Channel 9 checked with several hotels in Boone and Blowing Rock on Friday and discovered only a handful of rooms were available and many were booked up. In downtown Blowing Rock, most of the parking spaces were filled up and popular overlooks along the Blue Ridge Parkway were busy.
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Fall color in Grandfather Mountain Oct. 30, 2022: A Blue Ridge sunset is seen from Boulder Field Overlook at Milepost 302.4 on the Blue Ridge Parkway last week. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color in Grandfather Mountain Oct. 29, 2022: This photo shows a colorful view from Blowing Rock, looking toward Table Rock and Hawksbill (some of the far left peaks). (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 28, 2022: Sunlight shines through the foliage on a tree and illuminates the remaining fall color in this view looking toward Grandfather from Blowing Rock.
Fall color in the N.C. High Country is now past its peak, but plenty of beautiful trees and landscapes remain. Routes into the area from lower elevations like Lenoir, Morganton, Marion and Wilkesboro also offer nice color. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 27, 2022: A northern red oak and red maple frame a landscape of rolling mountains at this vantage point in Blowing Rock. Fall color in the N.C. High Country is now past its peak, but plenty of beautiful trees and landscapes remain. Routes into the area from lower elevations like Lenoir, Morganton, Marion and Wilkesboro also offer nice color. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 26, 2022: Sunlight illuminates fall color and a Blue Ridge Parkway bridge near the Linville Falls Picnic Area, at Milepost 316.5, in this photo taken earlier this week. The drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway from the Linville Falls area to Spruce Pine is nice right now. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 25, 2022: This photo comes from U.S. 221, along the section of the road that cuts across the flanks of Grandfather Mountain below the Blue Ridge Parkway. Routes into the High Country from lower elevations, such as U.S. 321 between Lenoir and Blowing Rock, N.C. 181 between Morganton and Pineola and U.S. 421 from Wilkesboro to Boone, are offering nice color right now. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 23, 2022: Finding fall color along an area pond or stream adds the special experience of viewing the vibrant colors reflected in the water, a scene that often looks like a painting. This photo was taken at the Linville River. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 22, 2022: Some fall color remains near the Linn Cove Viaduct on the Blue Ridge Parkway, as seen in this image taken from U.S. 221 below. Many leaves have fallen at higher elevations, but there are still nice pockets of autumn’s red, yellow and orange hues. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 19, 2022: Rime ice coats the highest elevations of the NC High Country after a 24-hour stretch of unseasonably cold temperatures. This early-morning view from Linville looks up at Grandfather Mountain’s iconic peaks and Mile High Swinging Bridge. (Sam Kaufman /Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 17, 2022: While thunderstorms and hail in the area last night means that some leaves are now on the ground, there is still beautiful color to be found in the NC High Country. Grandfather is past peak and expecting a chilly week ahead due to a cold snap moving in, but the park continues to provide prime locations for viewing vibrant fall foliage. This photo was taken at Woods Walk -- a picnic area with a gentle walking trail, it’s the perfect place for families and those not looking for a rocky trek. (Leslie Restivo/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color in Little Switzerland Oct. 16, 2022 (WSOC)
Fall color on the Blue Ridge Parkway Oct. 16, 2022 (WSOC)
Fall color on the Blue Ridge Parkway Oct. 16, 2022 (WSOC)
Fall color on the Blue Ridge Parkway Oct. 16, 2022 (WSOC)
Fall color on the Blue Ridge Parkway Oct. 16, 2022 (WSOC)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 16, 2022: One way to enjoy fall color is via a scenic drive with a kaleidoscope of color overhead or grand views of the surrounding landscape in the distance. Some of the best routes right now are from Blowing Rock to Grandfather Mountain via the Blue Ridge Parkway, NC 105 from Boone to Linville and NC 194 from Valle Crucis to Banner Elk. This image was taken along NC 194 near Valle Crucis. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 15, 2022: Color cascades down the flanks of Grandfather Mountain, as illustrated in this view of the Grandfather profile. The famous profile can be spotted from NC 105 South while traveling from Boone toward Linville. This photo was taken from the town of Seven Devils. