Plateau Magazine April-May 2024
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<strong>April</strong> / <strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
Art in the<br />
Afternoon<br />
Trendy fashion<br />
for the spring<br />
America’s<br />
Most<br />
Beautiful<br />
Drive<br />
The Blue Ridge<br />
Parkway awaits<br />
$4.50 US<br />
Book<br />
Review<br />
Roots<br />
& Vine<br />
Sculptor J. Aaron<br />
Alderman<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 1
2 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
CLASSIC. SPIRITED.<br />
CURATED.<br />
A ONE-OF-A-KIND<br />
Destination<br />
Boutique<br />
For Men + Women<br />
HIGHLANDS<br />
TOWN SQUARE<br />
828.526.2262<br />
TJBAILEYS.COM<br />
@TJBAILEYS<br />
CASHIERS<br />
95 HWY 107 S.<br />
828.743.8855<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 1
Mountain Mist<br />
Gallery<br />
Open Monday-Thursday & Saturday<br />
11am-5pm<br />
71 Commons Dr, Cashiers, NC<br />
1 Block North of Hwy 64 on 107 N.<br />
(828) 743-1801<br />
mountainmistgallery.com<br />
< Mother’s Child<br />
by Bill Farnsworth<br />
“Spring Falls”<br />
by Abbe Kalman<br />
“Night Watch” by David Berger<br />
Skip Kohler Lamps<br />
“No Trespassing” by Sarah Sneeden<br />
“Wren We Meet Again”<br />
by Julie Berger<br />
“High Falls” by Roger Bansemer<br />
“Whiteside Sunrise” by David Berger<br />
Butterfield<br />
Pottery<br />
Mangum Pottery<br />
Paintings • Pottery<br />
Sculpture • Jewelry • Wood<br />
and More!<br />
q<br />
2 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Custom Home Building on the<br />
Highlands-Cashiers <strong>Plateau</strong><br />
Blue Star Ranch, Cashiers NC<br />
Highlands & Cashiers, NC<br />
828.743.0724<br />
Located at 17 Old Cashiers Square, Highway 107 South in Cashiers<br />
www.ChinquapinBuilders.com<br />
Scott Westendorf, Owner/General Contractor<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 3
LUXURY.<br />
It’s in the palm of your hand.<br />
THE ENTIRE HIGHLANDS-CASHIERS MLS<br />
IS IN ONE CONVENIENT PLACE:<br />
YOUR PHONE.<br />
SCAN FOR LUXURY LISTINGS AND MORE.<br />
828.526.1717 | MEADOWSMOUNTAINREALTY.COM<br />
488 MAIN STREET, HIGHLANDS NC | 2334 CASHIERS ROAD, HIGHLANDS NC | 196 BURNS STREET, CASHIERS NC<br />
©<strong>2024</strong> BHH Affiliates, LLC. An independently owned and operated franchisee of BHH Affiliates, LLC. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices<br />
symbol are registered service marks of Columbia Insurance Company, a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate. Equal Housing Opportunity.<br />
4 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
A home is one of the most important assets that most people<br />
will ever buy. Homes are also where memories are made and you<br />
want to work with someone you can<br />
TRUST.<br />
WARREN BUFFETT<br />
Chairman and CEO,<br />
Berkshire Hathaway, INC.<br />
828.526.1717 | MEADOWSMOUNTAINREALTY.COM<br />
488 MAIN STREET, HIGHLANDS NC | 2334 CASHIERS ROAD, HIGHLANDS NC | 196 BURNS STREET, CASHIERS NC<br />
©<strong>2024</strong> BHH Affiliates, LLC. An independently owned and operated franchisee of BHH Affiliates, LLC. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices<br />
symbol are registered service marks of Columbia Insurance Company, a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate. Equal Housing Opportunity.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 5
6 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
ARCHITECTURE<br />
CONSTRUCTION<br />
INTERIORS
Architect: PLATT | Builder: Sadlon & Associates | Photographer: Tzu Chen<br />
PLATT.US<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 7
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
64<br />
America’s Most<br />
Beautiful Drive<br />
The Blue Ridge Parkway awaits<br />
By Brendon Voelker<br />
68<br />
Family Fun on the <strong>Plateau</strong><br />
Endless opportunities for adventure<br />
By Anne Duchac<br />
76<br />
A True Family Getaway<br />
Togetherness and adventure<br />
High Hampton Style<br />
By Brittany Conley<br />
72<br />
Unlikely Thru-Hiker<br />
Following the footsteps of<br />
Derick Lugo, Mr. Fabulous<br />
By Carla Beck<br />
8 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
custom home builders<br />
Integrated design-build firm specializing in rustic charm and refined mountain living<br />
160 Down Ridge Road, Cashiers | 540-798-4205 | charlie@crawfordconstruction.com<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 9
<strong>April</strong> / <strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
$4.50 US<br />
Departments » <strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
17<br />
Buzz<br />
17 Written in the Mountains<br />
Our modern story<br />
18 Events<br />
Your guide to planning<br />
your social calendar<br />
28 Envision<br />
Leadership Cashiers seeks to<br />
inform, connect and engage<br />
30 Songwriter’s<br />
The beloved Nashville<br />
Songwriter’s Round is<br />
just around the corner<br />
32 Fundraiser<br />
Cashiers Valley Real Estate<br />
to host Kentucky Derby<br />
celebration to benefit The<br />
Village Green<br />
34 Book Review<br />
A review of Rednecks<br />
by Taylor Brown<br />
36 Local Chatter<br />
Our modern story as narrated<br />
by the geological record<br />
38 Newsmaker<br />
Mountain Retreat and Learning<br />
Center is a sanctuary<br />
for all people and the earth<br />
40 Art Seen<br />
J. Aaron Alderman unveils<br />
substructures with steel<br />
and imagination<br />
43 Live Music<br />
The vibrant music<br />
scene in Highlands<br />
46 Southern Drawl<br />
Josh Bryson and the mission<br />
of the Highlands Cashiers<br />
Health Foundation<br />
10 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
49 85<br />
Well Styled<br />
49 Spring Fashion<br />
Updating the wardrobe<br />
or spring<br />
50 Nature<br />
What artificial intelligence<br />
cannot offer<br />
52 Wellness<br />
A vacation for the<br />
mind, body and soul<br />
55 Conservation<br />
Chemist Spirits, Old Edwards<br />
Inn and HCLT invite<br />
you to sip Discovery Gin<br />
58 Fashion<br />
Trendy spring fashion<br />
on an afternoon of<br />
art at The Bascom<br />
43<br />
Food+Drink<br />
85 Cara Cara Panna Cotta<br />
A delectable tasting<br />
menu at Roots & Vine<br />
86 Dining Review<br />
Roots & Vine offers an<br />
experience like no other<br />
88 Chef Profile<br />
Chef Rodney Smith’s<br />
creations nourish the soul<br />
90 In the Kitchen<br />
Fresh spring delights<br />
96 Restaurant Guide<br />
The best spots for eating<br />
and drinking<br />
102<br />
Fundamentals<br />
14 Reader Services<br />
16 Editor's Letter<br />
100 Real Estate Forum<br />
104 The Last Reflection<br />
<strong>April</strong> / <strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
Mountain Retreat & Learning Center • Discovery Gin • A Getaway High Hampton Style The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
Travel<br />
102 Journey Through the<br />
World's Largest Free<br />
Museum Complex<br />
Washington D.C.'s<br />
informative attractions<br />
Art in the<br />
Afternoon<br />
Trendy fashion<br />
for the spring<br />
America’s<br />
Most<br />
Beautiful<br />
Drive<br />
The Blue Ridge<br />
Parkway awaits<br />
Book<br />
Review<br />
Roots<br />
& Vine<br />
Sculptor J. Aaron<br />
Alderman<br />
ON THE COVER »<br />
Trendy spring fashion on<br />
an afternoon of art at The<br />
Bascom<br />
Photo by Carole Shepardson
137 N. Highway 107, Cashiers, NC . 828-200-9573<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 11
Live • Relax • Explore<br />
CEO & Publisher<br />
Robert Sweeney<br />
Executive Director of Operations<br />
Emily Sweeney<br />
■ ■ ■<br />
52 Hidden Grouse Lane | New Construction<br />
THE DIVIDE<br />
AT BALD ROCK<br />
Rejuvenate. Relax. Unplug. Escape.<br />
The Divide at Bald Rock is the haven you are searching for, whether it<br />
is a lot with large mountain views, or the cozy, intimate setting available<br />
in Creekside Village. At The Divide, you will explore the beauty and<br />
tranquility of the Blue Ridge Mountains, hike or bike local trails,<br />
discover a waterfall, and free your mind and spirit.<br />
The Divide at Bald Rock<br />
20 Continental Drive | Sapphire NC<br />
Ph: 800.228.0431 | www.dividenc.com<br />
Managing Editor<br />
Lisa Gray Youngblood<br />
■ ■ ■<br />
Account Executive<br />
Sales: 843-822-0119<br />
Art Director<br />
Carl Turner<br />
Travel Director<br />
Katie McElveen<br />
Graphic Designers<br />
Andrea Spaeth<br />
Shanna Thomson<br />
Carl Turner<br />
Contributing Writers<br />
Carla Beck, Brittany Conley, Lynn Dillard,<br />
Anne Duchac, Sarah Jennings, Kristin<br />
Landfield, Marianne Leek, Dawn Liles,<br />
Katie McElveen, Anne Wolfe Postic,<br />
Serenity Richards, F.B. Robinson, Julie<br />
Schott, Brendon Voelker, Kay West<br />
Photographers<br />
Kristin Landfield, Carole Shepardson,<br />
Gil Stose, Brendon Voelker<br />
■ ■ ■<br />
Open air Pavilion<br />
12 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
Creekside Village at The Divide<br />
Managed Equestrian Center<br />
Customer Service<br />
Local Office: (404) 226-7567<br />
Corporate Office/Subscriptions:<br />
(843) 856-2532<br />
<strong>Plateau</strong> <strong>Magazine</strong> (Vol. 5, No. 2) is<br />
published 6 times per year by DueSouth<br />
Publishing, LLC. The entire contents of<br />
this publication are fully protected and<br />
may not be reproduced, in whole or part,<br />
without written permission. We are not<br />
responsible for loss of unsolicited materials.<br />
Copyright © <strong>2024</strong>. All rights reserved.<br />
SUBSCRIPTION price is $24.95 per year.
