Don't let the name fool you. It's not really a swinging bridge - but it does creak. And those…read moresounds are a bit alarming as you're hiking up Grandfather Mountain. Admission to the mountain is $25/person. And it's highly recommended you pre-pay online, especially during tourist season when spots fill up. To get to Mile High Swinging Bridge, you pay the admission and can park in the various areas. The top of the mountain does have a parking lot, a gift shop, and restrooms; but the top parking lot fills up. So we parked farther down and did the 20-30 minute hike up. Take a lot of pics during your nervous walk across the bridge. Great views as you're 5,280 feet above sea level. Also, do not wear flip flops! I see a lot of people, even little kids, running around the top of the mountain with flip flops. What in the world?!

So totally worth it. The town is wonderful. We enjoyed just the approach to the mountain…read more Grandfather Mountain is very cool with a legendary history. The swinging bridge was just another jewel in their crown of glory. I totally recommend it for young and Old the Vista points are stupendous. And there's a really wonderful video to watch and a nature center, and even some animals to catch up with.

I love it here. I am a very science-y girl, I love anything to do with science and medicine. So, of…read morecourse, I started coming here a few years ago. The planetarium shows are gorgeous, my particular favorite was one about monarch butterfly migration. The Aquarium and reptile section is so cool, you get to see these massive tortoises and an alligator named Lucy, pet sting rays, fish of all kinds, etc. You can also explore the human body section and the physics section, where you can play on a special pulley system on a physics playground. There is also a section with insects where you can take a closer look at different types of preserved butterflies. And, every three years or so, they hold a butterfly exhibit where you can watch the butterflies flutter about. They'll even give you some sugar water on your finger, and butterflies will come flocking to you and even land on you! I had the privilege of being present for it last year and butterflies landed on me left and right, I absolutely felt like Snow White! All in all, the Catawba Science Center is a family friendly learning environment that is perfect for field trips of all kinds. You won't regret visiting!

The Catawba Science Center is located next to the Hickory Art Museum in the SALT complex so I…read morestopped here too. It was about $15 to visit the museum. I had reciprocity but didn't think to ask about it and they didn't ask like is done at the other museums. The Science Center was on the small side and a lot of the exhibits were out of order. The exhibits they had seemed geared more to younger children. So there wasn't a lot there. I never found my way to the aquarium as that is apparently in another building and that was not mentioned. The planetarium show wasn't starting until 2pm so that was disappointing. I will go back with my reciprocity to see the building I missed.

The Mitford Museum opened in October of 2021. When I recently saw an article for the museum in Our…read moreState Magazine, I decided I wanted to check out this gem of a museum. I'd never been to Hudson, NC so another adventure awaited me as I explored the small foothills town of Hudson. The Mitford Museum is inside the Hub Station in Hudson, NC. There is plenty of parking available. The museum showcases, Jan Karon, a New York Times, best selling novelist, who wrote fourteen Mitford Novels. You will also learn about Karon's life growing up and where she got her inspiration for the ordinary people she wrote about. You will feel as if you are in the fictional town of Mitford. As the sign said when I entered "Midford is now home in Hudson". The Hub Center is the town's Art Center. It used to be a grade school building where Jan Karon attended school. This seemed like the fitting place as the museum highly values education and educators as besides being a museum it is a non profit as well that promotes literacy education. The museum is in the room that was Karon's first grade classroom. When you enter the building, you can buy your admission ticket in the gift shop. The museum gift shop called Happy Endings has a books signed by Karon as well. If you cannot make it in person, I believe there is an online gift shop or will be soon. I enjoyed my time in the museum and the staff was so friendly. The museum is self guided as there are a lot of artifacts to see and information to read. But a staff member is available to answer any questions you might have. I highly recommend a visit to Hudson as this museum is well worth a stop.

From the owner: This North Carolina literary landmark, founded by # 1 New York Times Bestselling Author Jan Karon,…read moreoffers exhibits, programs, and a bookstore.

We went awhile back to see Charlotte and were sorely disappointed. Hearing of her death today…read morereminded me I had forgotten to write a review. This location is privately run and not for educational purposes. More like going to a friends house to see their pets. Please consider going to an aquarium run by scientists for educational purposes.

I want to say this has been one of the highlights of my family trip. When your 16 yo his 17 yo best…read morefriend and wife all agree on this fact it says something. As adults we have this tendency to say "if I knew then what I knew now, I'd have paid more attention in school!" Well here's your chance. This tiny aquarium will impart more knowledge in a short visit than you probably take in most months if you take advantage of it. The interns and owner (a former teacher) are committed to answering questions. The things they are studying and sharing are amazing. If you go in and you want to learn and ask questions this will be an experience you won't forget. Think of the best science teacher you ever had, having an opportunity to show the world what she loves to talk about... and that is what you have here. Do yourself a favor, go, enjoy and learn!!

