Hiking Retreat

One of the main reasons many tourists choose to come to Cashiers and the surrounding areas do so because of all of the easily accessible outdoor activities. In fact, there are so many options here that figuring out where to begin can be a challenge.

This weekend a great opportunity to both enjoy and learn about the area will be offered through The Mountain Retreat Center’s Hiking Retreat for Seniors 55+. The retreat begins this Sunday, the twenty-first of September, offers both 3 and 5 day options, and celebrates our area’s natural beauty.

 Hikes will be led by expert guides who will give educational talks about nature along the way. Activities include social hours, meals, and unstructured time to explore the area on your own. A selection of hikes included in the program include Whiteside, Rabun Bald summit, Big Scaly Mountain summit. There are some significant elevation changes in these hikes, so come prepared for a climb.

The Mountain Retreat Center website explains what to expect on the hikes, and shares simple fitness tests, useful to determine if you’ll enjoy the hikes. This is a great way to enjoy some amazing local scenery and invigorating hikes, while having a great learning experience.  While you’re in the area, come by and visit us at Preserve at Rock Creek!  We’d love to hear how you enjoyed the adventure.

Escape the Heat at Preserve at Rock Creek

Weather Map of Southeastern US

With the heat wave we've seen throughout the Southeastern US, if you’re reading this from the lower elevations - Georgia, South Carolina, and especially the coastal areas, where daytime temperatures are expected to reach the upper 90s (with high humidity) – then you’re probably ready for a break.

Now’s a great time to visit Cashiers, NC – right in the middle of the Plateau area of the Western North Carolina Mountains.  Our high temperatures will top out in the lower 80’s, and evening temperatures will cool down to the mid-60’s.  We're willing to go out on a limb and call that a comfortable change. If it’s still too hot for you, there’s plenty of whitewater rafting available to cool you down even further.

Historically, these lower temperatures are fairly normal for summertime at the Preserve at Rock Creek. From Memorial Day to Labor Day the average monthly high temperatures range from 77 degrees in June to 72 degrees in September, with July (the warmest month) still comfortable with a 79 degree average high.  Our approximately 4000 ft elevation keeps the temperatures so comfortable, and the humidity levels are kept low, too. It’s a combination that’s pretty hard to beat!

When you’re ready to escape the heat, come to Cashiers, NC and visit the Preserve at Rock Creek while you’re here. We’ll be more than happy to share the crisp, mountain air with you!

Three More Restaurants You Need To Visit

Earlier this summer we wrote about our three favorite restaurants, but it was so difficult to limit the list,  we've decided to share three more restaurants you should definitely visit when you're in Cashiers, NC. Besides its delicious menu, featuring Southern dishes like Savannah Lump Blue Crab Cakes and Low Country Style Shrimp and Grits, Cornucopia Restaurant is also known for its location and building, with a classic screened-in porch that creates a unique and wonderful dining experience.  A local favorite, they've been serving breakfast, brunch, and dinner for the last 36 seasons (March through November)!

16 Cashiers School Road Cashiers, NC 28717 (828) 743-3750

Table 64, located next to the Cork and Barrel Lounge, is a relatively new addition to the local restaurant scene, featuring tapas (small plates), wine, beer, and cocktails. Tapas are traditionally from Spain but Table 64 has given their tapas international flair by adding flavors from other countries like Greece and Vietnam. Their tapas are both delicious and great to share!

3093 Highway 64E Sapphire Valley, NC 28774 (828) 743-4135

The Orchard Restaurant specializes in American Cuisine with a Southern flavor using fresh, local ingredients. What that means for the diner is that Fried Green Tomatoes, Appalachian Trout Almondine, and Hampton Venison Rack Chops are just some of their specialties, which they serve in an 100 year old rustic farmhouse.  A must-visit!

905 Highway 107 South Cashiers, NC (828) 743-7614

Happy Dining!

Three Great Restaurants You Need To Visit

With so many excellent restaurants on the Highlands/Cashiers/Toxaway Plateau, it is difficult to limit this list to three.   Yet when asked for recommendations, we find ourselves sending friends and visitors to these three again and again.  Therefore, we've decided these are our top 3 restaurants in the area.

Lamb chop at Gamekeeper's Tavern in Sapphire, North Carolina

Osteria del Monte is known for its authentic Northern Italian cuisine, created with fresh ingredients and a gourmet touch. Be sure to check out the daily specials and their excellent wine list. It’s a popular spot, so make a reservation in advance.

1301 Highway 64 West Sapphire, NC 28774 (828) 883-2551

Gamekeeper's Tavern combines rustic mountain elegance with a sophisticated yet casual style. Offering a gourmet menu of daily fresh fish, game, beef, pork and fowl, Chef Allen Spivey incorporates fresh local ingredients whenever possible. Complex sauces and creative presentation are the perfect complements to the fusion menu. A comprehensive wine list and full bar complete the dining experience. Both the dining room and lounge are open year round. Reservations are suggested.

