Yesterday's drive took us as far as the little town of Spruce Pine where we visited the Mineral Museum of NC. The town was established in 1907. It is located in the Toe River Valley, almost to the Tennessee line. Spruce Pine is home to one of the richest deposits of gems and minerals in the world. Mined for its mica, kaolin and feldspar, the area provides over 90% of raw materials used in plumbing fixtures, and Spruce Pine feldspar is found in many home computers. The quartz in this area is ultrapure, and virtually every silicon computer chip in the world came from this area, which is nicknamed "Silicon Mountain."
It was a gorgeous day--warm sun, cool breeze, very little traffic, good company and magnificent autumn color. Here are a few of the gazillion photos I took (there seemed to be another great shot around every bend in the road).
The picture below was actually takaen from a McDonald's parking lot!
Today was another one for the record books. We decided to re-visit Linville Falls and see how it looked with autumn colors rather than the spring blooms of our last visit. The area around the falls is studded with virgin hemlock, white pine, oaks, hickory and birch. It's a great combination this time of year--the colors were so beautiful.
As you can see, it's even prettier in the fall. We enjoyed a great meal at a BBQ restaurant in the nearby town of Linville.All this beauty, and another day off tomorrow. It doesn't get much better!
6 comments:
God's handiwork is breath taking.
Joyce, any apples and cider around there? Tom's comment made me crave a good, juicy apple. Beautiful pictures.
We're picking apples right here in the campground that have spoiled me forever for any other kind of apples. They're called "Wolf River." There's also an apple orchard nearby (on the Blue Ridge Pkwy) that I was thinking of taking you guys to when you get here.
Hi Joyce and Wiley,
Beautiful pic's. Where are you headed for the winter? Was it Al and Maryanne that were there for a visit? I just found their email after I lost all my computer info.
We are still tethered in MI due to medical "stuff". Hope you are both doing well.
Fondly,
Carol Byrd
Hi Carol! Yes, it was Maryanne and Al who visited us. We had a great time, although Maryanne got car sick on the mountain roads!
We're headed for Tallahassee for Nov and Dec (Maclay Gardens State Park), then to Gold Head Branch State Park between Gainesville and Jacksonville.
Sorry to hear you're still having health issues. Keep in touch!
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