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<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 13
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NC<br />
CASHIERS, • POINT CANOE 32 - SINCE 1992 -<br />
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LIGHTING ART WORK LINENS ACCESSORIES<br />
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WWW.RUSTICKS.COM • 828.743.3172<br />
Opening M-F <strong>April</strong> 10-5pm 10th • for Sat <strong>2024</strong> 10:30-5pm<br />
Season<br />
14 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
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Full Remodeling<br />
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Granite<br />
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Design | Build Studio and Cabinetry, Tile, and Granite Showrooms<br />
2251, 2220 N. 4th Street, and 2543 Cashiers Rd, Highlands, NC 28741<br />
828-482-4424 blackrockdb.com<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 15
from the editor<br />
<strong>April</strong> / <strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
Mountain Retreat & Learning Center • Discovery Gin • A Getaway High Hampton Style The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
<strong>April</strong> / <strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
Art in the<br />
Afternoon<br />
Trendy fashion<br />
for the spring<br />
America’s<br />
Most<br />
Beautiful<br />
Drive<br />
The Blue Ridge<br />
Parkway awaits<br />
$4.50 US<br />
Book<br />
Review<br />
Roots<br />
& Vine<br />
Sculptor J. Aaron<br />
Alderman<br />
Give the gift<br />
that lasts<br />
all year long...<br />
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Subscribe Online Today<br />
at The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
or scan the QR Code<br />
to order.<br />
Are you ready for spring?<br />
As we await spring, a fickle, peek-a-boo<br />
season in our mountains, it is an excellent<br />
time to consider what we might need to<br />
take care of before the plateau—and we—<br />
are busy and bustling once again. If you<br />
are like me, you may have ignored those<br />
pesky reminders that something in your<br />
body, mind or soul is amiss, but ignoring<br />
what we need never works in the end.<br />
That which stays in the dark grows, often<br />
beyond recognition.<br />
If health is foremost on your mind, you<br />
may want to consider a wellness retreat.<br />
We have several day spas on the plateau,<br />
all of which offer restorative services, but<br />
if you need a little more, consider a weeklong<br />
retreat at either Hilton Head Health<br />
or Skyterra, both of which offer a multitude<br />
of services and programs designed<br />
for specific needs.<br />
Perhaps your nutrition could use some<br />
attention. We know that what we put in<br />
our bodies matters. But food is more than<br />
that. Chef Rodney of the Ruffed Grouse<br />
Tavern likened food to a story, a metaphor<br />
that resonated deeply with me. So<br />
much goes into a meal. The harvesting of<br />
the ingredients, the selection, the preparation,<br />
the cooking, the serving, the eating—each<br />
step its own chapter in a book<br />
that is about far more than consumption.<br />
Food is about nourishing the body and<br />
the soul. With all the locally sourced and<br />
organic options on the plateau, why not<br />
nourish yourself in ways that promote<br />
health and well-being? A simple transi-<br />
tion in the way we think about food can<br />
change our relationship with it entirely.<br />
If joy is what you are after, take advantage<br />
of the many musical offerings on the<br />
plateau, or for a more decadent pleasure,<br />
try Roots & Vine, a Highlands newcomer<br />
that offers an experience like none other<br />
on the plateau. Not only are the ingredients<br />
organic and sustainably foraged, but<br />
the cuisine is innovative and exciting and<br />
will indulge your senses in ways that are<br />
certain to surprise you. How lucky we are<br />
to have such an exquisite offering in our<br />
mountain hamlet.<br />
Finally, connected to our personal wellbeing<br />
is the well-being of our mountains.<br />
We have made the plateau our home for a<br />
reason, and we want to protect these lands<br />
for generations to come. To learn more<br />
about how we can do so, read our story<br />
on the Mountain Retreat and Learning<br />
Center and its many offerings, as well as<br />
our story on the surprising collaboration<br />
between the Highlands-Cashiers Land<br />
Trust, Old Edwards Inn and Chemist Spirits,<br />
a female-led distillery that has won<br />
national and international recognition for<br />
its innovative and perfectly blended spirits.<br />
Our new editor will take over for the<br />
next issue, and our readers are in for a<br />
real treat. I won’t spill the beans, but it’s<br />
going to be a fun ride! Until then, enjoy<br />
spring and all its splendor.<br />
Lisa Gray Youngblood<br />
Managing Editor<br />
editor@theplateaumag.com<br />
We welcome your comments. Please send<br />
us your feedback or story ideas by emailing<br />
us at editor@theplateaumag.com<br />
Find Us Online!<br />
Visit us on our website at<br />
theplateaumag.com<br />
facebook.com/plateaumag<br />
instagram.com/plateaumag<br />
16 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Your Local Rundown on News and Culture<br />
Written in the<br />
Mountains<br />
Our modern story as narrated<br />
by the geological record<br />
See page 36<br />
PHOTO KRISTIN LANDFIELD<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 17
Shop<br />
Our Line-up of<br />
Top Brands<br />
Free People<br />
Mother Denim<br />
Z Supply<br />
AG<br />
Citizens<br />
Shu Shop<br />
Vintage Havana<br />
Joe’s<br />
Hudson<br />
Steve Madden<br />
Diba True<br />
Matisse<br />
In Business for 37 Seasons!<br />
355 Main Street, Highlands NC | 828-526-4660<br />
Bear Shadow Music Festival<br />
<strong>May</strong> 11 & 12<br />
Do not miss out on this one-of-a-kind festival. In its fourth year, Bear Shadow<br />
has become one of the most celebrated events on the plateau. Ticket prices vary<br />
depending on the type and number of activities you are interested in. To see<br />
all offerings or to purchase tickets, visit www.BearShadowNC.com. Multiple<br />
events, including yoga flow classes and hikes, will be held throughout Highlands.<br />
The Base Camp, which includes the main musical stage, is at Winfield Farm, 250<br />
Winfield Farm Road, Scaly Mountain, 10 minutes from downtown Highlands.<br />
Event Calendar<br />
Looking to fill your social calendar? We've got the rundown<br />
on what to do and explore.<br />
Happy Holidays and<br />
Feliz Navidad!<br />
Redefining<br />
High-Class<br />
Quality<br />
Quality Work . Fully Insured<br />
House Maintenance<br />
Call for your free consultation today!<br />
Ricardo: 706-982-9768<br />
Ricky: 828-200-6694<br />
moralespaintingandservices@gmail.com<br />
18 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
ON-GOING<br />
The Bascom’s Annual Emergence Exhibit<br />
Running until <strong>April</strong> 27<br />
Come enjoy The Bascom’s<br />
Southeastern Studio<br />
Programs Annual<br />
Emergence Exhibit. One<br />
of the Bascom’s most<br />
highly anticipated and<br />
visited annual exhibits<br />
featuring the artwork<br />
of emerging artists and<br />
their instructors from colleges and universities<br />
all over the southeast. The Bascom, 323<br />
Franklin Road, Highlands, NC. Free.<br />
Walker Tuft’s Satellites and Salamanders<br />
IV Exhibit<br />
Running to <strong>May</strong> 11<br />
Come to The Bascom to enjoy this thoughtprovoking<br />
exhibit. Tuft explores the intricate<br />
tapestry of their legacies as a queer<br />
white artist from the southern US. This<br />
exhibition turns a pair of satellites that<br />
measure the earth’s melting ice into an escape<br />
pod, climbing wall and vertical forest.<br />
Orbiting around these satellites, cut text<br />
works, sculptures and films invite visitors<br />
to consider our interconnected histories and<br />
cultures. The Bascom, 323 Franklin Road,<br />
Highlands, NC. Free.<br />
Happ’s Place Concert Series<br />
Every Friday and Saturday night<br />
Enjoy dinner and live music every Friday<br />
and Saturday night at Happ’s Place. Local<br />
legends and far away surprises to delight all<br />
while eating the delectable cuisine. These<br />
promise to be nights to remember. Happ’s<br />
Place, 5914 State Route 107, Glenville.<br />
Highlander Mountain House<br />
Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays<br />
Wine Wednesdays—Enjoy ½ off select bottles<br />
of wine with purchase of an entrée.
