Blowing Rock is a small mountain resort on the crest of the Blue Ridge, at about 1,100 metres, and has been welcoming summer visitors since the nineteenth century, when people from the lowlands came to escape the heat. The village has a neat main street lined with shops, galleries and restaurants, with flower boxes in summer and a good deal of charm. The town takes its name from a rock formation on the edge of the gorge, where the wind blows up the cliff so strongly that, according to local legend, light objects thrown over the edge are blown back. The story that goes with it is a love story, involving a Chickasaw maiden and a chief, and is told with a straight face to children.
The Blue Ridge Parkway runs close by, and Moses H. Cone Memorial Park, with its large white manor house, carriage roads and craft centre, is only a few kilometres away. Flat Top Manor was built by a textile baron early in the twentieth century, and the carriage roads and apple orchards around it are open for walking. Nearby, the Tweetsie Railroad is a theme park built around a historic steam locomotive, a living piece of Appalachian railway history.
For a rider, Blowing Rock is a pleasant place to rest and refuel. The roads in the area are twisty and scenic, with the Parkway running north and south, and US 321 and NC 105 giving good alternatives. The climb from the lowlands is a series of bends through forest, with views opening up as you rise. Traffic is heavy in summer and autumn, and the Parkway's low speed limit makes for a relaxed pace. Fog is common, particularly in the mornings, and the temperatures can be ten degrees lower than in the valley.
Food is the strength of the village. There are cafes, bakeries, ice cream shops and restaurants serving everything from Southern cooking to more modern fare, and a slow lunch is an easy thing to arrange. Boone, nine kilometres away, is a larger town with Appalachian State University, and has more choice and fuel, though the village has a station or two on the main road.
Autumn is the most popular season, but spring and early summer, when the rhododendrons bloom, are quieter. Winter can be bitterly cold, with ice on the roads.