Earlier this summer, a Rabbit Hole reader asked me about an out-of-the-way or little-known place that I was particularly fond of. I’ve always had a hard time picking the best this or my favorite that. Hence, this was my advice for do-it-yourself-exploring:

That was my plan last weekend, when the family wanted to go camping before school started up. So, my wife and I looked for a relatively inexpensive place to spend a night in the mountains, then I went to work to find some small but memorable things to do nearby. Here was our itinerary:

Hickory is a regular town where weird stuff happens. A sinkhole once swallowed a Corvette there. People spot alligators in Lake Hickory from time to time, despite the fact that it’s 200 miles from the coast. Giant wooden arches, an artist’s touch on a regular pedestrian bridge, collapsed less than a year after they were installed. The street grid can be nearly impossible to decode. I once drove up there to buy a kayak off some guy and thought I might never find my way home.

I went to Hickory a few times during my TV news days, mostly to cover the Zahra Baker murder case (She now has a playground named in her memory). But other than that, Hickory has been more of a stopover than a destination. Which was the case on Saturday, when we were trying to find a pet-friendly restaurant on the way out to McDowell County. We found it in the Olde Hickory Station, which sits on the other side of the train tracks, across from Union Square. I had never been to the square on a Saturday morning, but it was hoppin’, with a farmer’s market and live music and so on. I’m not trying to be rude here, but Union Square is probably the nicest spot in Hickory. Hence, everybody wants to hang out there, so it’s all kinds of busy on a nice weekend day.

My wife and I ordered a flight of Olde Hickory beer. I remember not being too impressed by Olde Hickory the last time I drank it years ago, so I figured I’d have a little bit just to see if my memory was faulty. It wasn’t! It was very … okay. The issue was that each sample came in a leftover Hickory Hops tasting glass, which was fairly large (a half pint, maybe?). By the time I got to the Barleywine, I was feelin’ it.

Anyhow, Union Square gets nicer and nicer every time I’ve been there. I don’t think that’s just the beer talking.

(Also, I know Hickory is not in McDowell County. Just roll with me here.)

It’s not hard to find a quality waterfall when you’re up in the mountains. Hence, when we were headed up past Marion, I was on the lookout for a spot not too far off of Highway 221. Toms Creek Falls was just a little ways down a side road, and only a half-mile hike into the woods.

The creek itself is fairly tiny but somehow manages to create a fantastic 80-foot-tall cascading waterfall. The kids and the dog splashed in the small pools below. Some lady just sat down in the middle of a tiny rapid and loudly said ahhhhhhhhhhhh. We were there for an hour, which is exactly the right amount of time. We came. We saw. We splashed. We left when we heard some faraway thunder.

The most direct route from the waterfall to The Orchard at Altapass involves driving up Peppers Creek Road, which turns to gravel right at the point where you start climbing up the mountain. I don’t think you need four-wheel drive? Not in the summer anyway? But you do need to pay attention, especially to avoid the dudes who come barreling down the road at top speed in old Honda Civics. Speaking from experience here!

The Blue Ridge Parkway is at the top of the road, and it’s still closed in a lot of spots. Hence, you can’t really get to the orchard that way from the north, but you can get up there from Little Switzerland. The stretch from Peppers Creek Road to the orchard is open, and when we got there we were treated to a view of apple trees and mountains as far as the eye can see.

The Orchard at Altapass has been on my list for a very long time. It sits just off the parkway near milepost 328. A railroad company started the orchard in 1908 and terraced the mountainside to plant apples. The land once had 3,000 trees, but Hurricane Helene took out about 500 of them, including some trees that had been there since the orchard opened. Still, though, there are apples everywhere up here. We paid $24 to get a big bucket, and then they sent us off to pick Macintoshes. The bucket was full within a few minutes. The apple pie and ice cream at the store were also delicious.

The orchard was in danger of being sold and developed when, in 1995, a non-profit took it over to preserve the land and the apples. Obviously that’s been a good thing. This is among the most zen places to stop along the parkway.

Sure, we picked a relatively hot weekend to glamp, but this spot was great. We found it through Hipcamp, which is where you’d need to go if you want to check this place out. Tanglewood Campground was back down Peppers Creek Road near 221, and has a selection of cabins, primitive campsites, and big canvas tents. We went with the big tent, which had a queen bed on one side and bunks on the other. There was a big creek right outside. The kids spent the whole evening playing in it. We made s’mores, cooked hot dogs, played cards, and just hung out, which is about all you can ask for.

Here’s a Google Map of all destinations: