was surrounded by anglers; hopefully, the hiking trails will be expanded and receive a little more attention once the park finally reaches its full size.

Trees growing in the McDiarmid Mill Pond

Hanging Rock State Park

Hanging Rock Lake
I first discovered Hanging Rock State Park when I hiked Pilot Mountain State Park a few months ago. Located just north of Greensboro, along the North Carolina/Virginia border, the park is most famous for a large rock that juts - or "hangs" from the mountain top; however, Hanging Rock State Park has much more to offer than just the Hanging Rock Trail.

Hanging Rock
Hanging Rock State Park actually has three different mountain peaks within its borders, and the park operates a program challenging hikers to hike all three mountains (to five different lookout points) in a single day. This difficult 11-mile (17 km) hike was my goal for the day.

My hike began with an upward trek along the park's most popular path, Hanging Rock Trail. Because this trail sees so much foot traffic, it was very wide (and even graveled at some points.) This was by far the busiest segment of my trek, with the majority of the crowd resting along the jagged rocks surrounding Hanging Rock. Surprisingly, I found the view from Hanging Rock to be the least interesting - and the rock formation was no more interesting than those of the other peaks in the park; I'm not really sure why Hanging Rock gets all the fame...

View from House Rock
After my brief rest at Hanging Rock, I continued back down the mountain until I met the Wolf Rock Trail, which formed the next segment of my loop. This trail was much narrower and passed through much thicker forest. Fortunately, the trail was fairly level, so it wasn't nearly as challenging as the climb up Hanging Rock. Eventually, the trail passes a rocky cliff with openings in the forest that allow for decent views of the surrounding countryside. One of these openings forms the second outlook, Wolf Rock - which was the least impressive of the five outlooks.

After Wolf Rock, the trail soon merges with the Cook's Wall Trail and begins another assent up the second peak. Rapidly climbing up the mountain, the trail soon provides a welcome break at House Rock, the third outlook (and the first that was truly interesting.) Sadly, this is only a brief stop before the real challenge of Cook's Wall trail begins! The trail continues for another mile, most of which is straight up the mountain. When you finally reach the mountain top, it's like walking into an entirely different environment; although the rock outcrops still remain, the forest thins some and grass grows all along the trail. Finally, you reach Cook's Wall, which proved to be my favorite outlook.

View from Cook's Wall (with Pilot Mountain in the distance)
From Cook's Wall, you can see Pilot Mountain standing in the distance (and much of northern North Carolina and southern Virginia.) There are also large hawks(?) circling in the sky just off the mountain peak. It was quite the impressive sight. From here, you again retrace your steps back down the mountain towards the short Magnolia Springs Trail, which loops towards the park's final peak.

Sadly, Moore's Knob (the final peak) proved to be very challenging! It was a difficult two miles up the final mountain (which wasn't helped by the afternoon heat and the exhaustion from my previous two climbs.) From the top of Moore's Knob, your effort is rewarded with two different sights. The first, Balanced Rock, is a massive boulder that mysteriously "balances" on a much smaller rock - without falling over. The second sight, is a man-made lookout tower at the mountaintop, which provides an amazing panoramic view of the surrounding area.

After Moore's Knob, the final segment of the loop is a quick descent (with many, many stairs) back towards the parking lot at the mountain's base. The final segment of the loop ends at Hanging Rock Lake, a small reservoir formed by the damming of Cascade Creek. The lake proves to be an extremely welcome sight after 11 miles up and down mountain paths! Upon completion of the loop, you can stop at the Visitor Center and purchase a small iron-on patch proving that you completed the Five Outlooks Challenge.

The Outer Banks

Atlantic Coastline along Nag's Head Island
The most popular tourist destinations in North Carolina are the Other Banks, a series of thin islands just off the coast that act as a barrier between the mainland and the Atlantic. Since most of the Outer Banks attractions close for the winter, I decided to make good use of a sunny fall weekend and explore the islands before everything shut down! Fortunately, the summer rush was long over, so I was actually able to enjoy the islands in relative peace (the only drawback was that the ocean was far too cold for any swimming.)

