by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Oct 18, 2017 | North Carolina, Travel
Friday the 13th of October we set off toward Asheville to begin celebrating my 60th birthday. On the way we stopped at the DuPont State Forest to hike the falls trails. It was a “Lucky Day.” Many parts of the Dupont State Forest will look familiar to movie...
by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Oct 6, 2017 | North Carolina, Travel
Because we can never do enough on our frequent forays in the Carolinas, we added visits to nearby Pilot Mountain and Hanging Rock State Parks during our weekend in Mt. Airy (9/30-31/17). Jagged Rock outcrops call to us and we are usually rewarded with spectacular...
by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Oct 4, 2017 | North Carolina, Travel
Andy Griffith spent his childhood and teen years in Mount Airy, North Carolina. Old Town in Mt. Airy is a treasure trove of dedication to “The Andy Griffith Show.” Karen and I spent the afternoon and evening of Saturday (9-30-17) ‘tourist...
by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Oct 3, 2017 | North Carolina, Party, Travel
The Yadkin Valley, in the northern Piedmont area of North Carolina, bills itself as “Napa of the East.” Karen and I explored this claim on the weekend of 9-30-17 on our way to visit Andy Griffith’s hometown of Mt. Airy. We detoured from a traffic...
by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Sep 24, 2017 | North Carolina, Travel
Just 40-miles west of Charlotte, Crowders Mountain towers 800-feet above heavily forested, rolling hills. From atop the sawtooth towers that form Crowders summit you can see Charlotte’s skyline and across the border into South Carolina. The proximity to...
by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Sep 6, 2017 | Events, North Carolina, Travel
I’m reporting on our Labor Day 2017 trip for a brief escape from obsessing on Hurricane Irma. Karen and I accepted the offer to stay in our friend’s cabin in Lake Lure, NC. We made the 2-hour drive Saturday morning and experienced none of the usual heavy...
by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Aug 23, 2017 | Events, North Carolina, Travel
The flyer promised hot cars, hot bar-b-q, hot pin-up girls, hot bands and cold beer Saturday (8-19-17) in Kannapolis, NC at the VFW Post 8989. I asked Karen, “How can we not go to this event?” We arrived minutes after the Free Swing Dance Lessons started...
by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Aug 22, 2017 | North Carolina
The Charlotte Knights are the Chicago White Sox Triple A baseball team. Karen and I donned our Cubs gear and headed for the BB&T Ballpark in Uptown Charlotte Friday (8-18-22) to watch a game before their season ended. Severe thunderstorms were forecast to pass...
by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Aug 22, 2017 | boats, North Carolina, Travel
With the surrounding areas that would provide total eclipse viewing packed with sky gazers and the traffic to and from predicted to be worse than dire, I opted to watch the 2017 event thirty-minutes from home on Lake Wylie in North Carolina. The morning was clear and...
by jeff@lyonsroar.com | Aug 17, 2017 | North Carolina, Party, Travel
Karen and I like to take a tour or two when we move to a new city to learn some of the history and be able to point out major landmarks to our visitors. Sunday ((8-13-17) was overcast and iffy for most outdoor adventures so we opted for the FUNNY BUS tour of downtown...