UNRIVALED<br />
#1 in the Carolinas<br />
Since 1957<br />
161 Old Still Road<br />
Sapphire, NC 28774 | $1,995,000 | MLS #103674 | Kelly Ramsay & Dan Doughty | 828.556.1252<br />
826 Highlands Cove Drive<br />
Highlands, NC 28741 | $2,090,000 | MLS #102099 | Darlene Conley | 404.427.1448<br />
HIGHLANDS-DOWNTOWN OFFICE | 828.526.8784<br />
CASHIERS OFFICE | 800.210.0321<br />
SAPPHIRE OFFICE | 828.507.3165<br />
WILDCAT CLIFFS OFFICE | 828.526.4525<br />
Scan to see our luxury listings<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 19
Locals receive 20% off. Burgers & Blues<br />
every Thursday--$20 burgers and select<br />
draft beer with live blues music. Bluegrass<br />
Brunch every Sunday, 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.<br />
Locals receive 20% off. Highlander Mountain<br />
House, 270 Main Street, Highlands.<br />
Bluegrass Wednesdays with Nitrograss<br />
at The Ugly Dog Pub<br />
Every Wednesday night<br />
Come and enjoy dinner and music with beloved<br />
bluegrass band Nitrograss. Seating<br />
starts at 6 p.m. Music from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.<br />
Ugly Dog Pub, 294 S. 4th Street, Highlands.<br />
Thursday Night Trivia at The High Dive<br />
Every Thursday night<br />
Test your trivia skills at Highland’s funkiest<br />
watering hole. The High Dive opens at 4 p.m.<br />
Trivia begins at 7:30 p.m. Thirsty Thursday<br />
includes pints for $3.50 and pitchers for $12.<br />
The High Dive, 476 Carolina Way, Highlands.<br />
7:30 to 10:00 p.m.<br />
Appalachian Writer’s Roundtable<br />
Every 3rd Thursday<br />
Are you a writer, poet, journalist or just<br />
someone who likes putting words on paper?<br />
Then this group is for you! Meetings in the<br />
Regional Room at the iconic City Lights<br />
Bookstore in Sylva. Enjoy a new discussion<br />
topic every month on the craft and art of<br />
writing, covering character creation, plot,<br />
setting, grammar, syntax and much more.<br />
Sponsored by the North Carolina Writer’s<br />
Network. 5 p.m. City Lights Bookstore, 3 E.<br />
Jackson Street, Sylva, North Carolina. Free<br />
and open to public.<br />
Mah Jongg Games at the Albert Carlton-<br />
Cashiers Community Library<br />
Every Monday<br />
Come join a friendly game of Mah Jongg every<br />
Monday at the Cashiers Library. Players<br />
of all levels welcome. Sponsored by Friends<br />
of the Library. For more information, call<br />
or text Charlene at 828.508.1404. Albert<br />
Carlton-Cashiers Community Library, 249<br />
Frank Allen Road, Cashiers. Mondays at 1<br />
p.m. Open and free to the public although a<br />
$2 donation is appreciated.<br />
Locally Grown on the Green Farmers<br />
Market<br />
Every Wednesday, beginning <strong>May</strong> 1<br />
Choose the food less traveled at The Green<br />
Market, Cashiers’ farm stand market for local<br />
growers. Fill your basket with naturally<br />
raised meat and dairy items, fresh eggs,<br />
20 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 21
jams, pickles, freshly baked bread, delicious<br />
granola and fresh cut flowers. Wednesdays,<br />
11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Village Green Commons,<br />
160 Frank Allen Road, Cashiers. Free.<br />
Spring <strong>2024</strong><br />
follow us<br />
on instagram<br />
@witsend65<br />
828.526.3160<br />
382 Main Street<br />
Highlands, NC<br />
Highland’s Farmer’s Market<br />
Every Saturday, beginning in <strong>April</strong><br />
Come enjoy a morning at the market. Select<br />
from a wide array of fresh produce, seafood,<br />
baked goods, plants and other locally sourced<br />
products. 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Kelsey-<br />
Hutchinson Founders Park, 411 Pine Street,<br />
Highlands. Free.<br />
APRIL<br />
Great Art on Screen (GAOS) at the<br />
Highlands PAC<br />
<strong>April</strong> 5<br />
Titan: The Empire of Color. Winning over<br />
popes and emperors with his iconic revolutionary<br />
works, Titan became an icon of the<br />
Renaissance. For more information or to<br />
purchase tickets, visit highlandsperformingarts.com.<br />
Show at 5:30 p.m. Tickets $15.<br />
22 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
Come Shop<br />
Exquisite Italian<br />
Luxury Bedding<br />
and Linens<br />
1473 Hwy 64 W<br />
Cashiers, NC<br />
828-743-5900 • 828-380-0473<br />
dflenz@nctv.com<br />
Lenz & LuxuryGifts<br />
Linens<br />
Open Fri-Sat, 10-5pm<br />
or by appointment<br />
Salon Series at Highlander Mountain House<br />
& The Ruffed Grouse Tavern: Lillie Mae<br />
<strong>April</strong> 18<br />
Come enjoy Lillie Mae,<br />
beloved master musician<br />
and tunesmith. This<br />
riveting solo acoustic<br />
performance in the cozy<br />
Ruffed Grouse Tavern is certain to delight. Music<br />
will begin around 9 p.m., but you should grab<br />
your seat no later than 8:30 p.m. as space fills<br />
quickly. To purchase tickets, visit www.highlandermountainhouse.com.<br />
Highlander Mountain<br />
House, 270 Main Street, Highlands. Tickets $25.<br />
MET Opera at the Highlands PAC<br />
<strong>April</strong> 20 & <strong>May</strong> 11<br />
La Rodine (<strong>April</strong> 20) Puccini’s bittersweet love<br />
story makes a rare MET appearance with soprano<br />
Angel Blue starring as the French courtesan<br />
Magda, opposite tenor Jonathan Tetelman.<br />
Madame Butterfly (<strong>May</strong> 11) Three extraordinary<br />
sopranos—Aleksandra Kurzak,<br />
Eleonora Buratto and Asmik Grigorian (in<br />
her highly anticipated MET debut)—tackle<br />
the demanding role of<br />
Cio-Cio-San, the loyal<br />
geisha at the heart of<br />
Puccini’s devastating<br />
tragedy. For more information<br />
or to purchase<br />
tickets, visit highlandsperformingarts.com.<br />
Shows at 12:55 p.m.<br />
Highlands Performing Arts Center, 507<br />
Chestnut Street, Highlands. Tickets $22.
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 23
Build Something Beautiful<br />
From Cozy Cabins to Luxury Estates, we Help You<br />
Build the Home of Your Dreams<br />
87 Chestnut Square,<br />
Cashiers . 828-743-5864<br />
lehotskyandsons.com<br />
Custom Homes | Remodels & Renovations | Additions<br />
Wisdom As Winter Sets In<br />
The Orchard Sessions Concert Series at<br />
The Farm at Old Edwards<br />
<strong>April</strong> 18 and <strong>May</strong> 30<br />
Mike Kennebrew (<strong>April</strong> 18): Settle into the<br />
magical setting of The Orchard to enjoy acclaimed<br />
singer-songwriter Mike Kinnebrew.<br />
A local favorite, Kinnebrew creates passionate<br />
stories through song and will leave you<br />
wanting more; Highbeams (<strong>May</strong> 30): This<br />
incredibly talented trio of brothers and best<br />
friends have lit up stages across the southeast.<br />
Come enjoy the emotive, high-energy<br />
performances of Adam Pendlington, Ian<br />
Pendlington and Stephen Quinn. The Farm<br />
at Old Edwards, 336 Arnold Road, Highlands.<br />
6 to 8 p.m. Tickets available for purchase<br />
online at www.oldedwardshospitality.<br />
com/orchardsessions. $25 for hotel guests/<br />
members & $40 for the public. Light bites<br />
and cash bar available.<br />
Climate Justice Summit at The Mountain<br />
Retreat & Learning Center<br />
<strong>April</strong> 28 to <strong>May</strong> 3<br />
Be part of the solution by attending the<br />
Climate Justice Summit at the Mountain<br />
Retreat & Learning Center in Scaly Mountain,<br />
just 15 minutes west of downtown<br />
Highlands. A diverse set of leaders, activists,<br />
artists, educators and facilitators in the areas<br />
of environmental justice, climate science,<br />
public policy and community organizing will<br />
lead discussions. MRLC is located at 3872<br />
Dillard Road, Highlands. To learn more, visit<br />
their website at www.themountainrlc.org.<br />
MAY<br />
See my<br />
artwork at<br />
Jeanie Edwards<br />
Gallery,<br />
Highlands<br />
pennypollockart.com • pennywave@yahoo.com • 805-798-1418<br />
MOJO & The Bayou Gypsies<br />
<strong>May</strong> 4<br />
A vibrant musical ensemble hailing from the<br />
cultural heartland of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana.<br />
At the helm is MOJO, a charismatic<br />
and talented musician deeply rooted in the<br />
rich musical traditions of the region. The<br />
band’s sonic tapestry is a captivating fusion<br />
of zydeco, Cajun and their own unique musical<br />
flair. For more information or to purchase<br />
tickets, visit highlandsperformingarts.com.<br />
Show at 7:30 p.m. Highlands Performing<br />
Arts Center, 507 Chestnut Street, Highlands.<br />
Tickets go on sale to non-members <strong>April</strong> 1.<br />
Always a Bridesmaid at the PAC<br />
<strong>May</strong> 9 – 17, various days & times<br />
In this hilarious comedic romp, four friends<br />
have sworn to keep the promise they made<br />
on the night of their Senior Prom: to be in<br />
each other’s weddings—no matter what.<br />
More than 30 years later, these Southern<br />
friends-for-life are still making “the long<br />
24 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Listen to Your Dreams and We'll Help You Build Them<br />
Creating exceptional homes and providing a professional, enjoyable<br />
building experience for our clients.<br />
Custom Homes<br />
Renovations<br />
12 Canoe Point, Cashiers NC | 828-547-0777 | harriscustombuildersnc.com<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 25
Johnny Was Clothing • eNewton Jewelry<br />
Barefoot Dreams • Dear John Denim<br />
Gifts and Barware<br />
3 Chestnut Square, Cashiers, NC<br />
828-743-1111 @ajonescompany<br />
We are located directly across the street<br />
from the Cashiers Farmers Market<br />
26 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
Handmade Confections<br />
Truffles • Poppy Popcorn<br />
JellyBelly Jellybeans<br />
3 Chestnut Square, Cashiers, NC<br />
828-743-1111 @ajonescompany<br />
We are located directly across the street from the<br />
Cashiers Farmers Market inside A Jones Company<br />
walk” for each other, determined to honor<br />
that vow. Written by Jones Hope Wooten. For<br />
more information or to purchase tickets, visit<br />
highlandsperformingarts.com. Highlands<br />
Performing Arts Center, 507 Chestnut Street,<br />
Highlands. Tickets $25/person or $35/table.<br />
Bear Shadow Music Festival<br />
<strong>May</strong> 11 & 12<br />
Do not miss out on this one-of-a-kind festival.<br />
In its fourth year, Bear Shadow has<br />
become one of the most celebrated events on<br />
the plateau. Ticket prices vary depending<br />
on the type and number of activities you are<br />
interested in. To see all offerings or to purchase<br />
tickets, visit www.BearShadowNC.<br />
com. Multiple events, including yoga flow<br />
classes and hikes, will be held throughout<br />
Highlands. The Base Camp, which includes<br />
the main musical stage, is at Winfield Farm,<br />
250 Winfield Farm Road, Scaly Mountain,<br />
10 minutes from downtown Highlands.<br />
Friday Night Live<br />
Fridays through October beginning<br />
<strong>May</strong> 17<br />
Presented by Highlands Chamber of Commerce<br />
and Visit Highlands, NC, these<br />
concerts are not to be missed. Bring your<br />
favorite lawn chair and a picnic basket and<br />
enjoy traditional mountain music. 5/17-Silly<br />
Ridge and 5/24-The McLain Family Band.<br />
6 to 8:30 p.m. Highlands Town Square on<br />
Main Street in downtown Highlands. Free.<br />
Saturdays on Pine Concert Series<br />
Saturdays through October beginning<br />
<strong>May</strong> 18<br />
