NC day trips

I’m looking for places for nice day trips with the wife. We live near Wake Forest, so pretty much anywhere in NC or southern VA would be good to drive out and back in a day. We’ve done most of the museums, NC zoo, and Biltmore. Thanks for any suggestions.

 

Any outdoor related hobbies that yall share?

 

Do you play golf? If so there are some unreal mountain courses in the Asheville NC area. Mount Mitchell, Granfdather Mountain and countless others. Trout fishing all over.

 

Sorry guys, I should have given more information.

I’m a native North Carolinian. I grew up near Burlington. I live near Wake Forest now.

I’m not a golfer. I’ve done most of the high profile stuff like the whitewater center, blue ridge parkway, Biltmore, and Linville Gorge. We have also done US 64 from Franklin to Highlands where all the waterfalls are. I’m looking for places that aren’t heard of very often.

We recently went to the transportation museum near Salisbury. If you like trains, that’s a pretty cool place.

This past Saturday, we drove up to Devil’s Backbone Base Camp in Roseland, VA. We had lunch there and then drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway over to Lexington, VA and toured their brewery. That was a good trip although if I were to go again, I would skip the brewery in Lexington and spend more time at the base camp. On the way home, we went through Appomatox, VA. We stopped at the McLean house but it was closing. We are going to go back one day and tour the house and the Civil War museum which is right down the road.

I think this would be a good thread to post up trips that most people would not think about or hear about. I know there are some adventurous people on TW.

If anybody has any good places, post them up!

BTW, if you go to Devil’s Backbone base camp on a Saturday for lunch, get the brisket.

 

Ocracoke Island. Eat at Howard's Pub. It's a long ride for a day trip, so start out early.

From Raleigh, head East on US 64 until you get to NC 12 at Nags Head. Head South on NC 12 until you get to the Ferry terminal at Hatteras. Take the ferry over to Ocracoke. Drive some more. Howard's Pub will be one of the first places on the right as you get to the village of Ocracoke.

Don't forget your camera!

 

+1. But, worth spending the night. Camp or get a room.
We ate at Jolly Roger a few years ago and had fish tacos. Yummy.

 

When you drove 64 did you stop in gorges state park? Great park and there are some dirt roads that go down to lake jocasse and the horse pasture river. Lots of water falls as well. You mentioned adventure so that's some light adventure. My son and I went last weekend.

Here's a link to the thread and some pictures I posted from the trip.

 

Ocracoke Island is awesome. We have a guys fishing trip every October and for years we stayed at the Pony Island Motel. That's all that was there when we started going. Later, we started going to Hatteras Island. Now we stay in South Nags Head and fish right at the old Oregon Inlet bridge.

We have done many trips to the Outer Banks over the years, We have been to every NC Lighthouse. One place out there that I really want to go is Carova, but it's definatley an overnight trip.

We had the chance go drive in Gorges this past November. We went to Overland Expo East in Hendersonville on Saturday, then drove around Lake James and to Gorges on Sunday.

I'm almost 50 and have lived here my whole life. I have had the opportunity to see a lot of things NC has to offer. I guess I'm just running out of things to see.

 

Sounds like you should be the one writing the list of places.

 

Crowders Mountain and South Mountain state parks are both pretty nice, if you are into hiking.

Shatley Springs is a relatively famous restaurant in Crumpler, NC that my parents always went to when I was a kid. It can get fairly busy though if you go on the weekend during prime lunch or dinner hours.

 

Never been to either of those. I will definitely check them out. Thank you!

 

One of the cool day trips my family and I have taken was natural bridge virginia. Take 220 North out of Greensboro for the "backroads" up towards Martinsville.

 

If I remember correctly (granted I havent been to Shatley Springs in probably 10 years) but there is a huge stocked trout pond right behind/near the restaurant. Not catching anything on the New River turned into loading up on trout in that pond. Good times.