The Swannanao Valley Museum offered a Saturday hike today to a local waterfall less than 15 minutes for our B&B. You can get to the lower falls hiking in a trail by a creek for almost a mile and if you are up to a climp you can go to the upper falls. In the spring the falls are large due to all the snow melt and rain fall.
Do the Catawba falls in the morning and then head to Andrews Gyser to see the local attraction. A great place to have a picnic and watch the trains as they struggle to go either up or down the mountain. After a good lunch then you can hike up old highway 70 with is now a hiking, biking lane or choose a mountain trail Kitsumma Trail [ an old Indian trail on a ridge] which is a mountain bike trail / hiking trail. If you don't want to bring you mountain or road bike Epic Bikes in Black Mountain rents bikes.
Any of the three could be done alone and then head back to Black Mountain for lunch and check out the shops. Some new shops , eateries and an ale house have opened. Still have energy left for the evening check out some local music in Black Mountain.
Not sure about hiking alone, check with me and I can hook you with one of the many hiking groups and I
maps and plenty of suggestions of safe trail hiking near us.
