Having a Great Time in Murphy, NC
Joan and I are continuing our summer travels. We left the Florida coast and made it to the beautiful Appalachian Mountains. For the next several weeks we are exploring parts of Western North Carolina and have settled in the quaint town of Murphy, NC. The town is small, but unique and very friendly. The surrounding area has much to offer for short day trips to enjoy hiking, beautiful vineyards, good food, and for those who trust lady luck, a new Harrah’s Casino.
Downtown Murphy, NC
Downtown Murphy, NC is located in the heart of Cherokee County. We are in the foothill and at every turn, we are surrounded by beautiful mountain vistas. The downtown area is small, but quaint. The buildings area mix of older 1900’s architecture to the ‘50’s. Being a fan of this style of architecture, I enjoyed a short walk along the streets to view the buildings and appreciate those who have restored and brought life back into this area.
Downtown Murphy, NC has much to offer. We’ve found a number of very good restaurants to visit from upscale to smaller pub style and in between.
Located on Tennessee St, Bistro 29 offers a more upscale environment and menu. The crab cakes were very good as well as the salmon carbonara and their beef stroganoff. A little on the pricey side, but our experience a Bistro 29 was comparable for the menu, quality of food and service.
We’ve made a couple stops to the Valley River Brewery and Eatery also located on Tennessee St. This small establishment provides tables inside and on the sidewalk. They offer a wide range of locally brewed craft beers, sandwiches and our favorite, their selection of wood fired pizzas. Good food and beers and the owners provided a friendly dinning atmosphere.
Chevelles 66 is another favorite, located on Hiwassee St. Entering we found a large bar in the center, a stage for live music, dining area near the back and a comfortable outside patio at the rear of the building. We enjoyed a sampling from their long list of appetizers, great burgers and wings, and Joan complemented this was the best salmon she has had in a while. Chevelles also has live music on Friday and Saturday nights. A popular stop for the weekend.
Downtown isn’t limited just to a dinning; there are a number of fun shops and small cafes to visit. Also stop in Murphy’s visitor center for information and guides for all the fun things to do in the area.
Vineyards and Tasting Rooms
As we have found throughout this region, there are a number excellent vineyards and wineries to visit and enjoy the wines from this area. Talking to the vineyard owners, they share this area of the Appalachian Mountains offers a soil and climate similar to what is found in Italy’s Piedmont region. I’m not a wine maker not a grape grower, but one thing is for sure, this area has developed a number of unique wines that we thoroughly enjoyed.
Crane Creek Vineyards is located a few short miles across the North Carolina and Georgia state lines. You’ll see in the video below, the views of the vineyard located along the rolling hills with the mountain peaks in the distance offered breath taking views. But this vineyard isn’t just about the location. We found delicious wines to fit anyone’s taste. We enjoyed our tasting, bought a few bottles of their excellent Hellbender red Norton along with a several white wines. Joan and I enjoyed this vineyard so much that we returned bringing a light lunch and enjoyed a bottle of Hellbenders while soaking up the views from the patio.
Out next favorite vineyard stop is Nottely River Valley Vineyard. Here we meet owners and wine makers, Steve and Karen Thompson who welcomed us to this beautiful vineyard sharing the history of the land and their unique wine making process. I must admit, every wine sampled was both unique and delicious allowing us to add a number of bottles to our collection. Open on Friday’s and Saturday’s, this has become a favorite spot to enjoy a Friday afternoon with the views of the vineyard, the wine, and great company from Steve and Karen along with the many visitors who come to experience the wine.
We found Ferncrest Winery in the small town of Andrews just a few miles from the campground. Located in the heart of the small downtown area, we enjoyed the surroundings of the tasting room on this rainy Saturday afternoon and the variety of wines created by these local winemakers.
We still have much to experience in Murphy, NC over the next several weeks. Click on our travel map and zoom into the Murphy, NC area. We places pins to help you find all the fun places we visit. We have a few more unique nature spots see and who knows what else we’ll find. Just another reason why I love RV life!
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