Sunset over downtown Hendersonville, North Carolina.
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South Carolinians have long loved to wind up the Blue Ridge foothills toward Asheville in the fall. The interstate makes for the quickest jaunt, but road trippers in the know take the scenic route: Asheville Highway. The at-times serpentine journey takes travelers past a series of charming towns and whistle-stops along the now-abandoned Southern Railway line: Inman, Campobello, Landrum, Tryon, Saluda, Flat Rock, and Hendersonville. And in the future, there’ll be even more reason to detour: Norfolk Southern recently sold thirty-one miles of the fallow line to the Saluda Grade Trail Conservancy for a potentially game-changing rail trail.
—Amanda Heckert
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EXPLORE WESTERN SOUTH CAROLINA |
STORIES TO INSPIRE WANDERLUST
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The Warmth of a Little Café
Tucked Inside a Greenville Bookstore |
A Local’s Pick of Spartanburg Hotspots |
Tyler Florence’s Perfect Day in Greenville |
The Upstate’s Fresh Take on a Speakeasy;
Plus a Recipe for a Pre-Prohibition Cocktail |
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ELSEWHERE AROUND THE SOUTH |
Seven Whimsical Southern Sculpture Gardens |
WINSTON-SALEM, NORTH CAROLINA
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A view from Hanging Rock State Park near Winston-Salem.
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ALL ROADS LEAD TO WINSTON-SALEM: In a well-rounded, historic Southern city like Winston-Salem, North Carolina, it can be hard to decide where to start a trip. Do you begin at the source—the lovingly preserved Old Salem, where Moravians settled the region in 1753? Or pay homage to Krispy Kreme and Texas Pete, two beloved brands that got their start here, by sampling the culinary scene? You could spend an entire day exploring the Reynolda House Museum of American Art. But then you might miss the greatest masterpiece of all—the outdoors—on some of the highest-rated trails in the Southeast, including Hanging Rock, located just thirty miles north of the city. Find your best path by taking the Winston-Salem “This or That” Quiz.
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Central Florida. Getting from point A to point B seems to cause more and more headaches lately. It’s not perfect, but train travel is pretty fun when you can find a convenient route. In Charleston, I hop on Amtrak’s Silver Meteor, which runs from New York to Miami, to see a bunch of my family near Winter Park, Florida (they’re mostly in a delightful little town called Mount Dora). The leg room is generous, and you can read a book, log on to the Wi-Fi, or have a glass of wine from the café car while looking out at the Southern pines and marshes rolling past. More highlights from my trip:
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Nature walk: Shoutout to my great uncle Mike Barnett, a naturalist whose all-are-welcome walks in public parks The Orlando Sentinel touted in “101 Things to Love about Central Florida.” My mom and I joined him for a stroll through the lovely shaded Bourlay Historic Nature Park in Leesburg, where we spotted a baby gator, three woodpeckers, a marsh rabbit, and a comically giant pig frog peeking up from the water lilies dotting Lake Griffin.
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Feast for the senses: If you’re into antiques or epic people-watching, wear sneakers and carve out a weekend morning to walk through Renninger’s Flea Market & Antique Center on Highway 441. Pineapple lemonade in hand, I scanned the vendors hawking vintage cast iron and retro-cool patio furniture, and then found the largest Italian terra cotta garden pot I’d ever seen—going for a song! I’ve got big olive tree plans for it, just as soon as I can figure out how to schlep it back to Charleston. I might have to book it a train seat home.
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MORE TRAVEL STORIES FROM G&G
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