Otter Falls, NC

Otter Falls

825 Skyland Dr. Seven Devils, NC

I left my family twenty feet below me in the bottom of a gorge, "rock climbing" (a child's version) at the foot of Otter Falls, perilously climbing from boulder to boulder, the youngest swaying in the crest of a backpack, riding his daddy's back.

It was raining one of those quick mountain downpours that drench you to the bone and abruptly leave while you wipe the drips out of your eyes, wring your hair out and furiously wipe off your phone.

I was focused on the climb out. Watching the kids frolic so close to the edge of death wasn't my thing. I mean, I'm glad they do it, they have to grow up tough and experience nature, but I don't have to watch. 

The hike down is less than a mile, not bad. Great path. The hike back out is steep. One water per person is enough in the spring, maybe two in the heat of Summer. Take a backpack picnic and enjoy the stay. Take a fishing pole if you're so inclined. Take water shoes, wear hiking boots.

Parking is minimum in the parking lot. There is some parking along the road. They say go in the morning to avoid the rush. I say go in the late afternoon to avoid the rush. Go in the rain, even better.

Great family hike.  Within miles of Grandfather Mountain. Grandfather Mountain Travel Ideas

The Day Charlie Slept In

A short story by Pookie. 

Part One.

It was a bright sunny Spring day when I pulled up to Charlie and Benji's house. I always take them to school on Wednesday mornings, but this Wednesday didn't seem like every other one.

When Benji walked out alone with his lunch box in one hand and his backpack slung over his shoulder, it was confirmed: this was not a normal Wednesday.

Charlie was missing.

Benji's mom followed him out carrying his science fair project. "Charlie is not coming today," she announced. "She is sleeping in because we had a late night at Rebecca's baseball game." I nodded my approval.

After loading his backpack and supplies, Benji climbed up into the passenger seat of my Jeep. I shut my door and turned the ignition. I was still confused. This didn't feel right. We needed Charlie. I shook my head and whispered, "This isn't right, this doesn't feel right." Benji just stared out the window.

Feeling uneasy, I took the first turn and sped up a little. I went into the second turn and as I accelerated out the other side I realized I couldn't do this. I threw it in reverse, turned around and went the other direction. "What are you doing??!" Screamed Benji.

"Don't you feel it?" I asked. "This is not a normal day. We are not going to school without Charlie." I sped up heading East.

I parked outside Nona and Pops. "We're going to need some pocket waffles," I declared.

The bell jingled as we opened the door. "Good morning!" Nona called out. "Good morning!" Pops followed.

I was firm. We need some pocket waffles. Charlie is sleeping in today."

Charlie is sleeping in today echoed all across the town. Even the Mayor heard about it.

We climbed up in the Jeep again, pocket waffles and all, Benji's feet sticking to the floor mat where he had previously spilled pancake syrup on a different trip.

I took a hard left and headed North. The Mayor shouted behind us, "Is it true?!" I yelled out the window, "Yes! Charlie is sleeping in!"

An hour later the sun had risen to our right and our bellies were full. I hit hard on the brakes and pulled into a decent parking space. There aren't a whole lot of people at Stars and Strikes early on a weekday morning. In fact, we were the only ones.

We exchanged our shoes, picked out a ten pound ball and happily entered Lane One. Benji set up our score sheets on the computer on account of I can't operate that technology and before long, we were bowling! WE gathered more ten pound balls, one for each lane, and we proceeded to throw a ball down each lane, walking straight down to Lane Twenty and then working our way back to Lane One again. As fast as we could. Back and forth, slipping in our clownish bowling shoes.

Within ninety minutes we were worn slap out. We put in an order for fries and a coke, exchange dour shoes again and went into the video gameroom. I pulled four rolls of quarters out of my back jean pocket and we began playing. Within another sixty minutes, we had enough tickets to win a large purple hippo which Benji had to carry to the Jeep on account of my back was hurting from all the bending, throwing, pushing and pulling.

