Welcome to Bear Ridge Cabins!

Greetings. Our family purchased this property a number of years ago as a mountain respite to escape the summer heat and enjoy the best waterfalls, hiking trails, mountain biking, fly fishing and climbing that North Carolina has to offer. We have two 2-bed room, 2 bath 1750 square foot houses located on 65 private acres overlooking a roadless portion of Pisgah National Forest, located only 3 miles from the HW276 entrance to Pisgah National Forest up the Davidson River corridor.

Over the past 20 years, I have explored endless miles of stream, trail and vertical rock as I’ve hiked, biked, climbed, trail-run, backpacked, and fly-fished across the Southern Appalachians in search of that perfect place. The wider I ranged, the more I kept coming back to Transylvania County as the single place that has everything to enjoy all the mountains have to offer. From the Blue Ridge Parkway to the magical waterfalls of Dupont State Forest, from the world class mountain biking trails of Pisgah to the unique geography and botany hidden in the “great green walls” and escarpments within The Gorges State Park, Transylvania County is truly the epicenter of mountain beauty in the Southern Appalachians.

Within a 30 mile radius of our cabins:

· The Blue Ridge Parkway, including access points to the Shining Rock and Middle Prong Wilderness Areas , the Art Loeb Trail, Mt Pisgah area, Devils Courthouse and the highest point on the Parkway at Richland Balsam (elevation 6047 feet). http://www.blueridgeparkway.org/

· DuPont State Park, location of numerous scenes from “Last of Mohicans”, waterfalls and world-class hiking and mountain biking. http://www.dupontforest.com/

· Gorges State Park, which includes countless waterfalls, endangered and rare plant life. http://www.ncwaterfalls.com/jocassee1.htm
http://www.romanticasheville.com/gorges_state_park.htm

· Caesars Head and Jones Gap State Parks, both contiguous to Transylvania County just over the SC state line. http://www.southcarolinaparks.com/park-finder/state-park/1648.aspx http://www.southcarolinaparks.com/park-finder/state-park/962.aspx

· Biltmore Mansion & Grounds. http://www.biltmore.com/

· Dozens of named waterfalls – largest concentration in North Carolina. See the interactive waterfall map at http://www.northcarolinawaterfalls.info/map.html

· Famous “Sliding Rock” on Davidson River. http://www.ncwaterfalls.com/sliding_rock1.htm

· World class rock climbing at Looking Glass, Cedar Rock and Rumbling Bald within 30 minutes, just a few minutes further to Laurel Knob and Whitesides!

· Hundreds of miles of mountain biking trails in Pisgah National Forest, DuPont State Forest, Mills River and Bent Creek Recreational Areas.
· Site of annual multi-stage Pisgah Mountainbike Stage Race
· Numerous road bike events including the annual Assault on the Carolinas, Assault on Mt. Mitchell, Tour De Cashiers. Plus world class mountain and relatively flat river bottom routes throughout the area.
· Location of the legendary “Shut In Ridge Trail Run” , with literally endless trail running opportunities from creekside routes to challenging “gap to summit” classic mountain roller coaster routes.
· Dozens of miles of trout fishing streams, including both the Davidson River and South Mills River, both of which are perennial favorites on “Best Trout Streams In America” type listings
· Access to the Davidson River, South Mills River, and French Broad River systems
· Large concentration of “summer camps” for children, many of which have been in operation over 50 years.
· Longer Trails of National or Regional significance include portions of: the Art Loeb Trail, the Mountain To Sea Trail, and the Foothills Trail.

Average summertime temperatures typically 10 degrees (or more) cooler than the piedmont areas of SC and Georgia.

Originally targeting the Davidson River-Highway 276 corridor as where we wanted to be, we were fortunate to be able to procure the Palmo McCall family property located on Mine Mountain at just under 3000 feet in elevation, located just 3 miles from the entrance to Pisgah. The property offers the juxtaposition between being located just a few minutes from Brevard, yet overlooking a roadless area of Pisgah National Forest that offers something very difficult to find in this day and age - a near absence of man-made lights or noise. There are just very few places around that offer this kind of tranquility. Yet we’re located in the immediate proximity of Brevard, and less than 30 minutes to the unique ambience and “big town” amenities of Asheville.

As active climbers, trail runners, mountain bikers, road bikers, fly fishermen, backpackers and waterfall explorers, we can provide realistic “first hand” advice from the “active user” personal experience standpoint. We have guidebooks, maps and even our own self-developed booklet of “suggested activities” based on our visitors’ degree of interest and level of expertise. We also can provide a programmed GPS with various points of interest identified to help you make the most of your stay with us!