Another month, another new Piedmont Day Trip

A specialty of mine and Judy's is finding day trips

less than 90 minutes from home. We've done it again.

Full disclosure, we went to a place we went to some

20 years ago, but found it much different.

From Southern Pines, we followed NC Highway 22

through Carthage, Highfalls, Bennett, Coleridge, and 

Ramseur. There it crossed Highway 64. Still following 22,

 we came in no time to the old mill town of Franklinville.

We were here to visit Faith Rock, which has a famous

Revolutionary War anecdote to its credit. More about

that later, but let's begin our tour.

This sign gives you the basic info to find Faith Rock
at the Franklinville Town Park, adjacent to the Deep River.

We remembered this impressive structure from years
ago. It affords great views up and down the river.

Up river was the site of an old mill of yesteryear,
in fact, dating back to 1840.

We were warmly greeted by a venerable old caretaker,
Brother Terrapin.

Those rapids are the reason this was an ideal spot
for a mill in those days of water power.

Across the sturdy bridge was our loop trail to Faith Rock.

A curious crowd of onlookers gathered when they
heard there were some new folks in town.

As in much of the North Carolina piedmont, there
were fascinating stone formations.

We ascended a fairly easy trail, with a view of the river
and bridge most of the way. That might change once
the hardwood trees are in full leaf.

If you have a vivid imagination, you might see
something in this gnarled old stump. Please let me
know what you think you see.

As we neared Faith Rock, we could see the bridge
where Andrew Hunter Road crosses the Deep River.

If you can enlarge this, you can read all the details
of how Andrew Hunter (yes, the one the road is 
named after) made a daring escape from Tory leader
David Fanning, on Fanning's own horse. The daring
part was riding the horse down the steep slope of the
50 foot rock into the Deep River and to freedom.
One of countless amazing stories of the Revolution.

If you stand on that rock, you'll realize what a display
of courage, and yes-- desperation, was required.
But, as they say, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

We met a most friendly and helpful local gentleman
who advised us to lean backward if we went any
further down. We were not at all tempted.

Faith Rock

An apt setting for a "Leap of Faith."

When we had marveled at the rock and the story 
long enough, we continued on the loop trail. Every
few feet we stopped so I could document the array
of spring wildflowers. I won't attempt to name them
all, but this one is Trout Lily. It is past blooming time,
but never had we seen hillsides more covered with
a single species. It was EVERYWHERE!

A velvet-leafed specimen, not yet in bloom.

Some dainty white flowers grow in a cluster.

Even away from Faith Rock, we saw more impressive
rock formations that could easily dump you right into
the cold water.

Two of my favorite plants are in this shot: Wild Ginger
and Pipsissewa, or Spotted Wintergreen. Frequent readers
of my writings may recall that Pipsissewa was my Indian
name at Camp Cherokee 50 years ago.

Along the upper trail, we had a good view of the 
ruins of a more modern manufacturing plant.

Leave it to Judy to spot some blueberries! Or at 
least the blooms.

A lovely yellow sample.

This mossy overlook seemed like it was designed
for a private little prayer spot.

Even though it was soft, getting up from that low is
never easy nowadays.

A very different white flower.

Someone has gone to a lot of trouble to make this
place educational.

Now Judy has found a sweet shrub, which has one
of the most appealing fragrances to be found in nature.

A little more historical background. To examine some
REALLY interesting local history, visit this blog:
https://www.sweetteaandpasta.com/mills-of-the-deep-river-in-north-carolina-franklinville-in-photos/

If you live in central North Carolina, you could have
easily been within a short distance of the interesting
town of Franklinville without ever visiting it.

Here is one more VERY good reason to visit:
the Franklinville Diner.

Their sign does not exaggerate.

Here and below are the items on their extensive menu.

Something NOT on the menu is the daily special,
which today was country style steak with three
vegetables.

Judy got the special without the steak, and her
generous portions of pintos, cabbage, and taters
was $4.50.

Personally, I couldn't resist the Franklinville Burger.
A fist-sized hamburger patty, a slab of ham, good,
crispy bacon, and cheese really filled up that bun.
And the onion rings with homemade ranch dressing
was the perfect side.

We opted to carry our take-out plates to the town
park, just around the corner. Nice covered shelter
and a playground, right beside the Deep River.

There were plenty of ducks frolicking in the river,
sensing there was no danger to them here.

Before leaving the park, we followed the bank a 
short distance to see the ruins of the oldest mill.

You would think you couldn't go wrong on this trail.
And you'd be right. However, we drove about a mile
to another section of the trail for an after lunch walk.

Here are a couple of pictures of the massive ruins of
the mill of yesteryear.

I can scarcely guess the function of some of these
remnants, but it's fascinating to see what remains.

So just a short drive back toward Ramseur, we parked
in a little community called Living Well. It's almost like
a commune of nature lovers/respecters. We entered this
trail by passing by the old water treatment plant.
Warning!! At times it emits foul odors, but when we
walked there in the afternoon, we smelled nothing amiss.

Along this nice, level path we would see still more
colorful flora. This one is Green and Gold.

More massive rocks point to the river.

I couldn't tell if a flood had placed this ancient bike
in this tree or if someone was just trying to be creative
with their junk. Or is it art?

I've seen this before, but can't name it.

Another pretty yellow one.

Wild violets. We saw these everywhere, but the leaves
were often hidden by other neighboring plants.

This sign directed us to the site of an ancient fish weir,
which was an obstruction built partly or completely
across flowing waters to trap fish or direct them into
a desired channel.

We learned that at low water we might be able to
see evidence of the fish weir. But we were glad the
river was up today.

This plant is called False Solomon's Seal. Its leaves
are very similar to Solomon's seal, which is occasionally
seen on our SFL Nature Trail. But its flowers are very
different, and its leaves are alternating, rather than 
opposite each other.

We came to the end of the trail as it currently exists.
This photo is especially for Liz Tayler, who loves a challenge.

An unoffical trail continued to the right for some distance.

This extension came to an end beneath the Highway 64
bridge between Ramseur and Franklinville. Someday,
it is meant to connect to other rails-to-trails, which we love.

This was our smooth and pleasant return route.
It's a simple up-and-back trail, more for a stroll than
scenery. But we enjoyed it as well as the Faith Rock trail.

This odd bark was a mystery, but I believe this towering
tree is a short-leaf pine.

Through a dogwood, you can see pine needles
at the top. There were several of these trees, but
they were not at all numerous.

I've seen this plant before, and perhaps even looked
it up, but its name escapes me.

Last item on that trail was a tree with a huge colony
of mistletoe. Have you ever seen such a supply? It
would probably serve the whole town of Franklinville!
But it's probably easier just to stand under the tree.

As we were about to leave town, I couldn't resist
taking a turn to see Lake Ramseur. And this is it.
A beautiful spot, with a few folks fishing on a weekday.
I imagine it is really busy on weekends and all through
the summer.

We couldn't walk out on the dam, but this shot
gives you a pretty good idea of this tranquil setting.
A nice place for a picnic even if you don't fish.

All in all, this day trip was a great success.

We'll look forward to another trip to Franklinville,

perhaps dragging some grandchildren along!