It was approaching noon, so I pulled the Jeep Southwest and put the pedal to the metal. We hummed along towards Augusta coming to a full stop at Top Golf. Leaving the hippo in the backseat, we entered Top Golf and secured us a hitting bay with a working ceiling fan and HDTV. I lounged back and propped my feet up while Benji took a few swings. I put in an order for Tres Tacos and a basket of Donut Hole-In-Ones. Eventually I took a few swings and we prepared to leave before 2:00.

The hippo was napping so we kept the radio low as we headed a little Southwest. I had one more stop to make before school would be out. Benji let out a big "Whoop!" as we pulled into the gnarly parking lot of the aging Frankie's Fun Park. I couldn't resist saying, "I feel the need..." and Benji responded, "The Need for Speed" and we high-fived. He tried to fist bump, but we grandmas still high-five.

We each got our own go-cart and revved our engines, side-by-side. The dude waved the flag and we were off. I learned a long time ago to keep my mouth shut when going fast, but young Benji hadn't learned that life lesson yet. He had his mouth wide open, laughing and screaming and then BAM! A bug flew into this mouth. His foot came off the pedal, his go-cart slowed down. Mine didn't. I took advantage and zoomed off to the finish line, securing the victory! He came limping along slowly, spitting and gagging and wiping his mouth.

"Hurry!" I yelled. "We have to go, we can't be late!" We jumped into the Jeep and drove fast and furious in a Northeast direction, mostly East.

We pulled up to his house at 4:10. As he grabbed his lunch box and backpack out of the back, I stage-whispered, "Leave the science fair project in the Jeep!" 

His mom came to the door with Charlie behind, bed-head hair sticking out, "How was school?" She asked.

Benji smiled. "Best day ever!" He turned his head and winked at me as I slid the Jeep into gear.

Part Two

It was a bright, sunny spring day when Pookie pulled up to Charlie and Benji's house. She always takes them to school on Wednesday morning, but this Wednesday didn't seem like every other one.

When Benji walked out alone with his lunch box in one hand and his backpack slung over his shoulder, his mom, Patti, knew this was not going to be a normal Wednesday. She waved good-bye and walked back into the house. She helped Oliver get dressed and fed, then she woke baby Niall up and did the same for him. It was a good two hours later now, so she woke Charlie.

Charlie sprang up in bed with her hair poking out, "I'm late for school!" She ran to the bathroom to brush her teeth.

"Slow down," her mom chuckled. "You need the rest. Today is National Charlie Day! We are going to celebrate YOU today!"

Patti, Oliver, Niall and Charlie jumped in the van and headed to Nona and Pops. The bell jingled on the door as they entered to find Nona calling out, "Good morning!" followed by Pops, "Good morning! We heard you were sleeping in today."

Mom and Charlie got some pocket waffles with sprinkles and they loaded back up in the van. "First," Mom said, "We are stopping at the post office." Charlie took the mail key and ran in to get the mail. There on the top of the pile was a letter clearly addressed to Charlie. She ran back to the van, "Mom! I got a letter from Eva!!" She tore it wide open and Niall said, "Bah!"

Charlie read and re-read and read again her letter from Eva and began doing the puzzle Eva created for her while Patti drove the van East. As they passed the Mayor, he shouted out, "Charlie! You're awake!" Charlie gave him a thumbs up out her window while her hair blew into her mouth. Niall turned toward the window, "Bah!" he yelled.

They were on hour into the drive when Patti pulled over to refuel. "Charlie," She said firmly, "Here's twenty dollars. Go into the store and spend it all on candy. It's National Charlie Day!"

Charlie went up and down the aisles, back and forth. She grabbed two of everything she loved.

For the next hour of the drive, Charlie at her candy, did her puzzle and shared some candy with Oliver to which Niall sighed, "Bah!"