The Blowing Rock Art & History Museum is located in downtown Blowing Rock and offers free…read moreadmission, along with a convenient free public parking deck and garage. The museum officially opened its doors in 2011, but the community planning started much earlier, following a generous donation of artwork from the family of celebrated local artist Elliott Daingerfield. The building utilizes a beautiful mountain-modern design explicitly crafted to blend into the natural landscape of Watauga County. It is an impressive 21,000 square feet, but it feels like it fits into downtown. It had an inviting feel the minute I walked in. The front desk staff was exceptionally friendly, asking if it was my first time visiting before suggesting I start with the introductory video, guiding me through the main artwork galleries, and directing me to the local history exhibits upstairs. There is a large elevator to access the second level if you would prefer not to take the stairs. It features a unique built-in wooden bench. I had never seen a bench inside an elevator before, but I thought it was an absolute genius accessibility feature. The introductory video was very informative, providing a fantastic background on Blowing Rock's heritage. The downstairs gallery spaces are beautifully organized, making it easy to walk naturally from one piece to the next. I was absolutely delighted to tour the temporary exhibition "Silver & Smoke: George Masa & Ansel Adams." As a lifelong fan of Ansel Adams, getting to see an exhibit of his legendary work for free was a massive highlight. I had no idea he photographed so extensively in Western North Carolina. Ansel Adams was awarded a fellowship by the Guggenheim Foundation in 1947 to photograph all the national parks and monuments in America. So he traveled east to photograph the lush, ancient forests of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the winding roads of the Blue Ridge Parkway. The downstairs gallery space has a great layout. Immediately after the video, your eyes will be drawn to a delicate flower installation that is suspended from the ceiling. I was also drawn to a powerful wall of historical photographs showcasing early local residents and vintage landscapes of the town. Another fascinating contemporary exhibit featured a collection of artistic photographs of tree stumps. It is a wonderful reminder that you never know what a creative mind can transform into art that you will truly appreciate. If you choose to take the stairs to the second level, the Open Door Gallery utilizes the towering vertical space beautifully with eye-catching art running all the way up the stairwell wall, making the walk feel like a continuous gallery experience. Upstairs was a textile exhibit showcasing the deep heritage of Appalachian weaving, quilting, and coverlets, highlighting how mountain women used local flora to dye wool and create intricate geometric patterns to keep their families warm. This textile section blends seamlessly into the local history room, which chronicles how Blowing Rock evolved from a rugged settlement into a premier resort destination. The room is packed with fascinating artifacts, vintage memorabilia, and engaging storyboards detailing the golden age of grand mountain hotels. They even have an interactive section where you can write a postcard to someone, and the museum will mail it out for free! Make sure to stop in the curated gift shop before you leave for some great regional finds. Between the local crafts, history books, and unique souvenirs, I never seem to leave a museum gift shop empty-handed.

This place was closed due to COVID the last time we were in town but we were pleasantly surprised…read morethat they were open on July 4 when we were walking around downtown. This is a cute little museum that has rotating art displays on the bottom floor and a smaller history museum upstairs. We saw a whimsical display of chickens, and another from a collection of art from a school in California. When we were there the upstairs had an exhibit about the annual horse show in town. The museum is free to visit but we gladly left a donation.

The Catawba County Firefighters Museum is a hidden gem in Conover, NC. It is just open on…read moreSaturdays and Sundays as it is run by volunteers. Admission is free but they do take donations. I was warmly greeted when I arrived at the stone building and informed that the museum is the largest firefighters museum in the state. I have been to most of them so I would agree with that. I was given a guided tour of the museum but did have the option to go around on my own and did do that after my tour. But I wasn't going to turn down a guided tour by a retired firefighter 30 years experience. The museum pays tribute to those who lost their lives in service. The bell in the lobby has part of a pole from a fire station in the county. The wood work around it is amazing and the attention to detail is there. The museum is very organized into sections so you can see how each has changed and improved through time. I didn't count how many fire trucks were on display but there are a bunch of older ones that were donated. The museum covers everything about firefighting though from the the ways fires were discovered before the current technology. Alarms used to be on the streets and if pulled it would print out a punch tape with so many holes and they could look up which box it was coming from. Then there were pagers and walkie talkies to phones and there are phones from different times in history. Then there was the setup for what was used like 911 is today. Alarms, sirens and lights that were used are on display. Uniforms used to be like a rain jacket but have come along way since so they are lighter and keep the firefighters cooler. To dress a firefighter with everything needed runs about $4500 from boots to the helmet to pants to a vest to breathing equipment. The first breathing equipment was turned by hand to pump in fresh air so thankfully the machines are more efficient now. A large life net is on display where someone would need to jump into it. There are many ladders on display and the first ones were made of wood. The newer ladders are lighter and easier to maneuver. Fire extinguishers are on display as well as heat detectors and smoke detectors. Sprinklers would start when a part of the mechanism melted. Then various tools used from axes to wrenches ton alarm that would buckets when they used to put fires out by passing the bucket. The arson area of the museum was interesting as each fire is investigated to see where and how it started. So there is evidence of illegal fireworks to bombs made. The classroom area had scrapbooks with articles and photos and then some objects that burned from landline phones to a box of crayons to an alarm that would have melted on the wall. I'm not sure if I was allowed to touch these items but I couldn't resist. There are robots used to teach children fire safety and they will talk to them and explain what to do. I highly recommend a visit to the museum if near Conover.

Beautiful music history and great performances. Enjoyed it while on vacation! If you're in the…read morearea put it on your itinerary.

Great music. Delicious food. Great people. Had a epic evening. Highly recommend to all. Take the…read moreentire family from Grand parents to Grand children and make it a wonderful family memory. You won't regret it.

Nice small historic place to visit. Only $8 for adults. Pretty cool to see what you've only read…read moreabout in history books. Interesting and Amazing to see how life was all that long ago. And they even do reenactments at different times of the year. Our teen enjoyed it.

Located on the grounds of Horn in the West, we had a bit of time before the show began that we…read morewalked thru this Living History Museum. Reanactors and historians talk about everyday life from the mid 1700s to the early 1900s. There are demonstrations on weaving, blacksmithing, candlestick making, and smokehouse cooking, on site. Things were just winding down for the day as we walked thru so we missed all of that, but did get a bit of history lesson in how the phrase: "good night, sleep tight, don't let the bed bugs bite" came about as we went in one log home and listened to a docent tell the origins of this phrase. The general area and buildings seemed a bit run down. Overall a nice little detour, as we walked to the Horn of the West.