Bodie Island Light House
My first stop was the Bodie Island Light House, which was just a few miles south of my hotel. Surprisingly, the light house was practically deserted since it was both early in the morning and late in the fall. I had made an advanced reservation for the 9:30 tour to the top of the light house - which ended up being a private tour since I was the only person interested in climbing that early in the morning. Built in the early 1870s, the brick light house is 165 ft (50 m) tall and provides spectacular views of the island (which is narrow enough to allow great views of both the Atlantic coastline to the east and Roanoke Sound to the west.)

Cape Hatteras Light House
After my tour of the Bodie Island Light House, I continued driving 40 miles (65 km) south along the thin islands to the more famous Cape Hatteras Light House. Very similar to the Bodie Island Light House, Cape Hatteras was also built in the 1870s and shares the same black and white brick design. Slightly taller, the Cape Hatteras Light House is 210 ft (64 m) tall - making it the tallest brick lighthouse in the US. Sadly, after my private tour at the first lighthouse, the trip up Cape Hatteras Light House was a little disappointing. The Cape Hatteras Light House is strictly a self-guided tour, so I merely climbed to the top, took a few pictures, and headed back down.

Fortunately, I did at least enjoy a nice walk along the beach (with the lighthouse towering behind me.) Surprisingly, the beach was still a popular destination even in the cooler fall weather. There were a lot of people kitesurfing - though I'm amazed the didn't just blow away since the winds were so strong!

Wright Brothers Memorial
After my time at the beach, I backtracked north to Bodie Island for a quick lunch and some souvenir shopping. For my afternoon, I started at the Wright Brother National Memorial just south of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The sight of the first manned flight, the Wright Memorial proved to be better than expected (though that might be because it was Volunteer Appreciation Day and the $4 admission was waived.) The memorial site included a small museum on the history of flight, which was a little disappointing. It also included a reconstruction of the original Wright Brothers gliders, as well as their early base camp. However, the real highlight of the sight was the large airfield with stone markers showing the actual distant of the first four flights. Finishing the site was a massive stone monument atop the Kill Devil Hills, the launch point for the Wright Brothers' first experiments with gliders.

Elizabethan Gardens on Roanoke Island
To finish my afternoon, I left the Outer Banks and stopped at Roanoke Island - a small island nestled between the Outer Banks and the mainland. Roanoke Island was the site of the first English settlement in America (and the birthplace of Virginia Dare, the first English child born in America.) Sadly, the colonists mysteriously disappeared after one year, and no one knows exactly what became of the settlers. Sadly, because they disappeared, there is nothing left to see on the island. Fort Raleigh, the site where the settlers formed their camp is little more than forest today.

Fortunately, the people of Roanoke Island have commemorated the early settlers with a large Elizabethan Garden. The beautiful garden, which is designed in a style popular in 15th century Europe features statutes of Queen Elizabeth and Virginia Dare among the trees and flowered paths. I was actually very impressed at how colorful the garden was this late in the season; I believe the garden designers successfully planned a garden that would be beautiful in all season!

Biltmore Estate

The Biltmore Mansion
Located just south of Asheville, the Biltmore Estate, at 178,926 square feet (16,622 m²), is the largest privately-owned home in the United States. Built between 1889-1895, the house served as a mountain retreat for the Vanderbilt family, who had earned their money through a shipping and railroad empire. Although the mansion is still owned by the Vanderbilt family, it now mainly serves as a tourist site (and an expensive destination since admission cost $49 if purchased in advanced and $59 is purchased at the door!)

The Italian Garden on the Biltmore Estate
Sadly, photography is not allowed inside the house; however, it is a pleasant little self-guided tour (you would think that for $49 they could at least have tour guides...) Moving through the house, you see a variety of different rooms still decorated in the original style - and several of the rooms have priceless works of art dating from the 1400-1700s.