Presented by Highlands Chamber of Commerce<br />
and Visit Highlands, NC, these concerts are not<br />
to be missed. Bring a lawn chair, your favorite<br />
treats, and your dancing shoes! On <strong>May</strong> 18, the<br />
series will feature Continental Divide. 6 p.m. to<br />
8:30 p.m. Kelsey-Hutchinson Founders Park,<br />
411 Pine Street, Highlands. Free.<br />
Groovin on the Green<br />
<strong>May</strong> 24 & 31<br />
Cashiers Groovin on the Green is back! On<br />
<strong>May</strong> 24: Come enjoy the Darren Nicholson<br />
Band. These Grammy-award-winning Appalachian<br />
musicians will surely keep you<br />
on your feet! On <strong>May</strong> 31: Come enjoy Kevin<br />
Daniel and The Bottom Line, a radio and TV<br />
ready band with enough darkness to please<br />
fans of Jason Isbell and Langhorne Slim.<br />
Admission is free with the opportunity to<br />
purchase a 10X10 tent space (tent provided)<br />
to support The Village Green. The Village<br />
Green, 160 Frank Allen Road, Cashiers. 6 to<br />
8:30 p.m. Free and open to the public. P
KENTUCKY DERBY PARTY<br />
Benefitting The Village Green<br />
SATURDAY, MAY 4 | 5 - 9P<br />
Lewis Hall, The Village Green<br />
Saddle up for an unforgettable evening of Derby fashion, dinner, drinks, music,<br />
games and thrilling horse racing action. We will also be broadcasting the<br />
Kentucky Derby live during the evening and taking your bets. You could walk<br />
away with some fabulous prizes! Did we mention mint juleps? Our sponsor,<br />
Woodinville Whiskey Co. will be serving up some delicious derby cocktails.<br />
We hope to see you there!<br />
Scan to purchase tickets. Also available at<br />
cashiersvalley.com and 45 Chestnut Square<br />
Cashiers, North Carolina.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 27
envision<br />
For a Better Tomorrow<br />
Leadership Cashiers seeks to inform, connect and engage<br />
NOW IN ITS SIXTH YEAR,<br />
with over a hundred graduates,<br />
the Leadership Cashiers<br />
Program continues to INFORM,<br />
CONNECT & ENGAGE individuals<br />
seeking greater community involvement.<br />
As the program sponsor, the<br />
Cashiers Area Chamber of Commerce invites<br />
businesses and organizations to join<br />
the existing generous sponsors from the<br />
business, non-profit, and educational sectors<br />
in supporting Leadership Cashiers.<br />
There are three levels of sponsorship<br />
from which to choose, Session Sponsor,<br />
Community Champion Sponsor, and Investor.<br />
Your sponsorship can be made online<br />
to the Cashiers Area Legacy Fund https://<br />
leadershipcashiers.org/sponsor/131-sponsorship-details.<br />
Leadership Cashiers is a<br />
501(c)(3) non-profit organization serving as<br />
an educational and charitable foundation to<br />
finance and endow public works programs<br />
and projects in the Cashiers area. To learn<br />
more about sponsorship, contact Leader-<br />
Leadership Cashiers Class 2023 Graduates.<br />
Tom Neal, CEO and CNO of Highlands<br />
Cashiers Hospital, addresses Leadership<br />
Cashiers Class 2023.<br />
28 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
By SERENITY RICHARDS<br />
ship Cashiers at info@leadershipcashiers.<br />
org or call at 828-743-5191.<br />
Benefits of sponsorship can include business/organization<br />
promotion throughout<br />
the class, invitations to Leadership Cashiers<br />
functions, business/organization logos<br />
prominently displayed in class materials,<br />
invitation to speak at Leadership Cashiers<br />
classes, and tuition for one individual from<br />
the business/organization.<br />
In 2017 a task force of the Cashiers Area<br />
Chamber and Vision Cashiers developed<br />
Leadership Cashiers. The curriculum is<br />
based on a model used by many cities/<br />
areas across the country. By taking an<br />
intensive look into the issues affecting the<br />
area, Leadership Cashiers prepares and<br />
motivates participants to offer quality community<br />
leadership.<br />
The vision of Leadership Cashiers is to<br />
build a cadre of area leaders with the necessary<br />
tools and connectivity for making a<br />
meaningful positive impact on our community,<br />
as well as insight on our future challenges<br />
Jason Kimenker<br />
Executive Director<br />
of Friends of<br />
Panthertown,<br />
addresses Leadership<br />
Cashiers Class 2023 at<br />
the Cashiers Historical<br />
Society.<br />
Tara Tecce, Program Director at Camp<br />
Merrie Woode, addresses Leadership<br />
Cashiers Class 2023.<br />
– fulfilling its mission to inform, connect,<br />
and engage individuals by studying civic issues,<br />
building strong working relationships,<br />
and motivating participants to provide enlightened,<br />
dynamic community leadership.<br />
The program is designed for leaders who<br />
want to significantly and positively impact<br />
the Cashiers community. The program is<br />
open to Cashiers Area residents and stakeholders<br />
(both permanent and seasonal)<br />
with a class size of 25 to 30 participants<br />
representing a wide range of diversity. Participant<br />
criteria include a strong Cashiers<br />
orientation, community stakeholder, demonstrated<br />
elements of leadership, and community<br />
civic involvement and commitment<br />
in the Cashiers area.<br />
Monthly sessions are typically held on<br />
one Tuesday a month, <strong>May</strong> through December,<br />
with a two-day opening retreat. In the<br />
class, personal leadership skills are developed<br />
through academic and teambuilding<br />
exercises led by Angela Owen, Program<br />
Director of Truventure Enterprises. Owen<br />
is also executive director and course instructor<br />
of Vision Transylvania, a similar<br />
program in Brevard, NC.<br />
As one recent program graduate said,<br />
"Leadership Cashiers has allowed me to<br />
grow individually as a representative of<br />
Cashiers to positively impact area communities.<br />
The connections I have made will<br />
last and shape my life for years to come."<br />
The Leadership Cashiers Alumni Network<br />
was founded by the inaugural class as a way<br />
to support the long-term sustainability of the<br />
Leadership Cashiers program. All current<br />
and future program graduates are invited<br />
and encouraged to actively participate with<br />
the LC Alumni Network through various<br />
opportunities, including task force and leadership<br />
roles, networking opportunities, program<br />
engagement as guest speakers, sponsors, and<br />
more. Annual graduate investments of $75<br />
help support the Network's goals.<br />
While applications for the <strong>2024</strong> class are<br />
now closed, individuals interested in applying<br />
for the 2025 class may apply later this<br />
year. For more details, go to https://leadershipcashiers.org/apply.<br />
P
Barbara Jamison<br />
Art Highlands Gallery, Highlands NC<br />
The Bascom, Highlands NC<br />
Atelier Maison, Cashiers NC<br />
Westside Market, Greenville SC<br />
704-942-1503 / BarbaraJamisonFineArt.com<br />
Josephine’s Emporium, Cashiers NC<br />
40 Burns Street, at the Crossroads<br />
480-414-5255 / lauramoserart.com<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 29
songwriters<br />
Music for Education<br />
The beloved Nashville Songwriters’ Round is just around the corner<br />
By LYNN DILLARD<br />
THE NASHVILLE SONGWRITERS’ ROUND IS A SIGNATURE EVENT IN CASHIERS FEATURING RIVERS<br />
Rutherford and friends. This year's event will be held on August 24 at the Keller Pavilllon of the Boys & Girls Club of the<br />
<strong>Plateau</strong> and will include a catered dinner. Tickets are available beginning in July at the Cashiers Area Chamber of Commerce.<br />
Rutherford landed his first cut with American legends Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Kris Kristofferson<br />
(aka The Highwaymen). What followed were a dozen No. 1 hits, multiple Grammys, CMA and ACM nominations, and over 20<br />
ASCAP awards, including the coveted awards for Country Music Song of The Year and Country Music Songwriter of The Year.<br />
Rivers brings with him Kelley Lovelace,<br />
George Turnbull, and Tim James, all<br />
highly acclaimed country music songwriters.<br />
Kelley Lovelace, best known for his<br />
extensive work with Brad Paisley, is credited<br />
with numerous No. 1 Hits, including<br />
“The World,” “Ticks,” “Online,” “I’m still a<br />
Guy,” and “He Didn’t Have to Be,” which<br />
was awarded Song of the Year by the TNN<br />
Music Awards and Music Row <strong>Magazine</strong>.<br />
Dave Turnbull, also a songwriter of the<br />
highest caliber, has multiple No. 1 songs<br />
to his credit, including “The Boys of Fall”<br />
(Kenny Chesney), “Lucky Man” (Montgomery<br />
Gentry), “Old Alabama” (Brad<br />
Paisley), and “Anything Like Me” (Brad<br />
Paisley), as well as hits such as “Outskirts<br />
of Heaven” (Craig Campbell), “Arlington”<br />
(Trace Adkins), and “The More I Drink”<br />
(Blake Shelton). Tim James’ numerous<br />
credits include Toby Keith's "My List,"<br />
which was a No. 1 single on the country<br />
music charts in 2002. Other songs that<br />
he co-wrote include "Good People" by<br />
Jeff Bates, "It's Good to Be Us" by Bucky<br />
Covington, "Love Like Crazy" by Lee<br />
Brice, and "Give It All We Got Tonight" by<br />
George Strait.<br />
The Songwriters’ Round is the primary<br />
fundraiser sponsored by the Blue<br />
Ridge School Education Foundation. As<br />
a 501(c)3 charitable organization, the<br />
Foundation’s mission is to provide supplemental<br />
resources for Blue Ridge School<br />
to expand educational experiences for<br />
children and staff in order to achieve and<br />
maintain a superior educational environment.<br />
Resources that the Jackson County<br />
Board of Education is sometimes unable to<br />
fully provide include advanced technology,<br />
experiential learning, and exciting extracurricular<br />
opportunities. The Foundation<br />
fully funded the new 3-year-old preschool<br />
two years ago and also awards scholarships<br />
to graduating seniors.<br />
There are eleven members of the Board:<br />
Susan Waller, former teacher and Interim<br />
President; Chuck Self, Realtor, Vice President;<br />
Leigh Foss, Southwestern Community<br />
College liaison and computer facilitator,<br />
Secretary; Chad Boswell, Owner of The Orchard<br />
Restaurant, Treasurer; Cindy Fowler,<br />
Parent Volunteer; Alison Moody, Realtor;<br />
Nancy Albers, Volunteer; Bridget Henson<br />
from The Old Edwards Inn; Eric Moody,<br />
CPA; Myra Bumgarner from Mountain<br />
Top Golf and Country Club, and Dr. Lynn<br />
Dillard, elected member of the Jackson<br />
County Board of Education. All members<br />
of the Board have a vested interest in making<br />
Blue Ridge School and Blue Ridge Early<br />
College the best they can be. Blue Ridge<br />
School was the highest performing school<br />
in Jackson County for the 2022-23 academic<br />
year, exceeding all growth standards. P<br />
30 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
Rivers Rutherford, award-winning songwriter,<br />
landed his first cut with American legends<br />
Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings,<br />
and Kris Kristofferson (aka The Highwaymen).<br />
What followed were a dozen No. 1 hits, multiple<br />
Grammys, CMA and ACM nominations, and over<br />
20 ASCAP awards, including the coveted awards<br />
for Country Music Song of The Year and Country<br />
Music Songwriter of The Year.