3646 Highway 64 East Sapphire, NC 28774 (828) 743-4263

Steak at Brown Trout Grille in Lake Toxaway, North Carolina

A visit to Brown Trout Mountain Grille will take you back to the turn of the 20th century. This restaurant features seafood, steaks, fowl, pasta and other gourmet fare, with several trout specialties. The service is always warm and friendly in a cozy cabin atmosphere. Full bar and wine list.

502 Blue Ridge Road Lake Toxaway, NC 28747 (828) 877-3474

Western NC Summer Camps in Full Swing

Summer camps hold a cherished spot in our memories as a special place filled with new adventures, lessons about nature, and newly developing life skills that we still carry with us today. We are proud to say that Western North Carolina is home to some of the finest summer camps in the country, with long traditions of excellence.  Today's campers will still find the activities that made summer camps so much fun for their parents; theme days, cabin skits, canoeing, swimming, and hiking.

The Preserve’s Spectacular Views

Many camps now offer even more activities like zip-lining, yoga, and, gymnastics. Camps around the area are also embracing sustainable practices to ensure that their beautiful mountain properties will be there for generations to come. While the majority of camps are “electronics-free” zones, many have active blogs where parents can read updates about their campers while they are away.

A few of the boys, girls, and co-ed camps that near Preserve at Rock Creek are Merrie-Woode, Illahee, Kahdalea & Chosatonga, Keystone, Pisgah, Rockbrook, Carolina, High Rocks, Eagles Nest, Pinnacle, and Ridge Haven. For a comprehensive list of summer camps visit the North Carolina Youth Camp Association website.  While you’re in the area dropping off or picking up campers, come visit us at Preserve at Rock Creek.  We’ll take you on a tour and show you how your family can access the natural beauty and wholesome activities found in camp lifestyle all year around.

Art in the Area: The Bascom Center for Visual Arts

High on a mountain plateau, The Bascom Center for the Visual Arts provides audiences of all ages with stimulating, diverse exhibitions, studio art instruction and other cultural experiences. Their six-building, six-acre campus in Highlands, North Carolina offers you and your family and friends a community gathering-place amid art and nature, along with a variety of program offerings. This year's summer programming includes exciting exhibitions from local and internationally known artists.

The Bascom Center for the Arts is open year-found and admission is free!

Wesley Wofford: Beneath the Surface

May 24 through August 17

Opening Reception: May 24, 5-7:00 pm

Artist Talk: 6:00 pm

Emmy and Academy Award-winning sculptor Wesley Wofford works from his private studio in the North Carolina mountains. His style emphasizes the sculptor's presence, and is characterized by a dynamic use of form and texture. ln this exhibition, Wofford explores the expression of human emotions often kept well beneath the surface.

Out of the Ordinary

April 5 through June 15.

Bunzl Gallery Artists Panel Discussion: May 31. 5-6:00 pm

Closing Reception: May 31, 6-7:00 pm

Rebecca Dimling Cochran is the guest curator tor Out of the Ordinary, an exhibition that will focus on contemporary artists, including Long-Bin Chen, Willie Cole, Chakaia Booker, Matthew Brandt, Mary Engel, Guerra de la Paz, and Vik Muniz, who select and use materials specifically for the symbolism or iconography that adds to their work. She will moderate a panel discussion of artists whose works are in this exhibition.

Elsa Norris Dodd Remembered

April 12 to August 3

Joel Balcony Gallery

Opening Reception: April12, 5 to 7 pm

Friends Remembered: 6 pm

Elsa Dodd was a favorite character of Highlands, known by many to be a talented artist who promoted the arts in Highlands early on. Members of the Highlands Art League, in collaboration with The Bascom, have curated this exhibition of Dodd's work that will present a retrospective of her life's work.

Circles

April 19 to December 7.

On Campus Opening Reception: April 19, 5-7:00 pm

Artist Talk: 6:00 pm

Brandon Reese's works are predominantly known for their simple, familiar forms created by a variety of methods and at such large scales that they push the traditional boundaries of ceramic art. Reese is an associate professor of ceramics at Oklahoma State University, who regularly exhibits nationally and internationally. He has had the privilege of working with the artists Jun Kaneko, Don Reitz, and Peter Voulkos. The Bascom is pleased to have Circles on campus this year.

Exhibition, Galleries & The Shop Monday—Saturday | 10am—5pm Sunday | 12 noon—5pm Administrative Offices Monday—Friday | 9 am—5 pm

Free and open to public. For information, call 828.526.4949 or visit www.TheBascom.org.