Walled Garden on the Biltmore Estate
After my time in the house (I only spent about an hour inside the house since I'm not one to stand and look at every single historic item), I walked through the gardens. Surprisingly, I found this to be my favorite part of the Biltmore Estates. The gardens on the Biltmore grounds were designed by Frederick Olmstead, the man who designed Central Park in New York City. Walking through the vast grounds, you almost feel like you are in a gigantic city park. (I guess unlimited wealth allows you to splurge on a team of gardeners.)

Bass Pond on the Biltmore Estate
After my time in the gardens, I walked to the estate's Bass Pond and saw a charming twig bridge and boathouse. On the way back to the mansion, I took the Woodland Trail, which lead me through a very natural forest (I felt as though I was back on a hike in the woods.) When I finally arrived back at the house, I caught the shuttle bus and headed to Antler Hill Village and Winery, which proved to be little more than a small petting zoo and a collection of restaurants. Overall, the Biltmore Estates proved to be an enjoyable destination (though perhaps not worth the $49.)

Chimney Rock

Chimney Rock
Since I made a weekend excursion to southwestern North Carolina, I wanted to make the most of my time and see as many sights as possible. Since I spent the morning at South Mountains State Park, I decided that Chimney Rock would be the perfect stop before stopping in Asheville for the night.

Stairs leading to Chimney Rock
Sadly, Chimney Rock is not the ideal place after a 9 mile (12 km) hike up the side of a mountain. Although you drive the majority of the way up the mountain, the final stretch is a endless series of stairs that lead higher, and higher, and higher! Fortunately, once you reach the "chimney" top, you are rewarded with a magnificent view of the surrounding mountains and Lake Lure below.

View of Lake Lure
Surprisingly, Chimney Rock is not the end-point on the trail - instead, it continues up more and more stairs to several additional attractions. My favorite was a location known as "The Opera Box", which is merely a alcove in the mountainside that provides a wonderful view of Chimney Rock and the surrounding mountains. Further up the mountain, is an interesting rock called "Devil's Head" due to its pointed features that make it look demonic. Finally, after leaving the wooden steps and following a rough stone path, you arrive at the top (?) of the mountain for a view towards the west. Sadly, the western view was nowhere as appealing as the eastern view of Chimney Rock and Lake Lure.

South Mountains State Park

Jacob Branch Creek
All summer, I have wanted to head west to hike in the mountains of western North Carolina; unfortunately, this has been one of the wettest summers on record - so there have been few chances for weekend trips. Since I was finally blessed with a sunny weekend, I began my day at South Mountain State Park, which is located in the central part of the state (just north of Charlotte.) The park is best-known for the High Shoals Waterfall; however, it also has a number of excellent hiking trails.

High Shoals Falls
When I first entered the park, my plan was to make a 7.5 mile (12 km) loop hike using the High Shoal Falls Trail, Upper Falls Trail, Shinny Trail, and finishing along the Headquarter Trail. Surprisingly, the trail immediately proved a challenge! Although it passed along the picturesque Jacob Branch Creek, the trail quickly climbs the mountain through a series of steep stairs. Fortunately, there were several small waterfalls along the climb that made the trip more enjoyable. Eventually, the trail arrives at the High Shoals Fall, which was very impressive - though still not the end of the climb.

View of the Mountains from the Upper Falls Trail
After the trail climbs to the top of the cliff (above the High Shoals Fall), the Upper Falls Trail begins, and continues to climb through a thick pine forest. Fortunately, this portion of the trail doubles as a horse trail, so it is very wide (and easy to follow.) Sadly, there was little of interest along this segment (other than a single spot where the trees cleared to along a few of the surrounding mountains.) After a couple miles, my loop turned with the Shinny Trail, and continued along a much narrower path back down the mountain side.

Log "Bridge" along the Headquarters Trail
When I arrived at the bottom of the mountain, I again joined another stream as I worked my way back to the parking lot. Fortunately, the trail designer allowed for as much interaction with this stream as possible! The trail crossed over the stream at least four times - using stepping stones, a log bridge, and a couple small traditional bridges. Eventually, the trail joins the Headquarter Trail and continues to the parking lot.