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 31
fundraiser<br />
Don Your Best Hat<br />
Cashiers Valley Real Estate to host a<br />
Kentucky Derby Celebration to benefit The Village Green<br />
By SARAH JENNINGS<br />
SADDLE UP FOR AN UNFORgettable<br />
Kentucky Derby celebration<br />
benefiting The Village Green on<br />
Saturday, <strong>May</strong> 4, <strong>2024</strong>, hosted<br />
by Cashiers Valley Real Estate.<br />
This inaugural event will be an evening<br />
of Derby fashion, dinner, drinks, music,<br />
games and thrilling horse racing action at<br />
Lewis Hall on the campus of The Village<br />
Green in Cashiers.<br />
The idea of the event was sparked by two<br />
of the Cashiers Valley Real Estate partners,<br />
Philip Bradley and Thomas Platt,<br />
who were disappointed there weren’t more<br />
events in the area dedicated to the enjoyment<br />
of the Kentucky Derby. “As a small<br />
group of us were watching the race at a<br />
local restaurant and sipping mint juleps a<br />
few years ago, we devised a plan to make<br />
an event out of the Derby and support one<br />
of our most important local organizations,”<br />
Bradley remarked. Soon they teamed up<br />
with The Village Green and started the<br />
planning process.<br />
The Kentucky Derby is celebrating a major<br />
milestone this year with the 150th running<br />
of the “fastest 2 minutes” in sports,<br />
which felt like the perfect time to kick off<br />
the event. In addition to viewing the live<br />
broadcast of the race, The Library Kitchen<br />
and Bar will be providing dinner, and<br />
Whiteside Brewing, Woodinville Whiskey<br />
Co. and Chandon will be providing the<br />
beverages with traditional mint juleps<br />
as a highlight. Classic Kentucky Derby<br />
favorites like Hot Browns and Derby pie<br />
will be served to enhance the authenticity<br />
of the evening, and guests are encouraged<br />
to dress to impress. Prizes will be awarded<br />
for Best Hat and Best Dressed in addition<br />
to the winners of the “Cashiers Derby,” a<br />
dice game of chance that will get the entire<br />
crowd involved as large wood horse<br />
figurines are moved across a game board<br />
toward the finish line. All the while, Lilac<br />
Wine, a musical trio from Atlanta, will be<br />
putting their spin on classic songs.<br />
Support of local non-profit organizations<br />
is a core tenant of Cashiers Valley<br />
Real Estate and having a fun time is a<br />
great byproduct. “We felt this would be the<br />
perfect way to kick off the season,” said<br />
Platt. “What better way to welcome spring<br />
than with some fun, games, good food and<br />
cocktails.”<br />
Proceeds from this event will benefit The<br />
Village Green, the 13.2-acre park located<br />
in the heart of Cashiers. Executive Director<br />
for The Village Green, Ashlie Mitchell,<br />
commented, "The Village Green is honored<br />
that Cashiers Valley Real Estate has<br />
chosen us as the recipient of the proceeds<br />
from this new Cashiers event! The Village<br />
Green's mission is to preserve and enhance<br />
the land for public use, and we are so<br />
pleased that Cashiers Valley Real Estate<br />
chose to support our mission with such a<br />
unique and exciting fundraising event! We<br />
can't wait to get our Derby on here at The<br />
Village Green, and we hope to see a packed<br />
house on <strong>May</strong> 4th!" P<br />
For more information, call 828-743-8900.<br />
Tickets can be purchased at<br />
cashiersvalley.com or at their office at<br />
45 Chestnut Square in Cashiers.<br />
PHOTO BRENT HOFACKER<br />
32 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Unique & Unusual Ladies’ Apparel & Accessories<br />
Open 7 Days a Week<br />
Monday-Saturday 10am-6pm<br />
Sunday 12noon-6pm<br />
Sportswear | Dressy | After Five | Shoes | Jewelry<br />
Town Square, 343 Main Street<br />
Highlands, NC<br />
828.526.3608 | www.spoiledrotten2.com<br />
SPOILED ROTTEN<br />
Spoiled Rotten<br />
Celebrating 35 Years in Highlands<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 33
ook review<br />
History is Curated by Those in Power<br />
A review of Rednecks by Taylor Brown<br />
By MARIANNE LEEK<br />
“You load 16 tons, what do you get?<br />
Another day older and deeper in debt<br />
St. Peter, don't you call me 'cause I can't go<br />
I owe my soul to the company store.”<br />
–“16 Tons,” sung by Tennessee Ernie Ford<br />
IN TAYLOR BROWN’S EXPLOSIVE<br />
new novel Rednecks, he describes<br />
coal like he’s writing poetry. “[T]his<br />
black rock, born from thin seams<br />
of primeval wetlands compressed<br />
beneath the earth’s surface and lumped<br />
into the stockings of wicked children<br />
on Christmas Eve, was the dark heart<br />
of every business in this country. The<br />
lifeblood of commerce. It was the very ink<br />
that kept ledgers in the black. But it was<br />
combustible, too, ready to burst into flame.”<br />
It will inarguably be one of the best pieces<br />
of historical fiction you’ll read in <strong>2024</strong>.<br />
Brown is not the first to write about the<br />
coal industry, but he is one of the only ones<br />
to write a fictionalized account about an<br />
all-but-forgotten 1921 battle that almost<br />
started a second Civil War. This battle<br />
paved the way for change when in 1933<br />
Author<br />
Taylor Brown<br />
President Roosevelt signed the National<br />
Industrial Recovery Act into law, which<br />
later led to the National Labor Relations<br />
Act of 1935, finally guaranteeing American<br />
workers the right to unionize.<br />
In 1955 Tennessee Ernie Ford sang<br />
about the plight of the coal miner in “16<br />
Tons,” presenting the hopeless reality of<br />
those toiling in the mines, shackled to the<br />
coal company by insurmountable debt. Tyler<br />
Childers wrote about the same dismal<br />
circumstances in his 2011 song “Coal.”<br />
Songs such as “Which Side Are You On”<br />
by Florence Reece, “31 Depression Blues”<br />
by Ed Sturgill, “Black Dust Fever” sung by<br />
the Wildwood Valley Boys, and “Dyin’ to<br />
Make a Living” sung by Foddershock - all<br />
detailed the seedy underbelly of the early<br />
coal industry. And in Upton Sinclair’s 1917<br />
novel King Coal, protagonist Hal Warner<br />
illuminated the poor working conditions<br />
faced by miners at the dawn of the twentieth<br />
century.<br />
Meticulously researched and crafted,<br />
Rednecks is a no-holds-barred creative retelling<br />
of the Battle of Blair Mountain, the<br />
largest battle on United States soil since the<br />
Civil War between those representing and<br />
fighting for the coal industry and an uprising<br />
of unionized coal miners - but, likely,<br />
you’ve never heard of it. Brown provides<br />
riveting historical context of the events<br />
leading up to the infamous five-day conflict<br />
and the battle itself, which included over<br />
a million rounds being fired, bombs being<br />
dropped on American soil, and Americans<br />
fighting Americans in trench warfare.<br />
The term redneck has always had negative<br />
connotations, synonymous with the<br />
uneducated, rural, working class, but<br />
PHOTO TRISTAN BAM ARGO<br />
34 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Brown’s latest work sheds light on a more<br />
profound meaning rooted in the Battle of<br />
Blair Mountain. “They are a hundred men<br />
at first, then two hundred. Five hundred.<br />
One thousand. An army of men rising from<br />
the earth, clad in blue-bib overalls. They<br />
hail from Italy and Poland, the Deep South<br />
and Appalachia. One in five is Black. They<br />
wear red bandannas knotted around their<br />
necks, as if their throats have already been<br />
cut. People will call them primitives and<br />
hillbillies, anarchists and insurrectionists.<br />
They will call them Rednecks.”<br />
Rednecks, described by Brown as “a<br />
skeleton of historical fact fleshed with imagination,”<br />
weaves a tapestry of both real<br />
and fictitious characters. Beloved former<br />
schoolteacher turned union organizer and<br />
activist, Mary G. Harris Jones, “Mother<br />
Jones,” figures prominently into the narrative,<br />
denouncing racism and white<br />
supremacy, while seeking justice and better<br />
conditions for mine workers and their<br />
families during her lifetime. Smilin’ Sid<br />
Hatfield, the chief of police in Matewan,<br />
West Virginia, shows up in Rednecks as a<br />
pivotal figure in the West Virginia Mine<br />
Wars whose actions catalyzed the 1920<br />
Matewan Massacre, eventually leading to<br />
the Battle of Blair Mountain a year later.<br />
Brown pens to life the fiercely protective<br />
Mother Jones who, after experiencing the<br />
devastating loss of her husband and children,<br />
dedicated herself to defending the<br />
inalienable rights and civil liberties promised<br />
to all citizens as part of “The Great<br />
Experiment” that is America by figuratively<br />
adopting coal workers and communities<br />
across the South. In an effort to save her<br />
“boys,” Mother Jones marched to Washington,<br />
and in 1921 in an impassioned plea<br />
to the Secretary of War, she detailed the<br />
deplorable conditions of West Virginia coal<br />
miners and the swift repercussions faced<br />
by those who chose to unionize, likening<br />
the coal industry to tyranny.<br />
Brown includes her words, “I wonder<br />
what you might call a system in which a<br />
skilled labor force the size of a small nation<br />
are made to work in conditions more<br />
dangerous than armed service in the Great<br />
War, are paid not in legal tender but company<br />
scrip, housed not in personal homes<br />
but company camps, where they and their<br />
families are given zero compensation for<br />
job-related injury or death, and any drive<br />
for better wages or safer conditions is backbroken<br />
by a private army of company spies<br />
and hired gun thugs who regularly throw<br />
families out into the cold and beat fathers<br />
with brass knuckles, who have fired machine<br />
guns into tent colonies and done coldblooded<br />
murder in broad daylight on the<br />
front steps of an American courthouse….<br />
If not tyranny, what would you call such<br />
a system, Mr. Secretary? Certainly you<br />
wouldn’t call it American.”<br />
But it’s Brown’s richly drawn imagined<br />
characters that add a layer of poetic beauty<br />
and complexity to this novel. Doctor Domit<br />
Muhanna, affectionately referred to as<br />
“Doc Moo,” was inspired by Brown’s greatgrandfather,<br />
Doctor Domit Simon Spire - a<br />
man of humble beginnings with whom he<br />
shared a deep connection and a birthday,<br />
and who emigrated alone in 1889 at the<br />
age of fourteen from Lebanon to the United<br />
States. He graduated from the Kentucky<br />
School of Medicine and became a beloved<br />
rural doctor and medical examiner, much<br />
like Doc Moo. Moo is a loving husband and<br />
father, a compassionate, empathetic man of<br />
principle, who frequently whispers prayers<br />
