The local guide
Things to do in Robbinsville, NC
Waterfalls, old growth forest, two big lakes and some of the best driving roads in the southern mountains, all within an easy drive of the inn.
Graham County has one traffic light and more national forest than almost anywhere east of the Mississippi. From Blue Boar Inn you join the Cherohala Skyway in about four minutes, reach Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest in about fifteen and Tail of the Dragon at Deals Gap in about fifty. Most of what follows is within an hour of the door, and a good few days here never need the car at all.
01
On the water
Two big lakes and a river, all within an easy morning.
Lake Santeetlah
Paddling, swimming and boating
Our own dock is a walk down through the woods, with kayaks, canoes and paddleboards for guests. Around four fifths of the shoreline is national forest, which is why so little has been built on it.
Cheoah Point
Swimming beach and boat ramp
The developed beach on Lake Santeetlah, with a boat ramp and picnic tables. The easiest place to swim if you would rather not paddle out from our dock.
The beach and campground run mid April to the end of October.
Fontana Lake
Big water and the dam
A much larger lake with the Smokies rising straight out of the far shore. Fontana Dam has a visitor centre and a walkway across the top, and the Appalachian Trail crosses here.
02
Hiking and forest
The inn is surrounded by the Nantahala National Forest, so most of this starts close by.
Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest
Old growth forest walk
A two mile figure of eight through poplars that were never logged, some of them well over a hundred feet tall. It is a walk rather than a hike. One of the largest tracts of old growth forest left in the eastern United States.
Quietest on a weekday morning.
Snowbird Creek
Backcountry trails
A wide, quiet valley with miles of trail along the creek. The waterfalls up here are a serious day out rather than an afternoon, so come prepared or turn back early and enjoy the lower stretch.
The last few miles in are unpaved forest road. Ask us about conditions before you set off.
Tsali Recreation Area
Mountain biking and hiking
Four well kept loops along the shore of Fontana Lake, known regionally for mountain biking but just as good on foot.
Loops alternate between bikes and horses by day, so check which is open.
Appalachian Trail at Fontana Dam
Day walk on the AT
The trail crosses the top of the dam and climbs into the Smokies. You can walk a mile of it and turn round, which is enough to say you have done it.
03
Waterfalls
One is a short walk from the road. Others are a proper day out. These are the ones we think are worth the drive.
Yellow Creek Falls
Short waterfall walk
The nearest real waterfall, and the easiest. A short creekside path leads to a run of cascades and a small swimming hole.
The path crosses private land that the owner allows people to use. Please stay on the trail. Parking is a gravel pull off with room for only a few cars.
Twentymile Cascade
Easy walk in the Smokies
A quiet corner of Great Smoky Mountains National Park with almost none of the traffic the Gatlinburg side gets. A wide gravel path follows the creek to a mossy cascade.
A national park parking tag is required. No dogs on this trail. The drive there takes you along the Tail of the Dragon.
Falls Branch Falls
Waterfall hike off the Skyway
A seventy foot falls in the Citico Creek Wilderness, and the best walk you can pair with a drive along the Cherohala Skyway.
Designated wilderness, so signage is minimal. The last stretch is steep and rocky with cable handlines. The trailhead is above 4,000 feet and ices up in winter.
Bald River Falls
Roadside waterfall
The most dramatic falls in reach and you see it from the bridge without leaving the car. Roughly ninety feet straight down. Pairs naturally with driving the full Skyway.
Parking is very limited and busy at weekends. A weekday morning is a different experience.
Deep Creek waterfalls
Three falls in one loop
Tom Branch, Indian Creek and Juney Whank falls on a single short loop outside Bryson City. Three waterfalls in under two and a half miles, and lunch in town afterwards.
A national park parking tag is required. No dogs on these trails.
Mingo Falls
Tall falls, short climb
Around a hundred and twenty feet, one of the tallest in the southern Appalachians, and only a few minutes from the car park. On the Qualla Boundary near Cherokee.
The climb is short but it is more than 150 steep steps, so it does not suit everybody.
04
Scenic drives
Three of the best known driving roads in the southern mountains, and one of them starts at the end of our road.
