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My wife and I will be vacationing in the High Country in about 3 weeks. We have been several times in the past and love it as it is a great close escape from the brutal upstate SC summer heat.
We will be staying in Valle Crusis which sits about 5 miles below Banner Elk. While there are lots of fun and interesting things to do up there (hiking, tubing, zip lining, etc.), we have never been over to Wildcat Lake.
Is it a cold water lake as in is it fed by a cold mountain river or is it a spring fed lake? Will school have started up there by then and will it be less crowded?
Also has anyone riden the alpine coaster that is up there and if so what were your thoughts on that?
getatag, a good poster here, may have more info/opins on the area...
From the map, it appears to be river fed...not much 'spring fed' of any kind here in Mtns of western NC. And, most rivers flow/pass through NC vs originating in NC, fwiw.
GL, mD
"A good poster here".... Gotta laugh at MD's measured quote. It's purely debatable as to the "good" in my posts. Thanks for the benefit of the doubt, MD.
Wildcat lake is a cold water lake for sure, Wildcat Creek is its source of water, straight off the Elk River. While I haven't been to Wildcat Lake other than to pass it on Hickory Nut Gap Rd while riding my bike, other family members have gone and enjoyed it. There is a roped off sandy swimming area, plenty of fishing and canoe/kayak areas. Another nice lake, a bit more secluded is Buckeye lake over the top of Beech and down to the Buckeye recreation area. NO Swimming, but canoe and or Kayaks available and some fishing.
August 15th is the first day of classes at Lees McRae, so there will be some students around several days before that date.
The Alpine coaster is almost always busy, so I'd suspect it's a local thrill for sure. Our sons has been and were impressed, one even went back the following week as tour guide for visitors to our home. When they returned to the house they spoke highly of it. Our neighbor's son went and labeled it "tame". (all of the sons mentioned are in their late 20-40s and have traveled a bit, so know fun when they pay for it.) The total thus far is 6 people enjoyed it and 1 claimed it to be tame.
We've had a recent hot spell up here, so I'd imagine Valle Crucis, while not as brutal as the SC area you will be escaping is still needy of some AC being at 2600 ft of elevation and in a protected valley. Our occasional forays down to the Mast Store has been much warmer than the temps up here on Beech or Sugar.
Thanks all for the quick responses. While VC may not be as high up as Beech/Sugar it will be a welcome respite just for the lack of humidity. When we really want to cool off I plan on spending some time in the 5506 Skybar at the top of Beech.
What else has changed up there or been added in the last 2 years as we skipped the High Country last year?
Can't comment on the other stuff, but we were at the alpine coaster recently. It's fun, but it's a very short ride, maybe like a minute. We went with some friends and were kind of in a rush as we had a dinner reservation coming up. I didn't buy the tickets so I'm not sure on the option, but there were people who would stay on the coaster and ride it over and over. I would try to get one of those tickets instead of just a single ride. I'm not a rollercoaster fan and do not ride any other roller coasters. This one is very mild, plus since you control the speed it can be milder if you hit the brakes.
It was fun, just thought it was very short, especially given the line to get in. Would do it again but would get a pass that allows you to stay on for multiple rounds.
Thanks all for the quick responses. While VC may not be as high up as Beech/Sugar it will be a welcome respite just for the lack of humidity. When we really want to cool off I plan on spending some time in the 5506 Skybar at the top of Beech.
What else has changed up there or been added in the last 2 years as we skipped the High Country last year?
We walk up to the top four or five times a week, so we've been watching the progress along the way and at the top. For skiing, they finally got the parts to repair the old Oz lift, now called West Bowl. The rain storm from a couple of months ago washed out and rutted a good bit of mountain bike trails, so those have mostly been rebuilt and fortified. The disc golf course has been reconstructed. They have a Piston Bully that pulls a bushhog (new toy) and they are keeping the grassy meadows above Summer Rd mowed down a bit better this year so the frisbees don't get lost as often.
Skybar at top is a bit different. They took out the bathrooms on the deck past the skybar, replacing it with a small kitchen and build a new facility between the old Oz lift (West Bowl) and the Skybar. It has a flat roof deck on top where they are moving the Mile High Yoga on weekends and there are new bathrooms underneath.
The've begun serving food from the small new kitchen behind Skybar. The burgers and sandwiches are only available from the kitchen on Friday. Saturday and Sunday afternoons.(Maybe Thursdays, but I don't think so)
They also have dinner at the top on Fridays and Saturdays, reservation only. Filet mignon, trout, etc. Limited to two or three menu items. The price includes the lift ride up and shuttle ride back.
If it isn't rainy or cloudy, the PERFECT venue for a nice panoramic dinner. Of course, in a temperate rainforest the chance of good weather is just a little better than the chance of miserable weather.
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