Jones Lake State Park

Trees growing in Jones Lake

I had originally hoped to head west and hike in the Appalachian Mountains this weekend, but I wasn't exactly feeling up for the long four-hour drive to western North Carolina. Instead, I opted to make use of the cool weather locally and hike in Jones Lake State Park, a park just 40-miles (65 km) south of Fayetteville. As the name would suggest, the main feature of this park is Jones Lake - and the majority of people visiting this park only make use of the picnic and beach areas near the parking lot.

Bay Loop Trail

I, however, chose to forgo the beach and hike the 4-mile (6.5 km) Bay Loop Trail that passes through the forest surrounding the small lake. The first segment of trail is by far the most beautiful. Passing through the lush forest, the trail occasionally breaks with paths leading to the waters edge for spectacular views of the lake.

Dirty Road along Bay Trail

Unfortunately, after about a mile of walking, the trail works away from the lake and passes deeper into the forest. Eventually, the trail leaves the forest entirely and begins following a small dirt road that is composed entirely of sand (which will find its way into shoes and socks.) The one interesting aspect of this segment is the division of the forest; towards the lake, the forest is a thick massive of wilderness...on the opposite side, the forest is little more than thinly-spaced pines (I'm not sure if this is the result of a past forest fire or logging.) Sadly, the openness of the road and the reflective quality of the light-colored sand made this an incredibly hot walk (even on a rather cool day.)

Fortunately, the trail does occasionally skip away from the road and pass through the treed area to the right (though the road is always within sight.) After the second mile, the Bay Trail connects with the Salters Lake Trail, a smaller 1-mile trail leading further into the woods to the more remote Salters Lake. Since this trail is even less traveled, it provides a much closer experience with nature. Although there were many more insects along this trail, I also witnessed two white tailed deer right along the trail's path. Sadly, the end destination at Salters Lake was less than ideal; it was simply a small clearing next to the lake that provided a narrow view of the lake (in general, all the outlook points around the lakes would have been greatly improved with the clearing of a view more trees to provide more of a panoramic view.

Swampland along the trail

After returning along the same trail, I rejoined the Bay Trail, and completed the final two-miles around the Jones Lake. Fortunately, this segment was slightly more interesting than the first portion of dirt road. The final two-miles showed how much of a boggy swamp this area really is. The park's department has definitely built the trail here, which becomes extremely obviously every time the man-made path is flooded and requires you to step off the trail; several times, I stepped in what looked to be dry, solid ground - only to discover that it was a thin layer of dead leaves covering a much messier layer of decomposing swamp muck!

When I finally emerged at the park's picnic area, I was actually surprised to see the manicured lawn and sandy beach so close to a "wild" swamp. I almost considered renting a canoe at paddling across the lake, but I didn't exactly want to risk tipping myself into the swampy waters. Instead, I had to happily return with just a 6-miles (10 km) walk completed.

Pilot Mountain State Park

Pilot Mountain

Lately, I have been fantasizing about the Appalachian Trail (a hiking trail that stretches over 2,150 miles (3,400 km) through the mountains from Georgia to Maine. I have been trying to convince my co-worker that she should join me for this excursion; however, she's never even gone hiking before! Since I've been talking endlessly about the Appalachian Trail, we decided to head towards the mountains of western North Carolina and try a quick day-hike (just to give her an idea of what hiking is really like.)

Although we had originally hoped to walk part of the true Appalachian Trail, we thought a 4-5 hour drive each way would be a bit much for a single day-hike. Instead, we opted for the much closer Pilot Mountain, which was only 2.5 hours north near the city of Winston-Salem.

View over the Cliffs of Pilot Mountain

Our hike on Pilot Mountain was a 7 miles (11 km) loop that took us both around and atop the mountain. I first learned of this loop hike in the book 50 Hikes in the Mountains of North Carolina, which described this trail as strenuous (in fact, it listed the required hiking time as 6.5 hours - something that scared me considering the trail was only 7 miles!) Fortunately, the trail proved much easier than I was led to believe (and took nowhere near 6.5 hours.)

