News

Live Music at Sugar Mountain in January

With the skiing season underway, what are some of the events going on at the resorts? At Sugar Mountain they have multiple bands lined up to play music throughout January.

On January 14, the Smokin’ Joe Randolph Band plays at Sugar Mountain from 4pm through 7pm. They play a wide variety of blues, rockabilly, surf, swing, and soul music.

On January 21, the Classic Highway Band visits from 4pm through 6pm. They are a Boone band who specialize in classic rock, blues, and soul music from the 60s-80s.

Snowshoeing Tours at Sugar Mountain

For many, one of the most exciting parts of a vacation is trying new things! And Sugar Mountain offers what is likely new for many people: snowshoeing tours!

The Snowshoeing season on Sugar Mountain runs from December through March. During the week, snowshoe tours are offered every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 3:00 p.m. On Saturday, they are at 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. 

Both rentals of showshoes and the guided tour by an experienced guide are included. Adult tours are for those who are 12 years or older. Children’s tours are for those ages 8-11. You need to sign up at least fifteen minutes prior to your tour time at the Snowsports School building at the resort.

Appalachian Ski Mountain Opening 2022 and History

November 18 is a very exciting day for skiing and winter fans as it is the opening day of Appalachian Ski Mountain in Boone, NC!  So, what makes Appalachian Ski Mountain so special? And what is its history?

Appalachian Ski Mountain got its start in 1968 when Grady Moretz and four other partners bought the area at a public auction

Originally, the resort only had a 12,000-foot base lodge and 3 slopes. These slopes only had two rope tows for ascending the mountain. As it became more and more popular, in 1984 it underwent a major renovation which added chairlifts and a 6,000-foot addition to the ski lodge.

By 2010 Appalachian Ski Mountain has twelve slopes, three chairlifts, two conveyer lifts and one handle pull lift. The ski lodge itself now covers 46,000 feet and is very comfortable as well. 

Banner Elk and Boone Travel Info for October 15 and 16

This weekend, October 15 and 16, at Banner Elk is the very popular Woolly Worm festival. Also this weekend we have the peak time for viewing the autumn colors of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the area.

Another event running this weekend in the same area is the Valle Fair at Valle Crucis. Both the fair and the Woolly Worm festival open at 9am both days.

All of these events going on at once means this will be a weekend with very high traffic congestion throughout the area. Most of the roads into and in both Banner Elk and Valle Crucis are only two lane roads so there will be heavy delays throughout as the events are very popular.

So make sure to leave much earlier than you’d expect to need to so as to account for the traffic. Also, bring along a lot of patience to get through the traffic. 

Wildlife Habitat Daily Programs at Grandfather Mountain

This October, and every April through October, Grandfather Mountain offers a guided tour through the special Animal Habitats in the mountain park! These are great opportunities to see each wild animal active in their natural habitat close to the overlook of their habitat.

On Grandfather Mountain, many of the native species such as the bears, otters, and elk have very large, designated wildlife habitats which have large moats or retaining walls in designated viewing era for guests. During a normal day, the animals are not consistently visible as the habitats are very large. But that is different on certain hours each day.

Daily, at certain hours, a keeper will bring special scents or toys out to entice the animals to come closer to the viewing area for people to enjoy them. The keeper will then offer interesting facts about the different animals. This happens daily every half from 11am through 4pm at the different habitats.

There is no additional fee to enjoy these wildlife habitats. They are included with the price of admission. You do need to schedule visits to Grandfather Mountain ahead of time though.

Woolly Worm Festival in Banner Elk

It is finally autumn! And with the seasons changing also comes the beautiful autumn colors of the trees as well as woolly worms! And this October 15 and 16 in Banner Elk is the 45th annual woolly worm festival! 

The festival takes place the 3rd weekend of October in downtown Banner Elk and is a very unique festival. Attended annually by about 20,000 people, up to 1,000 people bring their own woolly worms and race them! The winner takes home $1,000 on Saturday and $500 on Sunday.

Of course, in addition to the food, there is great food as well as arts and craft vendors. Many of these are woolly worm themed so are very unique. There also will be great local music and breathtaking views of the mountains to take in!

Admission is $6 for adults, $4 for children 6-12 and free for those 5 and under.