The van slowly rolled to a stop as it glided over a sandy parking lot. Mom put Niall and Oliver in the wagon and covered them with chairs, towels, buckets, shovels, water wings and a large, striped umbrella. Charlie pushed while mom pulled that full wagon through the sand dunes, arriving at the shoreline twenty minutes later.

It could be heard up and down the beach, "It's National Charlie Day!" as people squealed and jumped in the surf.

After a few hours, Oliver was sunburned, Charlie's candy was all gone or melted and the umbrella had inverted itself in the wind. They loaded up the wagon. Charlie pushed while Mom pulled and they trudged back to the van for the two hour drive West.

The boys slept while Charlie read books and played on mom's phone until the van slowed down in the crunchy parking lot of the mall. Charlie led the way as the whole bunch of them headed in. There were balloons and banners with Charlie's photo hung all around the mall. "It's National Charlie Day!" Not a single person said she should be in school.

Walking into Build-A-Bear, mom plunked a wad of money down on the counter and said, "I'd like three of your best bears." Then Ollie, Niall and Charlie began building their very own bears. Charlie's had a lot of pink and a big pink bow in her hair. She had purple and pink stripe legs with silver glitter all over.  Ollie's bear was dark blue with puffy white paws and a monster truck in it's paw. Niall bit the nose off his bear, spit it across the room and said, "Bah!"

Sixty minutes later, Charlie led her brothers back down the mall, bears tucked securely under their arms. She stopped by the Pretzel Store and bought a pretzel for all of them. With mom's money, of course,

The people in the other stores all waved good-bye saying things like "It's National Charlie Day!" "Hey, here's some candy!" and "I love your bear, Charlie!" The whole way out, one person after another, cheering them on.

"Hurry!" Mom said, "We have to be home by 4:05 before Benji gets back from school!"

She put the hammer down and oh how that minivan zoomed! They careened around the corner and slid to a stop at Nona and Pops. The bell rang as they walked in, "Good afternoon!" called Nona. "Do you want the Charlie Day Special? People love it!"

"Yes, four please," Patti said as she plopped down a wad of money.

They each got a double scoop of the Charlie Special with sprinkles and gumballs on top, except for Niall, he got just a baby scoop with no gumballs. "Bah!" He yelled.

They drove back home and walked in the back door as Pookie and Benji were pulling up to the front door.  They ran through the house, opened the front door and called out, "Benji, How was school today?"

"Best day ever!" said Benji and mom winked at Charlie. Ollie smiled while Niall grinned and said, "Bah!"

Grandfather Mountain Camping Trip

 

           Grandfather Mountain in profile.

So we crossed the Tyger River once again and headed upstate, crossed the NC border and flew through Linville Falls to arrive in the shadow of Grandfather Mountain just before bedtime. We had three tent sites and one cabin reserved at our beloved Grandfather Campground. My son brought his golf cart and upon arrival, I was greeted with the grandkids piled on the golf cart, riding precariously through the campground yelling "POOKIE!"  I arrived.

How ironic my cabin was on Granny Branch Drive. Charlie commenced to calling me Granny instead of Pookie. I've always been a tent camper.  Until my fifties. My hips... back... and shoulders all require extra padding from the ground now, so it's either an air mattress or a cabin for me.  Don't judge.

Grandfather Campground is well-kept and clean.  They have a small playground, a wonderful creek, a trout pond and a gem mining facility for the kids. They are close to many area attractions - Boone, Blowing Rock, Mystery Hill, Grandfather Mountain, Linville Falls, and Linville Caverns to name a few.

You can always find a big rock next to a creek on which to picnic.

On Day One, we headed to Grandfather Mountain. The entry price is steep, I'm not sure it's worth it. They enjoyed the mile high bridge.  Used to be the "swinging bridge," but it's been rebuilt and doesn't swing anymore. 

Across the bridge, you can hike a little and enjoy the rock croppings. There are several hikes within the park. There's a lame zoo type thing the kids might like and plenty of picnic areas. 