Cliffs along the Ledge Spring Trail

The loop began with 3 miles (5km) of Grindstone Trail, which circled around the north side of the mountain. Although the majority of this trail was an incline, it was actually a fairly mild slope that presented no real challenge. Unfortunately, the Grindstone Trail soon joined the Ledge Spring Trail, and the real climbing began!

Although the Ledge Spring Trail was a steep climb upwards, most of it was made (slightly) easier by the endless series of stairs leading towards the mountaintop. When you are about 3/4 of the way up this trail, the tree-line starts to open up to give magnificent views of the surrounding countryside. (You also encounter endless numbers of rock climbers scaling the mountains jagged cliffs.)

When you arrive at the "top" of the mountain (you can't actually climb to the very top - you have to settle for a nearby plateau instead), you are greeted by dozens of park visitors. Pilot Mountain State Park maintains a road leading up the mountain, so that people can easily reach the scenic lookout points without all the work we went through actually climbing the mountain! Although it was a little disappointing having to share the mountaintop with so many "tourist", the functioning bathrooms and water fountains made up for the small crowd.

Mountain Trail as it Passes through Shaded Forest

From the upper parking area, we were able to enjoy great views from the park's outlook areas before continuing along the mile-long Jomeokee Trail (which circles the mountain's actual peak. Then, the trail continued down a different segment of the Ledge Spring Trail (which would have been just as challenging had we been going up.) At the base of the mountain, we followed two unremarkable trails (Mountain Trail and Grassy Ridge Trail) through the forest south of the mountain. The only challenge from this final segment was the difficulty I had in locating the dark red trail markers against the trees; for someone who is mildly colorblind, it was nearly impossible to find the route markers (thank goodness I had my coworker there to be the eyes for both of us!)

Raeford Parachute Center

This afternoon, a coworker and I traveled to Raeford, a small town located just outside of Fayetteville. We have been discussing (and compiling) our bucket lists, and decided that it was time to cross skydiving from our lists. We had made reservations to jump with the Raeford Parachute Center, which was a small airport that seems devoted primarily to parachuting.

After a brief video (which was little more than a warning that we could get hurt - and that the parachuting center would not be held responsible), we were outfitted in a jumpsuit and harness. Before we knew it, we were loading into a very small plane. The plane merely had two benches along the sides, which we had to straddle with a person directly behind us (and a person in front of us who was practically sitting on our laps - it was a very tight fit!)

Me jumping from the plane
When we reached 13,500 feet (4,115 meters), it was time to jump. Before we jumped, my jump partner asked if I wanted to jump straight out - or if I wanted to do a back-flip out of the plane; stupidly, I answered, "back-flip." When it was my turn to jump, I had to sit on the ledge of the plane, with my legs hanging out of the plane (which was quite scary!) We did our back-flip and then continued plummeting (quickly) towards the earth. After about 60-seconds (which seemed like ages), the parachute was pulled, and we made a slow descent to the ground. Surprisingly, the landing was extremely gentle. I don't know that I'll be taking to the skies again anytime soon, but I am glad that I can say I've done it.

Cape Fear Botanical Gardens (Again)

Fountain at Cape Fear Botanical Gardens
Since it had been a couple months since my last visit to the Cape Fear Botanical Gardens, I decided to pay a summertime visit to the gardens. Although I started my trip with low expectations (I assumed the summer heat would have killed most of the blossoms), I was pleasantly surprised by the lushness of the garden (I guess the humidity that we've suffered through has really benefited the plants!)

Flooded Cape Fear River
Although I was impressed with the garden, I was most interested in seeing the Cape Fear River. With the recent tropical storm that passed through North Carolina, I knew the river would be well above its normal level. After encountering the river trail, I was quite surprised that they didn't have it closed off for the weekend; there were numerous trees down along the trail, and the river had overtaken part of the trail. Fortunately, one of the river overlooks provided a welcome rest in the shade (I actually sat there and wrote for an hour.) Sadly, since the trail was flooded, I was forced to turn around and re-walk the path back to the garden entrance.

