October is Gold to WNC

Discover October Gold in the North Carolina Mountains!

 

Discover October gold in the North Carolina mountains…gold and copper and bronze and vermillion and orange and a thousand variations of those hues as the rich mix of deciduous trees in these ancient mountains perform their annual autumn extravaganza.

Before living here, I thought that the leaves basically changed and fell off the trees in about two weeks or so. NOW, I know they begin falling in September and continue into November. They start changing colors at the tops of the mountains and gradually work their magic down into the valleys and gorges.

 

The mountains and foothills of North Carolina are laced with scenic highways and byways, making this the ideal place for a perfect fall road trip!
 
The "granddaddy" of them all is the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Stretching for 252 miles from the Virginia border to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Parkway's many overlooks give motorists safe leaf-looking all along the way.
 
The Cherohala Skyway in the far western part of the state climbs to elevations of over 5,300 feet.  Travelers look down on stunning views of the Snowbird Mountains and the Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness Area and on clear days can see the Great Smoky Mountains in the distance.
 
Twenty NC State Scenic Byways weave through the countryside, from the Yadkin Valley wine country to the "Land of Waterfalls," from the summits of the High Country to the ancient ancestral home of the Cherokee.