Back at the campground, the kids enjoyed trout fishing and gem mining. Also, cornhole and horseshoes. I enjoyed the campfire.

On day two, we headed to Linville.  The kids went to Linville Caverns while I went to one of my favorite places in the southeast:  Wiseman's View.  The kids were highly disappointed with the caverns. First, you had to wear a mask - in June of 2022.  A covid mask. The three year old wouldn't keep hers on and they were kicked out of the caverns tour because of it. The others who finished the tour said the tour guide was horrible and rushed them through it.

As for Wiseman's View..... it did not disappoint. The drive up is not for regular vehicles. It's literally a 20 minute drive up a dirt road with huge potholes and divets. A car or van or SUV CAN make the drive, but you will probably need an adjustment afterwards. My Jeep did amazingly well.  I was bounced around a LOT.

Upon arrival at Wiseman's View, I had a five minute jaunt down a paved trail to the lookout. The view is spectacular.  You HAVE to go at sunrise though to really see the beauty.  I've gone at sunrise plenty of times and it is creepy to walk that five minute jaunt in the woods alone.  But so worth it.

Linville Gorge

The view across the gorge at Table Rock.

After my view, I headed to the caverns parking lot to meet up with the kids for a picnic lunch. Then Patti, the kids and I hiked up to the Upper Falls of Linville Falls.  I tried to remember how to get to the swimming hole we found years previously, but I couldn't find it.

We cooled our feet in the pond under the falls. Such a relaxing break.

The Upper Falls are just a short hike from the parking lot. It is hilly and a little more strenuous than a "moderate" hike. If you feel like hiking more, you can proceed up the trail to the chimney, a much more strenuous hike, where you get a view of both the Upper and Lower Falls.

We then went back to the campground for more gem mining.

I slept in the tent that night with NO air mattress. Just like the old days when I was young and spry. I was awakened at 7 am (late for me) by Benji's pounding on rocks to break them open and find gems.

I strongly recommend this campground and activities. If you can afford Grandfather Mountain, then go for it.  If it's a strain, then skip it.  Blowing Rock is a good alternative and the town has an excellent playground for the kids. Also, somewhere along the Watauga River, there is a great jumping-off point we enjoyed one year.  Not sure how to locate it now or if it's still there. You can see it near the end of the video in this blogpost.

Enjoy!  Keep an eye out for Hillbilly Sam, NC's oldest Hillbilly.

Oil Pastels

Now that the kids are grown and out of the house, I've resumed my art and have been surprising myself.

 Charcoal portrait of my son.

I joined Sketchbox and get a surprise each month, so that encourages me to try new things -- I drag my feet and need a LOT of encouragement to try new things.

Watercolor of me with my granddaughter, Charlie.

The February 2019 sketchbox contained oil pastels. Ugh. I hate using anything oil. And pastels? Double Ugh. However.... I have to say.... I've come to like them. I actually enjoy using them for certain things.  Here are some things I made with oil pastels.

 Portrait of Sophia, my granddaugher.

 From a view I had in Ireland.

I've discovered that for me, the best thing to do with oil pastels is something HUGE and very colorful.

I recommend Sketchbox.  It's a little costly, but so much fun and will push you out of your comfort zone.

South Carolina SC / NC Leaf Peeping Tour 2018

I took a leaf-peeping tour across South Carolina and North Carolina during a very sunny two-day road trip Oct. 21 & 22, I thought the leaves would be perfect then. Wrong. There was a lot of green on my trip.

I suspect the leaves will be better the following two weekends. We had a warm fall and I bitterly blame that.

However, let me give you my route because it was perfect. You should try it. You have to navigate by waterways with my directions, though. But GPS can handle it.

Going down I-20 from Aiken toward Augusta, I crossed the lazy Savannah, hung a right near Thompson, gave a nod to Aonia Pass and my GNCC friends, then crossed a mild tip of Lake Hartwell. I crossed the springwaters of Cane Creek, crawled through the parking lot at Oktoberfest in Walhalla and right out the other side, too crowded to park and stop.

