GREETINGS FROM BIG LYNN LODGE!

 Judy and I just got back from a wonderful visit to Big Lynn Lodge,near Little Switzerland on the Blue Ridge Parkway. This painting depicts an ancient and historic Linden tree that was called Big Lynn. It was once the entrance to Little Switzerland, bordered by two stone pillars and a guardhouse. The tree died in 1965, but from two young sprouts have sprung the massive trees you see below the painting.

It will be well worth your time to read this plaque and
discover the full story of the Big Lynn tree. It's fascinating!

This is the main building of Big Lynn lodge, housing the
office, dining hall, library, music room, and parlor.

Here are the "baby" linden trees and one of the original pillars.

This is the view that greeted us as we toted our luggage
to our second story room. 

We've never stayed anywhere with such a view.

Adjacent to the office is a comfortable sitting area.

The spacious dining room is open ONLY to Big Lynn guests.
Breakfast and dinner are included in the price of your room, a
throwback to old times. It really added to the value of our room.

If you like to read on vacation, this is your place.

This turned out to be MY place. Both evenings we were there
I played a wide array of music both before and after dinner.
Large numbers of guests joined us with requests flowing freely.
Some sang and danced, and conversations and smiles were plentiful.
The second night, David, a skilled guitarist, teamed up with me and
could play anything. We even did a piano/guitar duet of Dueling Banjos.
We had everything but the banjos!

Our room was the upper left of this building. There were
a variety of room choices in other buildings, but our view
was unbeatable. Look for Judy in the picture below.

Another view of the office/dining room with our
building in the background.

I need signs like this to post around home.

One more view from our parking area. Hard to beat.

We took a short spin over to Little Switzerland, a sort
of touristy place (sorry, no pictures), then got onto the
Blue Ridge Parkway. This picture shows that the parkway
remains closed from Little Switzerland to Mt. Mitchell 
from the north. From Asheville, the Parkway recently 
reopened to Mt. Mitchell. The damage from Hurricane
Helene continues to be dealt with from landslides,
fallen trees, and road repairs.

There were still some nice overlooks on the stretch
of the Parkway that was open.

A nice, clear view of Table Rock.

These pictures of The Loops fascinate me. They tell of 
the winding route the old mountain railroad once followed
to reach these peaks. The railroad helped ship apples from
The Orchard at Altapass, which I'll tell more about later.

It's hard to imagine the labor and planning that went
into the construction of this meandering rail route.

Lynn Gap on the Parkway.

I'm just throwing this in for a little Halloween treat.
We had several orb-weaving spiders on our building.
The dew and fog accentuated it and I was able to get
a dark background.

This is the Tow River, which flooded at a level 25 feet
above normal during Hurricane Helene's downpours
a year ago. We had visited this spot in Spruce Pine
earlier that year and had reservations for Big Lynn
Lodge on September 30 of last year. The hurricane
changed all that.

This wonderful coffee shop is high above the river, yet
it was flooded during the storm. Every business on that
street has struggled to reopen, but happily most are
succeeding. We each had a cup of soup there this year,
and business was thriving.

This picture was taken from Riverside Park. In mid-picture
you'll see the railroad track. At the top are the stone walls
that once marked the entrance to a pedestrian bridge.
Hurricane Helene demolished that bridge, but the town
is making plans to rebuild it.

This old caboose didn't like being flooded with water 
and mud.

A large stretch of railroad had to be relaid with old
ties replaced.

Now you're at the upper end of where the pedestrian
bridge once began. The video below lets you envision
walking up to it and seeing the railroad and river below.

Now contrast that view with these pictures of

the pedestrian bridge BEFORE Helene. It was a tragedy,

but it WILL be rebuilt, and that will be a triumph!

Hurray for the spirit of the folks of Spruce Pine and

other mountain communities that will not accept defeat!

We departed Spruce Pine and headed north on the Parkway.

The obligatory selfie.

There wasn't a ton of early color, but that wasn't why 
we went. Just being in the mountains again was totally
exhilarating. The clouds enhanced a lot of our views.

This is the Little Switzerland tunnel.
We returned to the lodge for a fine dinner, great
fellowship, and an evening of lively music.

The first morning we were there, a dense fog blocked
the early morning sun, but this view greeted us on the
day of our departure.

Facing due east, Big Lynn Lodge must offer a
wide array of sunrises over the course of a year.

New friends took this picture of us in the dining room
following another hearty breakfast. When we checked out
of the lodge (reluctantly), we headed north on the Parkway
to The Orchard at Altapass, less than three miles away.

I love split rail fences, but I really stopped to get a pic
of two horses, barely visible at the top of the pasture.

This is The Orchard at Altapass, a non-profit heirloom orchard

that raises at least 30 varieties of apples that have been around

for hundreds of years.

The aged trees cover acres and acres of the mountainside.

Note the gravel road, which is another way to access
the orchard besides from the Parkway.

A model railroad club has depicted how the orchard 
once depended on rail trade.

We could not resist getting a peck of these "Mystery 
Heirloom" apples. Back at home, Judy and I cut one in 
half and it was all we could hold. They are Huge!

The orchard also has a nice observation deck that 
allows you to scan the mountainside. The map below
shows where the various varieties are grown. You can
buy apples by the bag or pick your own. There are 
several trails leading to any location you care to pick from.

This explanation of heirloom apples is worth reading
if you are interested in preservation of things from an earlier time.

The view alone was spectacular, and the orchard just
made it better.

Education is a main theme of the orchard, and that's
why they raise and release Monarch butterflies. They
are just one of many pollinators that we all depend on,
whether we realize it or not.

As we roamed around the grounds, we were flabbergasted

at the abundance of apples on these old trees. 

Just before we left, we visited the butterfly garden

on a steep hill above the main building. It was a treat.

Many of the plants were already dormant for the fall,
but you can see what planning went into this endeavor.

This sumac provided more color than we saw on the Parkway.

I took this picture because of the bugs on this
milkweed plant. They happen to be called
Milkweed Bugs. But someone had to point out
to me that I had also photographed a caterpillar.
And yes, it's a larva of a Monarch Butterfly!

I decided to take the old gravel road to exit and go back 
to the Parkway. It was a little dicey, but no problems.
One of our new friends had an interesting anecdote
about that road. He had once driven a tour bus to that
orchard and thought he'd leave by that route. There was
no turning back, but it was a nightmare!

All good trips must come to an end, and I haven't even

mentioned the great success we had at thrift shops and

two libraries. We found a few bargains and got BAG SALES

at both libraries! It's hard to beat that.

So I'll close this post with a fitting plaque we saw at the

last thrift shop we visited.

Happy Trails, everyone.

If you have an interest in the Big Lynn Lodge,

you can find them online or feel free to contact me.