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 14, 2022: A hiker treks through fall color along the Bridge Trail, the 0.4-mile trail that passes underneath the Mile High Swinging Bridge and connects Black Rock Parking Area and the Top Shop at Grandfather Mountain. (Leslie Restivo/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 13, 2022: This photo shows one of the resident black bears, Carolina, in her scenic home at the Mildred the Bear Animal Habitats at Grandfather Mountain. The trees within the Animal Habitats have developed nice color, as have those along the paved paths in this location of the park. The vantage points from the viewing areas around the bear and elk habitats are especially nice and provide long-range glimpses as the color moves down into lower elevations. (Landis Taylor/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 11, 2022: Today’s photo is from near Split Rock. This location has experienced a lot of color development the last few days and provides colorful walking paths, scenic picnic spots and long-range fall views from overlooks in the Animal Habitats and near Split Rock. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color in Blowing Rock Oct. 10, 2022: This photo was taken from the Blue Ridge Parkway at Green Hill Road in Blowing Rock. (Amanda Lugenbell/Blowing Rock Tourism Development Authority)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 10, 2022: The shadow of the Mile High Swinging Bridge appears on a canvas of fall color at the top of Grandfather Mountain. A long (and continuing span) of sunny days and chilly nights have made the colors progress quickly and the mountainsides beautiful. This is the “peak week” for colors at Grandfather Mountain and surrounding areas. (Leslie Restivo/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color in Blowing Rock Oct. 9, 2022: View at Stack Rock Parking Area on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Blowing Rock. (Lindsay Garcia/Blowing Rock Tourism Development Authority)
Fall color in Blowing Rock Oct. 9, 2022: This image was taken at Stack Rock Parking Area on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Blowing Rock. Grandfather Mountain's Mile High Swinging Bridge can be seen atop the ridge. This overlook is at 4286 feet in elevation, while the bridge itself is, of course, a mile above sea level. (Lindsay Garcia/Blowing Rock Tourism Development Authority)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 9, 2022: The highest elevations are bursting with color and also offer a vantage point of the vibrant upper slopes of the mountain. This view is looking up at Linville Peak from the Conservation Campus, about halfway up the mountain. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 8, 2022: As the upper elevations of Grandfather Mountain are nearing peak, there are also vibrant areas of fall color across the park this weekend. Woods Walk Picnic Area, seen here, provides a colorful overhead canopy at this often-quieter spot lower on the mountain. (Monty Combs/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 7, 2022: The vantage point from the Mile High Swinging Bridge parking area above the mountain’s famous switchbacks provides a nice look at fall color filling the landscape around Grandfather Mountain. In the foreground, blueberry bushes display their gorgeous, deep-red hue. (Monty Combs/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Beech Mountain Oct. 7, 2022: A view of Buckeye Lake from the Beechmtn.com live cam. (Source: Beechmtn.com)
Fall color in Blowing Rock Oct. 7, 2022: This photo was taken at Sims Pond (Milepost 295.9) on the Blue Ridge Parkway. (Source: Blowing Rock Facebook)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 6, 2022: A particularly great spot for seeing fall color right now is outside the Wilson Center for Nature Discovery, looking up at Linville Peak. The sugar maples near the parking area and habitats have turned a mix of orange and red (as illustrated in this photo), and the striped maples on the paths to the habitats are now turning yellow. (Monty Combs/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 5, 2022: Nice pockets of fall color are developing at the highest elevations (above 4,000 feet) in the NC High Country, as illustrated by this image from the Rough Ridge area. An extremely popular spot in fall for long-distance views, the trail to Rough Ridge is located at Milepost 302.8 along the Blue Ridge Parkway near Grandfather Mountain. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
Fall color at Grandfather Mountain Oct. 4, 2022: This photo was taken at the top of Grandfather Mountain, near the Top Shop parking area. Typically a showstopper early in the season, the wild blueberries, also known as huckleberries, have turned a beautiful red at higher elevations. Grandfather Mountain and its immediate area are still mostly green with hints that a nice fall season is ahead of us. The weather this week is picture perfect with sunny days and chilly nights, also great ingredients for fall color progression. (Skip Sickler/Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation)
A recent article by Appalachian State University estimated the economic impact of visitors to western North Carolina during the fall is around $1 billion.
>> In the video at the top of the page, Channel 9′s Dave Faherty talks to visitors and local business owners who are expecting large crowds this weekend.
(Watch below: App State professor talks about fall foliage with Meteorologist John Ahrens)
App State professor talks about fall foliage with Meteorologist John Ahrens App State professor talks about fall foliage
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