121 miles, 8400 feet of climbing... Done... not pretty, or fast, but done... Our route today took us deep into the Blue Mountains along some (very) back country roads of TN and into NC at mile 76. The terrain is all ridges and steep valleys. Some very steep hills and also some long (3 mile, 2 mile, etc.) ones climbing up over passes. Rain started about 1:30 and fell steadily the rest of the day - we arrived in Asheville sodden and chilled but grateful to be done - and also grateful for the lives that we have - some of the towns, particularly in TN have fallen on very hard times. A bright economic spot was Bush's beans factory which is truly massive and in the middle of nowhere (actually Chestnut Hill, TN - unincorporated). Also passed through Hot Springs, NC - the Appalachian Trail passes just south of town and is actually on an elevated bridge across the road which for some reason surprised me...
Asheville is an expanding outdoors and arts destination that was established as 'Morristown' - the county seat back in 1793 but was renamed 'Asheville' after NC Gov. Samuel Ashe in 1797. Asheville was a manufacturing hub and NC's third largest city in the early 1900s. The Great Depression hit Asheville hard - its per capita debt was the largest in the nation. Asheville's rebound was slow, but that preserved the art deco architecture of the downtown. The Biltmore estate is nearby and the visitors to the famous art collection were a likely driver in the flourishing artist's scene in Asheville. Tomorrow we head to Greenville, SC (our last state!) - 97 miles and 5700+ feet of climbing - our last day in the mountains.
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| The French Broad River (a broad river that drained French territories when it was named) |
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