Trip motivation
In February 2021, we wanted to take a short outdoors weekend getaway. We decided to take the group to nearby Asheville for hikes, outdoor beer gardens and playing in snow.
Later in May, a friend asked if we wanted a birthday weekend trip and we are always up for a trip! There were dog-friendly patios and hikes. A fun quick trip!
For more on the logistics of driving to Asheville from Nashville and where to stay, see here
Winter Activities-February visit
Our focus on this trip was outdoor hikes. We did two hikes after searching for easy hikes for kids. The first was Bearwallow trail which was a beautiful two mile round trip with beautiful vistas at the summit. We also did a hike on the Blue Ridge mountains to sea trail starting at the art center. The views weren’t as great but this was still a beautiful area.
We were also excited to take a trip to Asheville to play in the snow. We drove about 30 minutes north of the city to a tubing area near some ski trails. At some point we will take our kids skiing but the tubing hills were perfect for our kids. They also enjoyed making snowballs and snow angels!
Early Summer Activities-May
This was a little bit of a lazy weekend with backyard playing and house breakfasts. We went on two big hikes. The first was Catawba Falls (about 30 minutes east of Asheville). This was an easy 3 mile round trip. There were some tricky rocks at the end but overall the hike was pretty easy for the kids (3 and 6) When we went, it was very busy with lots of dogs and kids. I guess everyone googled family hikes and ended up at the same place.
The other hike we did was right near our AirBnB. Collier Nature preserve had a series of short (.5) hikes that connect into a 2 mile hike. It’s more nature than views but up on the upside it was really fun and isolated. No one else was on the trail at all. A little steep in some places but it was the perfect length.
We spent Saturday night brewery hopping in the South Slope area. There were over 18 choices but we just picked a few that were in walking distance to each other.
Here are other fun Asheville activities we thought about but didn’t get the chance to fit it this trip:
Favorite restaurants
Sweeten creek brewery-Breweries are always one (or more) of the stops we make. This brewery had a big open space, live music, heaters and an argentinian food truck serving empanadas and chimichurri fries on the evening we went.
Wicked Weed brewing: Nice heated patio Good burgers and beer selection
Hillman; Another great brewery spot with patio tables, good food and drinks
We also like to grocery shop to save money. We stopped at Ingles for some breakfast goodies and desserts for the house. We may have went a little overboard but it was still cheaper than going out.
My Father’s Pizza: After our waterfall hike, we googled outdoor patio (as we do on all trips in covid times) and found this restaurant that had a large patio, good pizza and salads.
South Slope Brewery Hoping-Twin leaf, Catawba and Wicked Weed Funkatorium. All three places had a great selection of beers, outdoor space and food trucks. We left the pups at home but they were welcome. Always check for what food trucks are on-site as they change often. We brought the kids some glow sticks and they did a fantastic job staying up late with us (Till 11p!). We ate dinner at the Funkatorium which had some nice heaters and yummy burgers but at that point, everyone was just done and tired of pretending like we were in our 20s.
Bearwater Brewing: West of Asheville, this was great as our lunch spot before heading home. Hit all the high points, beer, patio, yummy burgers and pretzels. This might be a routine stop on future visits.