Cherohala Skyway
High mountain road
Forty three miles between Robbinsville and Tellico Plains, Tennessee, most of it along the tops with long views on both sides. Driving the whole thing and coming back is most of a day, and half an hour of it after breakfast is a good morning on its own.
There is no fuel and no food anywhere along the route, so fill up in Robbinsville first. Conditions can be dangerous in snow and ice, so check before you go between December and March.
Tail of the Dragon
The famous one
US 129 at Deals Gap. Riders and drivers travel a long way for it, and you are just as welcome here if you have never sat on a bike.
Deals Gap is quiet from mid November until late February.
NC 28, the Hellbender
The quiet alternative
NC 28 between Stecoah and Deals Gap, signed as the Hellbender and known further south as Moonshiner 28. Much the same country as the Dragon with a fraction of the traffic, and the road most visitors drive straight past.
05
Local farms and shops
Part of staying in a small town is meeting the people who make things in it. These are all within half an hour or so.
Stoney Hollow Farm
Working farm and farm store
Pick your own flowers, buy vegetables cut that morning, and browse a barn of local honey, soap and antiques.
Open a couple of days a week and busiest in growing season. Check before you drive out.
Wehrloom Honey
Apiary, meadery and shop
A family apiary with most of its hives inside the national forest around you. Raw and infused honey, skincare, and a tasting room for mead and honey soda.
Open year round. There is a second shop in Bryson City, but the farm here is the one to visit.
Marie's Lavender Farm
Lavender farm and gift shop
Three acres of lavender and cut flowers beside a trout stream. Cut your own bunch, then look through the shop for soap and sachets made on site.
Seasonal, roughly spring through autumn, with the lavender at its best in early summer.
Hunting Boy Wood Carving
Cherokee carver and gallery
The studio of Cherokee carver Billy Welch, whose work is held by the Smithsonian. Masks, river cane flutes, baskets and beadwork, bought straight from the maker, and often the chance to watch him work.
Call ahead.
Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center
Gallery, concerts and classes
The county arts centre, with a gallery of work by more than a hundred regional makers in clay, wood, glass and fibre. Mountain music concerts run through the summer.
The gallery closes for January and February.
Sharla Kaufman Pottery
Ceramic studio and garden
A lakeside studio of hand built, hand painted pottery, with a flower garden you are welcome to walk.
Mostly by appointment, though visitors are welcome. Call ahead.
06
Food and coffee in town
Breakfast is with us. For the rest of the day, a few places in Robbinsville worth knowing about.
Kin Cafe
Coffee shop
The town coffee shop. Proper espresso and pour over, pastries, and beer later in the week. A good stop before the Skyway or the Dragon.
Closed Sundays.
Lynn's Place
Town diner
A long standing local diner in the middle of town, and the answer when somebody asks where the locals eat.
Closed Sundays.
Southern Gals Country Cooking
Country cooking
Plain, generous country cooking, and an easy supper on the way back from a day out.
Closed Sundays.
From the door
Drive times from the inn
Drive times are approximate and vary with weather, roadworks and how often you stop.
| From the inn | Distance | Drive |
|---|---|---|
| The Cherohala Skyway, where you join it | ~1.3 mi | ~4 min |
| Rattler Ford Group Campground | ~3 mi | ~11 min |
| Horse Cove Campground | ~3.8 mi | ~14 min |
| Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest | ~4.1 mi | ~15 min |
| Massey Branch boat launch | ~7.6 mi | ~21 min |
| Downtown Robbinsville | ~8.9 mi | ~23 min |
| Santeetlah Marina | ~15.2 mi | ~33 min |
| Cheoah Point beach and boat ramp | ~16.6 mi | ~38 min |
| Tsali Recreation Area | ~26 mi | ~48 min |
| Deals Gap, the south end of the Dragon | ~27 mi | ~52 min |
| Fontana Dam | ~30 mi | ~1 hr |
| Nantahala Outdoor Center | ~31 mi | ~54 min |
| Tellico Plains, Tennessee, driving the whole Skyway | ~42 mi | ~1 hr 15 min |
Stay nearby
Come back to the woods at the end of the day
Eight suites in the forest above Lake Santeetlah, about nine miles from Robbinsville, with breakfast included and a private dock a walk down from the inn.