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Chimney Rock, Chimney Rock State Park, North Carolina (2022)
Our meeting with friends and their two wonderful rescue dogs this past week in Western North Carolina (NC) included visiting Chimney Rock State Park one morning to enjoy the magnificent views and beautiful weather. The park is located very near Lake Lure, NC and the area is known for filming locations for notable movies, including Dirty Dancing, Last of the Mohicans and Firestarter.
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Elevator Tunnel, Chimney Rock, Chimney Rock State Park, NC (2022)
A tunnel carved from solid rock leads to an elevator that transports one near the top of Chimney Rock. Of course, they also have a trail with 500+ stair steps if you wish to reach the same point. From there, only 42 additional steps will bring you on top of the natural structure.
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Approaching the top of Chimney Rock, Chimney Rock State Park, NC (2022)
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View of Lake Lure and the valley below from the top of Chimney Rock, Chimney Rock State Park, NC (2022)
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View from the “Opera Box” located behind and slightly above the top of Chimney Rock, Chimney Rock State Park, NC (2022)
After an enjoyable morning, we traveled to the shores of Lake Lure for lunch on the dog-friendly lakeside patio of “Legends on the Lake” at Rumbling Bald Resort.
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View of Lake Lure from the lakeside patio of “Legends on the Lake” at Rumbling Bald Resort, Lake Lure, NC (2022)
Wow that is some view. I have never heard of Chimney Rock but from this post it is some place I’d like to experience. I’m hoping you did all 542 steps, my friend. I am who is not comfortable with heights, even though I worked as a flight attendant. I would be standing close to any guardrail.
I barely remember my parents taking my sister and me to Chimney Rock when I was but a child so long ago! LOL This was my first time there since that first childhood visit, so it was mainly new to me. Our friends, who we first met when RV’ing, are from out of state, and this was their first visit.
I don’t care for heights either, so I was cautious and most people, when they got on the top, looked like they were walking on eggshells. :-)
We’ve got a spare room for you only a couple of hours from Chimney Rock if you want to come and see it sometime.
What a beautiful landscape, adorned with such an extraordinary rock. In eastern Germany we have such rock formations in the Elbsandstein (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elbsandsteingebirge#/media/Datei:Skaln%C3%AD_st%C4%9Bna_mezi_Tisou_a_Hol%C3%BDm_vrchem2.JPG), which I’ve not yet visited unfortunately. These are limestone, more round in shape, soft and subject to much faster erosion than the Granite of Chimney Rock, which is just spectacular!
Yes, they do look similar, Markus. I wasn’t aware of this type of terrain in Germany — fascinating! It’s a “heady” experience standing on top of the rock with such views, especially if suffering from mild acrophobia. Thanks for commenting, and I hope you and your family are doing well.
This formation reminds me of one that exists soon after crossing the bridge into Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Its name escapes my aging brain at the moment – I have never been up there. Then, seeing Markus’s comment, makes me wonder how many similar outlooks exist worldwide!
Yes, it’s probably a reasonably common formation but perhaps not many have been made as accessible to the public as Chimney Rock. It’s a popular tourist destination, but our visit was considered off-season…before leaf-peeping and after local schools started.