Chimney Rock

Chimney Rock is a towering 315 foot monolith located on the edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains high above the beautiful Hickory Nut Gorge.  The elevation is 2,280 feet and at the top you can see for 75 miles.

Bob and I parked as close as we could, and then took an old yellow school bus up to the Cliff Dwellers Gift Shop where the tunnel for the elevator is located.

You can take 490 stairs to the top OR you can take elevator and wait in this nice cool tunnel.  Today it was over 100 degrees.  I am sure I don't have to explain which we choose.  When we got to the top, we still have stairs to climb.

After the climb Bob needed a rest.

The view from the top was worth the climb. Down below is Hickory Nut Gorge and Lake Lure.  Lake Lure is where Dirty Dancing was filmed.

If you wanted to climb more you could go up to the Opera Box.  We had climbed enough.

Bob and I at the top.

This picture is looking back toward the elevator entrance.

These step take you down to the parking lot.  We choose to take the elevator.

When we got back to the Cliff Dwellers Gift Shop we had lunch and enjoyed the view again.

Then we went to see the Moonshine Cave.  It was closed because humans carry disease into the cave and the bats were being threaten.

We enjoyed our day at Chimney Rock and on the way home we stopped at the Eastern Continental Divide. Last summer we stopped at the Western Continental Divide.  We live in a great country and Bob I feel blessed to be able to travel around the United States.