of protection in his native language to God<br />
for his patients, family, and community.<br />
Prayers that serve as a gentle nod to the<br />
author’s family heritage.<br />
The scenes between the fictitious doctor<br />
and his son Musa, inspired by Brown’s<br />
maternal grandmother’s baby brother, are<br />
poignantly painted, as is the relationship<br />
between Moo, Musa, and the matriarch<br />
of the miners, Miss Beulah or “Mama<br />
B.” Mama B. is the grandmother of “Big<br />
Frank,” a Black miner and leader of the<br />
uprising willing to die if it will force the<br />
industry to provide humane conditions for<br />
its workers.<br />
The “possibles bag,” a tote bag handsewn<br />
and gifted to Musa by Miss Beulah to<br />
hold all the treasures he finds while exploring<br />
the woods, serves as a beautifully symbolic<br />
thread of hope throughout the novel,<br />
and a conversation between Doc Moo’s boy<br />
Musa and Big Frank about the parable of<br />
the mustard seed is one of the most exquisitely<br />
written scenes in the book.<br />
In a conversation with Musa, Doc Moo<br />
thoughtfully considers who or what was culpable<br />
for the violence. “The coal operators,<br />
the politicians, the state police, the county<br />
vigilantes. Money became influence, influence<br />
became policy, policy became force.<br />
And the miners were no saints, meeting<br />
violence with violence.” And therein lies<br />
the unplumbed lesson of Brown’s novel.<br />
After the Battle of Blair Mountain,<br />
Boyden Sparkes was commissioned to<br />
document it for the New York Tribune but<br />
found his work being censored. Bad Tony<br />
Gaujot explains it to Sparkes with the<br />
old adage, “‘Tis the victor who writes the<br />
history.” And perhaps that’s what readers<br />
should take away from Brown’s latest work<br />
- history - the history that is taught - is curated<br />
by those in power.<br />
Rednecks should be required reading in<br />
high schools and colleges, not only in the<br />
South but across America, as a cautionary<br />
tale about the dangers of denying human<br />
beings their humanity and our responsibility<br />
to unequivocally speak up and stand up<br />
when that happens. Martin Luther King,<br />
Jr. explained it well. “A man dies when he<br />
refuses to stand up for that which is right.<br />
A man dies when he refuses to stand up for<br />
justice. A man dies when he refuses to take<br />
a stand for that which is true.”<br />
If you like the writing of Ron Rash, David<br />
Joy, Wiley Cash, and Michael Farris<br />
Smith, and you’ve not discovered Taylor<br />
Brown, you’re missing out. Brown is the<br />
author of six novels, including the critically<br />
acclaimed Wingwalkers, Pride of Eden,<br />
and Gods of Howl Mountain, and a collection<br />
of short stories entitled In the Season<br />
of Blood & Gold. He has been described by<br />
Ron Rash as one of the “finest writers of<br />
his generation.” His writing can also be<br />
found within the pages of Garden & Gun,<br />
and if you are a fan of Jason Isbell, check<br />
out his exceptional interview with the musician<br />
and actor recently featured in The<br />
Bitter Southerner. P<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 35
local chatter<br />
Seen from a meadowy<br />
garden, Whiteside<br />
Mountain's hulking<br />
majesty presides<br />
over the surrounding<br />
valleys.<br />
Written in the Mountains<br />
Our modern story as narrated by the geological record<br />
Story and photos by KRISTIN LANDFIELD<br />
“The Mountain sat upon the Plain<br />
In his tremendous Chair –<br />
His observation omnifold,<br />
His inquest everywhere –<br />
The Seasons played around his knees,<br />
Like Children round a sire –<br />
Grandfather of the Days is He,<br />
Of Dawn, the Ancestor.”<br />
–“The Mountain sat upon the Plain” by Emily Dickinson<br />
THE HISTORY OF THE<br />
Southern Appalachians is<br />
written in the physical history<br />
of the mountains themselves.<br />
Life as we know it—right now,<br />
in <strong>2024</strong>—operates in direct descendance<br />
from the geological legacy of our present<br />
surrounds. This specific geology is the<br />
antecedent to our soil; our soil is the<br />
36 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
progenitor of our flora; and our flora then<br />
powerhouses the ecosystem, converting<br />
light to sugar and sugar to energy. This<br />
energy, borne of one of the most botanically<br />
diverse regions in the world, fuels all<br />
subsequent organisms in the food chain, all<br />
the way up to an elegant plate at Lonesome<br />
Valley’s Canyon Kitchen. The story of life<br />
in these mountains is inextricably tied to<br />
the history of the mountains themselves.<br />
Just outside Highlands, NC, Whiteside<br />
Mountain presides over the landscape at<br />
4930 feet in elevation, majestic and impenetrable.<br />
For the thousands of people<br />
who summit Whiteside Mountain every<br />
year, there is a sign that reads “What’s a<br />
Pluton?” with a brief explanation of how<br />
cooling magma hardened deep under the
surface of the Earth. Millennia of erosion<br />
revealed the monolith known today<br />
as Whiteside Mountain. Geologists believe<br />
this local pluton is one of the oldest<br />
mountains on earth, somewhere between<br />
390-460 million years old, and once stood<br />
as high as the Himalayas. Over eons, erosion<br />
from these grand mountains filled the<br />
adjacent plains, raising the foothills and<br />
flatlands up above sea level. What now<br />
remains is an ancient formation we know<br />
as Whiteside Mountain (Sa’nigila’gi to the<br />
Cherokee), standing as a sage keeper of<br />
this region’s history.<br />
The section of the Blue Ridge mountains<br />
captured by the Highlands-Cashiers<br />
<strong>Plateau</strong> has been dubbed the Yosemite of<br />
the East, presenting the tallest monolithic<br />
faces this side of the Rockies. Particularly<br />
spectacular is Whiteside Mountain, a striking<br />
figure along the Eastern Continental<br />
Divide with its precipitous glistening cliffs.<br />
Each October and February, the “Shadow<br />
of the Bear” still draws reams of visitors to<br />
a pull-off on Highway 64 to witness an incredible<br />
phenomenon. On sunny evenings<br />
during those several weeks, just as the sun<br />
begins to set, a shadow representation of a<br />
bear emerges to blanket the rocky terrain<br />
of the mountain’s southeastern vantage<br />
point. This arresting shadow returns perennially,<br />
a symbol of the abiding natural<br />
history of the region.<br />
Whiteside has endured infinite changes.<br />
The arrival of modern humans is just a<br />
shred of time in its long history. Its hulking<br />
grandeur sparked the imagination<br />
of the region’s earliest inhabitants. This<br />
pluton continues to call adventurers, its<br />
daunting cliffs presenting an irresistible<br />
challenge for the intrepid rock climber. In<br />
1950, engineers developed a road to ascend<br />
Whiteside, thus offering wider access to<br />
the spectacular peak. By the 1980s, preservationists<br />
in western North Carolina<br />
led reintroduction and protection efforts<br />
for the Peregrine Falcon. As the fastest<br />
member of the animal kingdom, Peregrine<br />
Falcons represent a symbol of strength and<br />
victory; however, disturbances in breeding<br />
sites contributed to near extinction in the<br />
region. From February through June on<br />
the Blue Ridge Escarpment, sections of local<br />
climbing routes are closed, safeguarding<br />
these revered denizens.<br />
The tectonic forces that forged Whiteside’s<br />
monumental form likewise cleaved<br />
the many fissures from which this region’s<br />
Resilient native<br />
vegetation populate<br />
Whiteside's rugged<br />
outcrops, worn down<br />
from eons of erosion.<br />
These species evolved<br />
to sustain the harsh<br />
winds and acidic<br />
minerals characteristic<br />
of the ancient pluton.<br />
abundant springs and waterfalls flow.<br />
This mineral-rich water supports one<br />
of the most biodiverse regions on earth.<br />
Botanical opulence in the Blue Ridge is<br />
a circumstance of Pleistocene glaciation,<br />
during which the glaciers’ southward advance<br />
did not quite reach the area, making<br />
it a biological refuge from ice. High elevation<br />
allowed northern species to remain<br />
and comingle with southern life forms,<br />
creating an ecological sweet spot. Botanizing<br />
the region in the late 18th century,<br />
Philadelphia naturalist William Bartram<br />
As a consequence of glaciation,<br />
the Southern Appalachians support<br />
tremendous ecological diversity, including<br />
this Clematis viorna.<br />
celebrated its rugged vistas: “I beheld with<br />
rapture and astonishment, a sublimely<br />
awful scene of power and magnificence, a<br />
world of mountains piled upon mountains.”<br />
Today at Whiteside Mountain, layers of<br />
indigenous ferns, moss and wildflowers<br />
accompany hikers throughout the trail.<br />
Along the wind-whipped southern escarpments,<br />
Hartwig’s Locust and ruddy Vaccinium<br />
cling to the rock crevices, while<br />
dainty pink Corydalis emerge from adjacent<br />
cracks. With wonder and poetry, Bartram<br />
depicted the geological circumstances<br />
that render this region sublime. When<br />
he documented the exquisite ecology, he<br />
did so in the context of these astounding<br />
geological phenomena: the former is<br />
a consequence of the latter. Here on the<br />
plateau, the history of a Catawba Rhododendron,<br />
of each student at the Highlands<br />
Biological Station, of the talented chefs<br />
offering regional cuisine, of the Joe Webb<br />
chink cabins, or of an orchestra playing<br />
on Cashiers’ Village Green is created by<br />
these mountains and supported by them<br />
as well. Herein lies our inflection point:<br />
after 400 million years we scurry up Whiteside’s<br />
trail, relatively miniscule in time<br />
and place, but disproportionately mighty<br />
with power. Let us tread lightly. P<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 37
newsmaker<br />
Embracing and Protecting<br />
Nature<br />
Mountain Retreat & Learning Center is a sanctuary for all people and the earth<br />
By BRENDON VOELKER<br />
JUST WEST OF DOWNTOWN<br />
Highlands lies an unsuspecting,<br />
serene, and idyllic mountain<br />
retreat with a connection to<br />
nature that is evident at even the<br />
slightest glance. In an area once inhabited<br />
by the ancestors of the Eastern Band of<br />
Cherokee Indians (EBCI), the mountain<br />
peak serves as a sacred and spiritual<br />
Sun rising over Blue Valley.<br />
landmark overlooking Blue Valley and<br />
what we now know as South Carolina, just<br />
due south. A designated Wilderness Study<br />
Area, indigenous cultures once filled the<br />
valley as they lived as one with the land.<br />
Even to this day, members of the EBCI<br />
