Mount Airy NC and the Mayberry Days Festival

From Pickens SC, I headed north on US 178, a winding and very scenic two-lane highway...

Those of you who haven't spent time in the southern states during the warm months are probably not familiar with kudzu, the scourge of the south. Kudzu is a rapidly-growing, flesh-devouring vine that arrived on Earth centuries ago in the form of seeds that had been drifting through space for billions of years. And if you believe that one, I have swamp land in New Hampshire for sale at a bargain price.

Okay, folks, you've caught me in a lie. Here's the truth about the dreaded kudzu...
                                  www.maxshores.com/kudzu/    
                     

Sayonara to the Palmetto State...

... and greetings ( again ) to the Tarheel State.

Here's still another gasoline brand that has gone to that big service station in the sky. The company's still around, but nowadays all their stations are branded "Murphy USA".

Arriving in Rosman, I turned left onto US 64 and headed west towards the town of Highlands and the Nantahala National Forest in the beautiful mountains of western North Carolina.

Less than ten minutes after passing through Highlands, I came upon one of my favorite types of scenic attractions...

I really love waterfalls, so this unexpected discovery on Hwy. 64 helped soften my disappointment over the Lookout Mountain fiasco.

I hadn't gone more than five miles after leaving Bridal Veil Falls when I saw this parking lot and, with my car window down, I could hear a familiar roaring sound coming from below the highway. Had I stumbled upon another waterfall?

Yup, I had found another waterfall, and this one, Dry Falls, made Bridal Veil Falls look like an open kitchen faucet by comparsion. Why it's called Dry Falls I don't know, because it sure as heck isn't.

so, what happened original 'mayberry' post????

 - 'to the' -

sorry, broken wrist here

ate at 'snappy lunch' 2 days ago

   TRULY over - rated

waiterhell, this was an eight day trip and my report is currently on day #3 ( Thursday, Sept. 24th. ) I arrived in Mount Airy late in the evening of the 24th, and the Mayberry Days Festival took place on the 25th and 26th ( the Festival's coming, be patient. ) Of course, you're entitled to your opinion about Snappy Lunch, but, among Roadfood members who've eaten there, you're definitely in the minority. In fairness though, I really disliked the burgers at both Dyer's in Memphis and the Triple XXX in West Lafayette IN, and I'm certainly in the minority there. One man's meat is another man's poison , I guess.
By the way, I just read the "NC Reviews" thread that you opened last January. No offense intended, but you seem to have a bit of a chip on your shoulder. The roadfooders who posted on your thread suggested that, instead of complaining and insulting the Sterns, you share your knowledge of Carolina roadfood with us by submitting restaurant reviews. I couldn't agree more.
                                   www.roadfood.com/Forums/tm.aspx?m=476637

This is one of my favorite "behind the wheel" photos. To me, western North Carolina is among the most gorgeous regions in the United States.

By the time that I reached Franklin NC in the early afternoon, I had decided that, a.  it was time to start heading back north to Mount Airy, and, b.  I was hungry. Unfortunately, I ran into the same bugaboo in Franklin that I did the night before in Hickory: chains and more chains ( sometimes you just can't win. ) Since I had eaten some pretty decent fried chicken at Bojangle's in NC over the years, that seemed as good a choice for lunch as any; at least it's a small regional chain.

As unimpressive as my dinner at O'Charley's was the night before, my lunch at Bojangle's was even worse. The chicken was cold and not the least bit crispy, and the sides were just as bad, especially the biscuit. Even the "legendary" iced tea tasted lousy. This was the worst meal of the entire trip; even Wally's Restaurant in WV wasn't this bad.  

After choking down my crummy lunch, I headed north out of Franklin on US 23 / 441 towards Asheville. Since my Lookout Mountain plans had hit a brick wall, I decided to compensate by paying a short visit to one of the most spectacularly scenic tourist attractions in the Carolinas.

At Dillsboro NC, I turned east on US 74, which took me over to the southern edge of the Asheville metro area, and from there it was southeast a short ways on ALT US 74 through the town of Bat Cave ( holy real-life locations, Batman! ) to famous Chimney Rock Park.  

nocarolina


Yup, I had found another waterfall, and this one, Dry Falls, made Bridal Veil Falls look like an open kitchen faucet by comparsion. Why it's called Dry Falls I don't know, because it sure as heck isn't.

NC,

The reason Dry Falls are not so dry right now is because of the ridiculous amounts of rain the area has gotten over the last 3 months.  The area has been just pummeled and was all over the NC news as a result.

You are fortunate you didn't have the same luck as us.  2 weeks ago, we got turned around from Grandfather Mountain at the base and turned around as well on the Blue Ridge Parkway on the way to mount Mount Mitchell due to a freak early season snow storm.  They shut the Blue Ridge down just before Mt Mitchell.  We had to backtrack over 60 miles to get back to Asheville.  We heard the next morning that it was still shut down so we headed off to the Cherokee Indian Reservation area to take in the sights there. The Maggie Valley is nice as well.

By the way, have you been to Chimney Rock just east of Asheville?  We stopped by there as well.  The waterfall there is just beautiful.  You have to walk about a 3 mile round trip to see it but it is well worth it.  It drops about 400 feet and cascades down the face of the mountain.

I agree with your take about Bojangles.  They are all over the place around here.  Being new to the area, I started a thread here a while back asking others their thoughts.  I gave it a try myself and was not too pleased.  It seemed a bit on the greasy side due to sitting around too long.  The biscuits had way to much salt and the sides seemed like they were from a box or a can.

Next time you are in the area, try this little hole in wall place.  It is a stand alone building that looks like it has been there LONG before the strip malls that surround it.

http://www.menuism.com/re...d-chicken-monroe-58829

Trust me, like Price's in Charlotte, it is nothing fancy but it is good.

Here is a better opinion on Hathaway's.  Interesting when you do a google search, they show one of the fancy strip malls right behind it....believe me, it looks nothing like that.  It is surrounded by chains and strip malls.

http://carolinaweeklynews...newspapers&he=.com