Lake James Fonta Flora Trail

Sunday morning, we woke to the gentle patter of light rain - warm enough overnight to have melted away thoughts of snow. By the time I’d broken down camp, the shower had already passed, leaving the air fresh and the skies clearing. We pulled into the Lake James Visitor Center and set off on the Fonta Flora Trail.

 

The path dropped from the parking lot on smooth pavement to a pretty picnic shelter perched right at the water’s edge.

From there, the South Wimba Trail peeled off to the west, but we crossed the graceful arc of Cove Bridge and continued on the main Fonta Flora route.

Once across the bridge, the trail turned to welcomingly wild - soft dirt and pine needles winding north along the Longarm Peninsula.

The lake shimmered in the soft morning light, mist still rising in delicate wisps from the coves.

We hiked an easy six miles out and back, soaking in the quiet beauty, and made it back to the car just before noon.

Amaroq polished off his lunch in the backseat, and with full bellies and happy legs, we pointed the car toward home.

Lake James to Shortoff Hike

On Friday, I took Amaroq up to the mountains for the long weekend. We parked at the Wolf Pit Trailhead on the Fonta Flora Trail along Lake James and started out on the MST Connector. The path shadowed the road for a while before dropping down to the Linville River.

After about two miles, we turned onto Faulkner Flats Road and began climbing. The route eventually spits you out near the main Wolf Pit Trailhead for Linville Gorge, then follows the classic Shortoff Trail up the mountain - the way most people approach Shortoff. The switchbacks offer killer views of the Lake James, but the midday sun was brutal and washed everything out for photos. Soon we came to the top of Shortoff and amazing views.

We pushed on to the campsite perched high atop Shortoff and the gorge - a spot I’ve come to call Alexander Point because he loved this climb so much. The wind was howling and the cold bit hard, so we didn’t linger.

A guy who’d camped there the night before was already packing up, muttering that it was too frigid to stay another night. On the descent, we took the Mountains-to-Sea Trail instead. It’s noticeably steeper than Shortoff, with almost no switchbacks - just a relentless drop. We followed it all the way to the Linville River ford but didn’t cross.

The water looked shallow and manageable, though I have no doubt it was ice-cold. That section where the gorge suddenly widens is stunning.

We turned around there, retraced our steps on the MST Connector back to the car, then made the obligatory stop at Fonta Flora Brewery for wood-fired pizza and a couple of beers.

From there it was a short drive to Lake James State Park to claim our campsite. 

Once the tent was up, we knocked out a quick out-and-back on the Overmountain Victory Trail that links the park to the brewery - perfect timing to get back just before the sun dipped.

I built a massive fire to fight off the chill; it was one of those bone-cold mountain nights. Fortunately, Amaroq is an excellent tent-sized space heater.

Shortoff Hike in Linville Gorge

For the holiday weekend, we took Alex and Harper out to the mountains.  Alex wanted to take his little sister to his favorite spot for a hike, so we first went to the Wolf Pit Trailhead for Linville Gorge.  Shortoff Trail heads up the mountain from here.  Alex really enjoys the rocky steps climbing up the mountain.  Near the top, it meets up with MST and has really great views.

We hiked as far as the campsite with stunning views of Table Rock and the gorge.  There was a group camping here, so we just got a couple pictures and let Harper get her first views of Linville Gorge.

It was really windy up here, so we couldn't stay long anyway.

Once we started heading down the mountain, the wind died down.

Heading back down to NC-126, we made a stop at Fonta Flora County Park.

The Fonta Flora State Trail runs along the shore of Lake James through the park.

After a mile or so, the trail opened up and had really nice views of the lake and surrounding mountains.

There was a bench along here where we stopped for a break and then turned around.

We had worked up quite an appetite by this point and headed into Las Salsas for some delicious fajitas.  We hadn't eaten here in a while and I was glad the food was still delicious and portions huge.  Then we headed to Lenoir to check into the hotel for the evening.