visit to pay respects to this sacred space,<br />
which is now The Mountain Retreat and<br />
Learning Center (MRLC).<br />
For just over two years, Steph Anderson<br />
has served as the Executive Director of<br />
MRLC. As she explained, “of the property’s<br />
100 or so acres, 82 are protected in perpetuity<br />
through a conservation easement with the<br />
Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust (HCLT),<br />
and when you pass through the main entrance,<br />
you can see what a gift that is.”<br />
With so much of the property protected,<br />
the retreat maintains a purity often missing<br />
in today’s world, the kind of purity<br />
that makes you want to take a deep breath<br />
and stay for a while. At the base of the<br />
property lies a working organic farm used<br />
for programs as well as providing food<br />
for the kitchen. The property is also host<br />
to several dozen dwarf white oaks, some<br />
600 years old at last count, all of which<br />
are protected under the HCLT easement.<br />
Because of these trees, MRLC is part of<br />
the National Old-Growth Forest Network,<br />
a designation given to only four other areas<br />
in North Carolina. At the top of the<br />
mountain, resting amongst the rhododendron<br />
thickets that fill the understory,<br />
lies the main retreat center. With each<br />
section complementing the other, MRLC<br />
seems almost other-worldly, which only<br />
highlights its mission to make the world<br />
a better place through social justice, climate<br />
justice, and youth programs oriented<br />
towards inclusivity and respect.<br />
MRLC’s history is rooted in the faith of the<br />
Unitarian Universalist, though no particular<br />
faith is imposed upon its visitors. With<br />
inherent worth and dignity as core values,<br />
it’s a place where people of all religions will<br />
feel welcome, respected and safe. According<br />
to their website, “They searched for somewhere<br />
they could deepen their engagement<br />
with their congregational communities and<br />
retreat with their families. When they found<br />
Little Scaly Mountain, they knew they discovered<br />
the right place and understood what<br />
it could become for so many.”<br />
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE MOUNTAIN RETREAT AND LEARNING CENTER<br />
38 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
As a registered 501(c)(3), MRLC hosts<br />
programs year-round, and the public is<br />
encouraged to attend, visit, volunteer or<br />
donate. With nearly 150 beds, programs<br />
and reservations run throughout the year<br />
for events such as weddings, family reunions,<br />
corporate outings, wellness retreats,<br />
youth programs, and virtually any other<br />
like-minded group.<br />
For those considering MRLC for an<br />
event or retreat, the working farm is a<br />
particular draw, offering a connection to<br />
nature that is immediate and profound. “I<br />
love to connect guests with the food grown<br />
on-site,” says Anderson. “The dining staff<br />
works fervently with the farm to promote<br />
healthy and eco-friendly options that also<br />
promote energy conservation, composting,<br />
low food waste and regenerative farming.<br />
The public is welcome to come and volunteer<br />
in the farm, which offers a direct and<br />
meaningful connection to nature.” For<br />
those who are interested in purchasing<br />
food grown at the farm, products are also<br />
available at the farmers markets in both<br />
Cashiers and Highlands.<br />
As for larger events, current campaigns<br />
include an upcoming Climate Justice Summit<br />
running from <strong>April</strong> 28 to <strong>May</strong> 3, where<br />
a diverse set of leaders, activists, artists,<br />
educators and facilitators in the areas of<br />
environmental justice, climate science,<br />
public policy and community organizing<br />
will discuss global climate change and offer<br />
pragmatic responses. With most events<br />
open to the public, everyone is encouraged<br />
to attend. MRLC also offers summer<br />
camps for children, a program that has<br />
been active for 43 years.<br />
Thanks to HCLT and its care for the<br />
land, MRLC will be saved forever and<br />
will continue to be a learning center and<br />
a place to connect with nature. MRLC is<br />
located at 3872 Dillard Rd, Highlands,<br />
NC 28741, about 15 minutes west of downtown<br />
as you head toward Georgia.<br />
To learn more or to make a donation, visit<br />
www.themountainrlc.org or give them a<br />
call at (828) 526-5838. P<br />
PHOTOS BRENDON VOELKER; MRLC<br />
(Above, clockwise): Highlands-Cashiers<br />
Land Trust educating staff on conservation<br />
easements. HIghlands-Cashiers Land Trust<br />
has worked closely with the Mountain<br />
Retreat and Learning Center on issues of<br />
environmental conservation; Youth learning<br />
about food and farming at the on-site<br />
organic farm at the Mountain Retreat and<br />
Learning Center.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 39
art seen<br />
Drawing in Space<br />
J. Aaron Alderman unveils substructures with steel and imagination<br />
By F. B. ROBINSON<br />
EVER SINCE CHILDHOOD,<br />
while his peers fantasized their<br />
destinies as astronauts, doctors,<br />
or devil-may-care adventurers,<br />
J. Aaron Alderman knew what<br />
he wanted to be—an artist. After graduating<br />
from Brevard College, he continued working<br />
in wood and considered himself a painter,<br />
but a painter with the problem of having<br />
nowhere to paint. Once out of school, he<br />
worked with coppersmith J. T. Cooper. It<br />
was during his time with Cooper that Aaron<br />
learned how to use an oxy/acetylene torch to<br />
manipulate copper, at which point an ember<br />
that would eventually erupt into a full-blown<br />
fire began to glow in his artist’s mind.<br />
While working with Cooper, Aaron used<br />
copper wire to create abstract figures. He<br />
began to think, “If I can do this with cooper,<br />
maybe I can do it with steel.” This was the<br />
infancy of what Aaron now calls his process<br />
of “drawing in space.” Although Aaron readily<br />
credits Cooper for unveiling this artistic<br />
path, Cooper humbly refuses the honor.<br />
Twenty years ago, Aaron completed his<br />
first commissioned piece: the large elk on the<br />
Transylvania County courthouse lawn. Initially,<br />
he struggled to bring this work to life.<br />
His plan was to use the round-stock steel as<br />
the substructure and then to “skin it” with<br />
steel plate or other textures. He explained<br />
that he was more or less “making it up” as he<br />
went along. As he continued the work, Aaron<br />
began to appreciate the form the substructure<br />
made. He decided that the substructure<br />
would become the actual piece of art, and the<br />
J. Aaron Alderman signature style was born.<br />
From the elk, Aaron continued to explore<br />
this concept along with others. He would<br />
sketch a figure on paper, then repeat that<br />
line with steel—"drawing in space” as he<br />
calls it. He would repeat the process, continuing<br />
to follow the lines he had created<br />
until the form he envisioned emerged.<br />
True artists envision things most of us cannot.<br />
Such is the case for Aaron’s Horses from<br />
Horseshoes. While working at Camp Carolina<br />
in Brevard, on a day when the local farrier<br />
had reshoed several of the horses, Aaron<br />
noticed the small pile of spent shoes left behind.<br />
He began to play with the idea of using<br />
them. He contacted a farrier and asked if he<br />
had any spent shoes. There were plenty, and<br />
Aaron was told to get as many as he wanted.<br />
He loaded the trunk of his Honda Civic twice.<br />
The result is five horses that “graze” on the<br />
lawn of the Transylvania Arts Council.<br />
One of Aaron’s most unique commissions<br />
took place in Pietroasa, Romania. Pietroasa<br />
is located at the foothills of the Carpathian<br />
Mountains, in the Transylvania region, and<br />
thusly is the sister city to Brevard as they<br />
share that Transylvania connection. Aaron<br />
(Left): J. Aaron Alderman with his sculpture Day<br />
Dreams (Right, clockwise): Sculptures Horses from<br />
Horseshoes and Elk on the courthouse lawn in<br />
Brevard. The Elk watches everyone who comes and<br />
goes; J. Aaron Alderman in Pietroasa, Romania,<br />
which is in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains<br />
in the Transylvania region. Alderman considers<br />
his stay in Romania significant to his artistic<br />
journey, and he gifted his sculptures to the city<br />
in gratitude for the experience and hospitality.<br />
Every afternoon, students from the school next<br />
door would come check on his progress.<br />
PHOTOS J. AARON ALDERMAN<br />
40 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 41
art seen<br />
spent two months living with an older couple<br />
who did not speak English—nor did Aaron<br />
speak Romanian. The couple cooked and<br />
took care of him while he worked. His space<br />
was located in an old school, next to the new<br />
school. On breaks between classes, Aaron<br />
recounted how the kids would flood into the<br />
small studio to check on his progress. Again,<br />
there was little shared language. It was a<br />
deeply concentrated time in his artistic journey<br />
that he equates to a graduate study. He<br />
ate breakfast, went to work, ate lunch, went<br />
to work, ate dinner, went work, then went to<br />
bed. His art was all-encompassing. Upon<br />
completion, Aaron gifted his sculptures<br />
to the city of Pietroasa in gratitude for his<br />
unique and meaningful artistic experience.<br />
When I met up with Aaron, he was working<br />
on a piece that had been requested for<br />
a show in Springfield, Missouri. The city<br />
had requested the piece after seeing similar<br />
work Aaron had recently created. It<br />
is a unique “bottom to top” perspective of<br />
an anchor, a rope, and a large person in a<br />
small boat. Bass Pro Shop is slated to sponsor<br />
the piece.<br />
He explained that most sculpture is a process<br />
of deconstructing; taking raw material<br />
and reducing it through whatever means<br />
necessary to arrive at what the artist envisions.<br />
His method, however, is the opposite.<br />
Aaron constructs. Drawing in space with a<br />
combination of stylization, abstraction, and<br />
representation. He is constantly working to<br />
push the process and can sometimes be quite<br />
self-critical. At the end of the day, he may<br />
go back and think, “I zigged when I should<br />
have zagged,” but he realizes that’s how one<br />
continues to grow. Occasionally, it works the<br />
other way round. He will look at a piece he<br />
completed a year prior, at which time he felt<br />
only lukewarm about the piece, and realize it<br />
is quite better than he first thought.<br />
When asked about the business side of<br />
art, he openly admits that he is still trying<br />
