#13, The Blowing Rock

 February 18, 2022

On my way back from the Mitford Museum, I stopped to take a quick look at the attraction that the town of Blowing Rock is named for.  Situated at about 4,000 feet elevation, this unusual outcropping of rock at the top of a cliff has been an area attraction for nearly ninety years.  I won’t attempt to explain its geological beginnings as I can’t count into the millions of years, but at some point, the mountains shifted, and this grouping of rocks was left, thrusting out into the sky over a panoramic gorge.

The Blowing Rock, near Blowing Rock, NC

The peculiar lay of the land creates a wind that blows upward, to the point that Ripley’s Believe it or Not has claimed it to be the only place where snow falls upside down.    

There is an old Chickasaw legend about the rock that I will share as a photo of the brochure.

Chickasaw Legend About The Blowing Rock

I didn’t climb out on the rock as there was no one to take a picture of me and the view wasn’t any better than from the trail.  What would be the point of risking my neck? 

The Blowing Rock

At the end of a trail there was an observation tower with telescopes to see a whole range of mountain peaks for those who remembered to bring along their quarters.  This picture doesn't do the tower justice, it was really tall!

Observation Tower at the Blowing Rock

View From the Blowing Rock Observation Tower