We grabbed b-fast and were off to Carl Sandburg's home in Flat Rock, NC which is a National Park Historical Site.
His house was filled with his books he acquired during his life. We were told it was a train box car full of books when he moved from MI to NC. The Sandburg home was also a goat farm. It was a very interesting tour. The most I knew about Carl Sandburg was a high school near my Illinois home. I've got more reading to do of Sandburg's works, winner of three Pulitzer Prizes. He wrote poems, songs, illustrated books, children's books and several books on fellow Illinoisian, Abe Lincoln.
Next we visited Chimney Rock State Park and passed through Bat Cave and Chimney Rock towns which are along the Broad River. The Broad River was one of the rivers that overflowed its banks during the 2024 hurricane. This was a sight to see. There were still houses and businesses which had not yet been cleaned up from the effects of Hurricane Helene. We could see furniture and appliances hanging precariously from the buildings. The road was re-routed and you could see the guard rails hanging in the air because there was no ground.
We made it to Chimney Rock State Park which was pretty amazing. We took the elevator up to the top (elevation 2,280 ft) but then continued on to Devil's Head (note the rock formation) to Opera Box ending up at Exclamation Point (elevation 2,480 ft). Once we were done climbing up we walked down Chimney Rock. Really great views of the surrounding area. Lake Lure is a dammed lake with lots of recreation and cute town.
We arrived in Charlotte and stayed at The Duke Mansion hotel! At one point Mr. James Duke, of Duke University, owned the house. Then more rich people owned it. Then it was going to be turned into condos and rich people bought it and saved it. It's now a non-profit hotel and it's lovely. There was a tiny doorway between our room and the bathroom, but a small😉 price to pay to stay in a cool room.
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