I began the ascent to Stumphouse Tunnel on Hwy. 25 where I reminisced with a nod to the melancholy and got some exercise.

I then glided along the Cherokee Foothills Scenic Highway and crossed into North Carolina at the Nantahala National Forest border around 107 and 64. I hung a hard right, crossing Lake Toxaway, skirting past Gorges State Park and took the ol' Rosman Hwy. straight into downtown Brevard, white squirrel country.

Up the next day before sunrise following a night with the squirrels, I drove up to Pounding Mill Overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway to see sunrise over the smoky, blue mountains.

looking glass rock

I careened along the Blue Ridge Parkway, over Asheville and rolled that power on. ("but 'cepts" I was in my Jeep and not my former '86 Honda Rebel 450, sadly)

I motored past Mt. Mitchell, but you should stop there, it's worth it. As I was saying, I motored past Mt. Mitchell, stopping only when I ran low on fuel along Buck Creek in Marion, curiously familiar and again, melancholy memories fly.

I gassed up the Jeep, tossed sad memories out the window, kept it down and tooled up the 221-S hills. I set the GPS for home sweet home and danced along the Second Broad and Cathey's Creek, following Cleghorn Creek down to the Broad, the real Broad.

Passing about ten too many Dollar Generals, I steadied on to the Landrum Starbucks, a traditional Maslar family meeting place, short three Maslars.  Caffeine in my veins, I buzzed onto I-26E, arm out in the cold breeze, Bob Seger blaring "I could go left, I could go right, it was all up to me to decide."

I resisted the cloverleaf at Spartanburg and rolled up 26 like a rocket sled on rails, racing the N. Tyger river until she took a sharp turn north, crossed under me and began her flow to the Broad just above Columbia, knowing I'd get there before her.

It wasn't "the dark of the moon on the sixth of June," but I had the hammer down with a nod to the Rubber Duck.

Teach Kids About Unanswered Prayer

 

Benji is 5 1/2.  He celebrates two birthdays annually, one for the whole number and one for the half fraction. When he figures out there are multiple fractions, we will be in trouble.

I'm concerned for Benji because he has a lot of worries going on and he's too private or shy to address them. So they simmer. Then they blow. But there is a type that doesn't blow, it simmers and comes to a rolling boil of anxiety we know nothing about. Or so I suspect.

In the past, he has learned that a genuine promise from an adult he trusts still might not come true. I can see him mentally walking a tightrope determining if what I say could possibly fail. And I just want to hug him.

His other grandma, "Gammy" and I were going on a cruise together just over a year ago and Benji was disturbed that Gammy was going to fall overboard, never to return.  We insisted that would not happen, we promised she would return. She didn't fall overboard, but she didn't return, either, due to a fatal car crash. I look back and wonder why he knew she wasn't returning, he was very adamant about her falling overboard. Maybe because she limped. That makes sense. But there's a part of me that thinks he has some spiritual insight and that would explain the extreme worry.

So he's turned 5 1/2 and he has discovered another BIG worry in life.  Not only do adults make promises that can remain unfulfilled, but God Himself can be shaky.  He can decide NOT to give you what you pray for.

Kids assume if you teach them to pray, that God will answer their requests exactly as requested. Isn't it odd that I never thought about this.

He and I prayed the other day and subsequently I mentioned how much fun it will be IF God gives us what we asked for - I think it was that his daddy would come home early. Benji was stunned. He narrowed his eyes at me and said, "But we prayed for it, so God will do it."  Then I saw every failed tenet on playback in his brain.

Now I was the surprised one.  Really?  We never taught him about unanswered prayer?

We then discussed it. Benji was concerned at first, then he saw some benefit of a God who can see the future and not give us what we ask for.

I'm over-thinking our encounter. I fear I have burdened him even more. Look at me -- worrying about his worrying. Join me?