Daylilies in Bloom
Fortunately, once out of the forest and on higher ground, I was able to continue walking the grounds (which were relatively empty due to the heat and humidity.) Although most of the garden remained as it was two-months ago, I was surprised to find a massive collection of daylilies in bloom. I found this lily particularly nice (though I didn't spend much time exploring the lilies since the sun was quite intense! Overall, it was a very pleasant afternoon in the garden.

Colonial Williamsburg

Governor's Palace at Williamsburg
To complete my colonial weekend in Virginia, I moved eastward to the colonial capital of Williamsburg (and the historical village that has been set up to re-enacted the 1770s.) Although a little expensive ($42), Colonial Williamsburg provided a full-day of entertainment (though there was a bit too much walking in the hot Virginia sun...)

Colonial Garden
Williamsburg proved to be a good mixture of colonial capital, average town, and multitude of actors. The larger structures (the Governor's Palace and the Colonial Capitol) were the main tourist stops, I actually found the smaller shops with the typical workers far more interesting.

Woman weaving cloth in a traditional manner
The smaller shops included silversmiths, cobblers, weavers, basket-makers, a wig-maker, and many more. At each shop, the actor was working his or her craft while explaining the process and history behind it. Of all the shops, I found the weaver's shop to be the most interesting (though that was perhaps because I had the most knowledge about yarn and the dying process.) I would have purchased some of their hand-spun and hand-dyed yarn, but it was $25/skein!

Benedict Arnold in front of the Capitol Building
In addition to all the wonderful buildings and shopkeepers, there were also a number of historic re-enactments throughout the day. Some were more interesting than the others; however, the highlight was an afternoon production that involved the British storming the capital and placing Benedict Arnold in charge of the city. It was interesting - though Benedict Arnold proved very difficult to photograph since he was overly dramatic in his role. However, it made a good ending to a day in the 1700s.

Monticello

Monticello reflected in the house's fish pond
This morning, I made the 4-hour drive to Charlottesville in central Virginia. A couple months ago, I had seen a picture similar to the one above, and decided that I really wanted to visit Thomas Jefferson's plantation home, Monticello. After reading a long biography of Jefferson, I finally decided to book the tickets for my brief weekend getaway.

At Monticello, there are two basic ticket types. The standard admission is about $20 and covers the first floor of the home and tours of both the garden and the slave quarters. For $40, however, you can get this - plus a behind the scenes tour of Monticello's upper floors. Since I figured this would likely be my only visit I'd ever make to Monticello, I went ahead a splurged on the more expensive tour.

The West Lawn at Monticello
My "Behind the Scenes" home tour was scheduled for 2:30, so I had plenty of time to explore before my guided tour. I spent some time in the museum, but found it a little lacking. Fortunately, I was able to join the hour-long guided tour on "Slavery at Monticello." Although this tour was fairly educational, I found it a little disappointing. The tour was little more than an educational lecture - there was nothing really to see (just the empty spaces which once contained slave quarters...you would have thought that they could have reconstructed at least one of the cabins.)

Fortunately, the slavery tour did fill most of my time, so I simply walked the grounds taking pictures while I awaited my house tour. When it came time for the house tour, I learned that the "Behind the Scenes" groups are much smaller than the normal groups (which are herded through the house at 15-minuter intervals.) My group of about 15 was first led through the ground floor (which all the tours see and is decorated as it was in Jefferson's day. Eventually, we were led to a very narrow stairwell and continued to the second and third floors.

In the recent past (like six-months ago), these upper floors were used as the museum's offices; in fact, they are currently still in the process of renovating these rooms. Only one of the rooms had actually furnishings, but it was very interesting to see the unfinished rooms (we could see what the flooring under the stoves was like and how the beds looked when not outfitted with bedding.) The highlight of the upstairs tour is the dome room atop the house (the large empty room directly below the front dome.) Overall, it was a very impressive tour (and well worth the extra $20.)

