May 2017
We started the month out with
a guided fishing wade trip to learn the best techniques for fly fishing in the
creeks and rivers of North Carolina.
Since our only other experience with fly fishing was in Alaska, we
learned that the methods are totally different.
We had a great time with our guide Jason, and “Top Hook” honors as usual
went to Chippy with a haul of 4 rainbow trout, while I caught 1 brown trout, 1
rainbow and a tiny shiner on our four hours on Scott’s Creek and the Tuckasegee
River. We will need new fly rods our
next time out as the fly rods we used for salmon in Alaska are too heavy for
trout fishing, but we have the gear to do a little bass fishing in the lakes in
the meantime.
We have found the most amazing golf course just outside of
Cherokee NC, which is owned and operated by the Eastern Band of the
Cherokee. The Robert Trent Jones
designed Sequoyah National Golf Club is filled with scenic vistas, beautiful
views of the Smoky Mountain National Park on every hole, and VERY challenging
golf. It certainly has the WOW factor
and my fellow workampers Scott, Dick and I have enjoyed every round. There are also a couple other very nice
courses, but Sequoyah tops them all.
The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad was another great day
trip, beginning in Bryson City and winding through the beautiful countryside of
Western NC for 4 ½ hours, with dining in the first class cars with
private attendants. Our guide was
extremely entertaining and informative throughout the entire ride, pointing our
historic landmarks and points of interest.
The round trip tour did make one stop at the Nantahala Outdoor Center,
home of the 2013 World Championship kayak course.
Another great hiking area we enjoyed was the Deep Creek area
of the Smoky Mountain National Park celebrated for its streams and
waterfalls. There were several loop
hikes leading to the three waterfalls in the area as well as trout fishing
along the streams. We will definitely
return in June to do some fishing in the area.
There was also a sizeable picnic area, tent camping and several tubing
outfitters, but we are waiting for a bit warmer weather before we do some
tubing and rafting.
We have hit many of the local restaurants in the area for
breakfast, lunch and dinner with our Workamper friends Scott, Tracy, Dick and Terri and have not been disappointed at all.
We finished off the month with a visit to the
Sierra Nevada Brewery with fellow Workampers Scott and Tracy just outside of Asheville and had a great free 90 minute
tour and tasting. The Brewery
headquarters in Chico CA opened in 1979 and the local Brewery in NC was opened
in 2014. The huge craft beer campus includes the brewhouse, bottling facility,
restaurant, gift shop and entertainment center.
The tour was really hands from handling the hops, to viewing the copper
clad kettles mixing and fermenting the finished product. Of course the best part of the tour was the
sampling of 9 different beers, of which all were very tasty.