Monticello's vegetable garden
After the house tour, I continued with a tour of the flower and vegetable gardens that surrounded the house. I was actually surprised how many flowers were in bloom (I thought the summer heat would have killed them...) After the garden tour, I made a quick stop at the Jefferson's grave site and continued back to my car. It was a long (hot) day at Monticello, but I definitely enjoyed myself.

Raven Rock State Park

Campbell Creek Trail
This morning, I traveled 30-miles (50 KM) north to Raven Rock State Park, a small park that wraps around the Cape Fear River. When I drove to the park, I intended to hike the Campbell Creek Trail (which is decent-length 5.5-miles (9 KM) hike.) My guidebook recommended this trail because it is the park's least traveled trail - and provides quiet walks through the woods. The first three-miles of the trail pasted through a forest filled with the sound of animals (birds, frogs, and a variety of small rodents shuffling through the dead leaves.)

Lanier Falls
After walking about three-miles of the Campbell Creek Loop, I came to a small side trail that descended to the Cape Fear River and a very small Lanier Fall (thankfully I had read in advance that the waterfall was only a couple feet tall, so I wasn't expecting a huge waterfall!) The river and "waterfall" provided a welcome break from the forest, though the river banks were a little crowded...

Mountain Laurel Growing along Campbell Creek
After the waterfall, I the trail continues along the river until it meets Campbell Creek. From here, the trail turned away from the river and followed the smaller creek for a couple more miles. Although the creek provided a welcome view, it definitely didn't look like water I'd want to step in! For some reason the water was nearly stagnant (and almost black in some areas); although this didn't make me want to swim, it did provide some nice reflective surfaces. It was particularly nice since there were several mountain laurel trees growing along the creek's banks (and throughout the park!)

Cliffs of Raven Rock
After finishing with the Campbell Creek Trail, I decided that it would be a shame to leave the park without seeing the shorter (and more popular) Raven Rock Trail. This 2.5-mile (4 KM) trail loops through a thicker portion of the forest (and leads to Raven Rock Cliff.) Raven Rock is a large sandstone cliff that borders the coast of the Cape Fear River; after descending several flights of stairs down the cliff, I was a little disappointed by the actual cliff.

When I returned up the cliff, I continued around the loop trail, which provided little else of interest other than a small lookout point that provided a panoramic view of the Cape Fear River and the surrounding forest. I believe the view from this lookout would be much better in fall or winter (there were far too many leaves at this point to provide a good view...) After a long morning of hiking, I finally found my way back to the parking lot and returned home for a quiet afternoon.

Harmony Hall Plantation

Harmony Hall Plantation

As I was driving to Wilmington last month, I noticed a sign for Harmony Hall Plantation (one of the oldest homes in North Carolina.) Since the plantation is only opened 4 hours/weeks (Saturdays from 12:00 - 2:00, and Sundays from 2:00 - 4:00), I wasn't able to visit the plantation on my way back from Wilmington (fortunately, the plantation is only 25 miles (40 km) from Fayetteville....so it wasn't an impossible drive.

Now, when I hear the word "plantation", I tend to think of Gone with the Wind's Tara or other large antebellum homes. Sadly, Harmony Hall bears no resemblance to these later, more elaborate, homes. Built around 1760, the two-story home is a very simple structure with only two rooms on each floor (and a very scary-looking attic above.)

Dining Area of Harmony Hall

The first floor included a middle hall (which was quite cool thanks to the front and back doors provided a breeze through the house.) On one side, was a simple dining area, which looked very much like a 18th-century colonial room; the other room was a living area, which was obviously furnished with furniture from a much later time period.

Climbing the exterior stairs led to two unremarkable bedrooms. A smaller set of interior stairs let to a small, and very creepy attic-space (which was furnished with nothing but a bed.) The attic was probably a very good representation of a room during the time period, but I don't think you could paid me enough to sleep in that room (it was scary in the middle of the day!)

Kitchen at Harmony Hall

After the tour of the main house, I saw the outlying kitchen and several other historic buildings (which were not original to the site.) Overall, Harmony Hall was a somewhat interesting site - though I wish I could have timed it so that it had been a 20-minute stop on my way to or from Wilmington.