to figure it out. His goal has always been<br />
to have his work represented by a gallery.<br />
His work can be seen at Anvil Arts Studio<br />
and Sculpture Garden in Linville, NC where<br />
Aaron is slated for a solo show this summer.<br />
He continues trying to expand his exposure<br />
through galleries and various public shows.<br />
He is also working on getting pieces of his<br />
work into museums.<br />
To contact J. Aaron Alderman, check<br />
out his website at volumesofsteel.com or on<br />
Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok under<br />
j.aaronalderman. P<br />
(Clockwise): Work Alderman completed during his<br />
stay in Romania. He gifted these sculptures to the<br />
city of Pietroasa in gratitude for the experience<br />
and hospitality of the people; Pathos, Sweet Lost &<br />
Found; I Went to See; Fading Culture, sculptures by J.<br />
Aaron Alderman<br />
42 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Music in the Mountains<br />
The vibrant music scene in Highlands<br />
live music<br />
By MARIANNE LEEK<br />
ON ANY GIVEN SPRING OR SUMMER EVENING, THERE ARE SEVERAL PLACES TO ENJOY LIVE<br />
music on the plateau. In this two-part series, we explore an expansive list of offerings, so expansive, in fact, that<br />
we decided to split the offerings by location in order to highlight as many as possible. For this issue, our focus is<br />
Highlands. In our next issue, we will explore the equally wonderful and unique offerings in Cashiers.<br />
Bear Shadow Music Festival<br />
PHOTO BAIN STEWART MEDIA<br />
In Highlands, visitors and locals alike<br />
can take in free outdoor concerts every<br />
Friday and Saturday evening beginning<br />
<strong>May</strong> 17th through October 12th. Mark<br />
your calendars for “Friday Night Live” at<br />
the Town Square on Main Street or “Saturday<br />
on Pine” held at Kelsey-Hutchinson<br />
Founders Park where you can hear local<br />
and regional musicians perform all season<br />
long. This year marks the 43rd season of<br />
the esteemed Highlands-Cashiers Chamber<br />
Music Festival, which takes place from<br />
July 6th - August 11th and brings worldclass<br />
musicians and repertoire to the plateau.<br />
Guests of the Ruffed Grouse Tavern<br />
can treat themselves to a gourmet burger<br />
and brew while listening to live Blues music<br />
on Thursday evenings or gather with<br />
their friends and family for a one-of-a-kind<br />
Bluegrass Brunch on a Sunday afternoon.<br />
Whether you stop in for a craft cocktail<br />
or glass of wine at the elegant Hummingbird<br />
Lounge or The Wine Garden at Old<br />
Edwards Inn, visit the Vineyard at High<br />
Holly, or share a bacon-pimento burger<br />
and a brew while listening to bluegrass<br />
at the Ugly Dog Pub, you’ll find live music<br />
and fun at some of Highlands’ finest establishments<br />
and eateries.<br />
The plateau is even home to its very own<br />
boutique music festival, Bear Shadow Music<br />
Festival, the annual spring sister festival<br />
to the wildly popular Highlands Food<br />
and Wine Festival that takes place in the<br />
fall and frequently sells out in a matter of<br />
minutes. Bear Shadow’s inaugural festival<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 43
live music<br />
occurred in the spring of 2021 and ushered<br />
in the long-anticipated return to live music<br />
following the global pandemic. Taking<br />
place at the picturesque Winfield Farm, it<br />
promises a weekend of “music, mountains,<br />
and revelry,” and has become one of the<br />
most popular micro-festivals in the Southeast,<br />
garnering attention from Rolling<br />
Stone in 2023. Named after the Shadow of<br />
the Bear, a popular natural phenomenon<br />
that occurs against the backdrop of Whiteside<br />
Mountain each fall and spring, this<br />
much-loved festival has quickly morphed<br />
into a mountain tradition.<br />
Past artists have included Jason Isbell<br />
and the 400 Unit, The Head and the<br />
Heart, Band of Horses, 49 Winchester,<br />
Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors, Watchhouse,<br />
The War and Treaty, and St. Paul<br />
and the Broken Bones. This year’s lineup<br />
is equally impressive with headliners JJ<br />
Grey & Mofro and Black Pumas, as well<br />
as Futurebirds, American Aquarium, The<br />
Record Company, Grace Bowers, and more.<br />
Bear Shadow Festival Director, Casey<br />
Reid, explained that moving the festival<br />
from late <strong>April</strong> to mid-<strong>May</strong> will hopefully<br />
bring warmer temperatures, and slimming<br />
the festival from three days to two will<br />
“give festival-goers ample time to travel to<br />
the Highlands-Cashiers <strong>Plateau</strong> and take<br />
advantage of all the charm and attractions<br />
the area has to offer.”<br />
There’s no doubt that the plateau is a<br />
special place. Year after year, Reid hears<br />
from both festival-goers and artists who<br />
are moved by their time in such a serene<br />
setting, “We are continually amazed by<br />
the massively talented artists and festival<br />
fans who rave about the charm of the<br />
Highlands-Cashiers <strong>Plateau</strong>. We are often<br />
told that Bear Shadow is not just another<br />
stop on the tour – rather, it’s a highlight<br />
for the artists and their crews to soak<br />
in the Blue Ridge Mountain views while<br />
entertaining the crowd. It’s also interesting<br />
to hear where our ticket holders hail<br />
from as our reach continues to grow and<br />
become regionally diverse. So, that’s what<br />
we look forward to the most – hosting<br />
these incredibly brilliant souls who choose<br />
to lend their talents to us while putting on<br />
a memorable show for our fans from across<br />
the southeast and beyond. It’s exciting to<br />
be part of bringing everyone together in<br />
the plateau!”<br />
With premiere lodging, shopping, and<br />
dining nearby, Bear Shadow Music Festival<br />
is the perfect weekend destination<br />
to connect and celebrate with family and<br />
friends. Reid added, “This year’s festival<br />
overlaps with Mother’s Day, and we<br />
encourage families to enjoy the festival<br />
together. Children 12 and under are free.<br />
We also provide a free shuttle service from<br />
downtown Highlands to our main stage<br />
and festival grounds at Winfield Farm.<br />
This year’s lineup is top-notch. It’s going<br />
to be an incredible weekend!” Make plans<br />
now to attend this year’s festival on <strong>May</strong><br />
11th and 12th. Tickets are on sale now at<br />
bearshadownc.com.<br />
PHOTO BAIN STEWART MEDIA<br />
44 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
PHOTO STEPHAN PRUITT PHOTOGRAPHY<br />
For a premiere acoustic listening experience<br />
like no other, be sure to check out<br />
the Highlander Mountain House Salon<br />
Series, which brings world-class musicians,<br />
artists, and performers every month<br />
all year long. Imagine sitting fireside in<br />
the intimate setting of the Ruffed Grouse<br />
Tavern and listening to Americana singersongwriter<br />
S.G. Goodman sing the lovely<br />
“Space and Time” or “All My Love is Coming<br />
Back to Me” in a space that feels as cozy<br />
as your living room. In 2021, Jason Reeves<br />
launched the Salon Series at the charming<br />
Highlander Mountain House, inspired by<br />
the European Salons of the 17th century<br />
that served as cultural hubs for writers,<br />
artists, and musicians to exchange ideas<br />
and share their work with others. Reeves<br />
has described the Salon Series as “more<br />
analog than digital. To get back to those<br />
things that are elemental - friendship,<br />
sustenance, warmth, connection, and inspiration.”<br />
He added, “Some return guests<br />
have started calling it the Bluebird Cafe<br />
of Appalachia. Highlands is incredibly<br />
fortunate to have this level of talent every<br />
month - national and international touring<br />
musicians who normally play much larger<br />
theatres, amphitheaters, and even stadiums,<br />
in a setting that seats fewer than 100<br />
people.”<br />
The Highlander Mountain House Salon<br />
Series has hosted a bevy of notable musicians<br />
over its first three seasons including<br />
American Aquarium, Patterson Hood,<br />
Hiss Golden Messenger, Sarah Jarosz,<br />
Futurebirds, Tyler Ramsey, Kevn Kinney,<br />
Erin Rae, Shannon Whitworth and Woody<br />
Platt, and many others, and one of the first<br />
guests was literary luminary Ron Rash,<br />
who read from his then newly released<br />
book In the Valley. If you missed Stephen<br />
Wilson Jr.’s performance in February or<br />
S.G. Goodman’s stunning set in March,<br />
you can catch singer-songwriter Lillie Mae<br />
on <strong>April</strong> 18th. Mae has played the fiddle<br />
and mandolin alongside Jack White, appearing<br />
on all three of his solo albums, and<br />
has been part of the backing band for artists<br />
like Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard.<br />
Grab your tickets and plan to arrive early<br />
as the room fills up quickly. There is free<br />
on-site and street parking available and<br />
guests can make dinner reservations before<br />
the show by calling the Ruffed Grouse<br />
Tavern at 828-526-2590. If you’re a music<br />
lover, be sure to check their website for upcoming<br />
shows this season. P<br />
The Highlander Mountain<br />
House in Highlands hosts the<br />
Highlander Mountain House<br />
Salon Series, which brings<br />
world-class musicians, artists<br />
and performers to the plateau<br />
all year long.<br />
Kevn Kinney performing<br />
at the Highlander<br />
Mountain House Salon<br />
Series.<br />
Erin Rae performing<br />
at the Highlander<br />
Mountain House<br />
Salon Series.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 45
southern drawl<br />
Health and<br />
Well-Being for All<br />
Josh Bryson and the mission of Highlands Cashiers<br />
AS A FORMER ATHLETE<br />
with a 20-plus year career<br />
working in college athletics,<br />
Josh Bryson is comfortable<br />
not knowing what the outcome<br />
will be. Sports taught him to live and<br />
thrive in that uncertainty, and he’s used<br />
that superpower to handle the demands<br />
of his role as the Director of Marketing &<br />
Communications at the Highlands Cashiers<br />
Health Foundation.<br />
“Each day brings new challenges, along<br />
with new possibilities to connect with people<br />
and organizations to expand health<br />
and well-being for everyone in our community,”<br />
explains Josh. In his current role<br />
since 2022, he is committed to “bringing<br />
to the forefront all of the special things<br />
Health Foundation<br />
By DAWN LILES » Photo by CAROLE SHEPARDSON<br />
that are happening in the background in<br />
our community.”<br />
Josh is a 5th generation Highlander.<br />
He still has family in the area, and his<br />
mom was a teacher at Highlands School<br />
for over 30 years. After graduating from<br />
Highlands High School, he headed to<br />
Chowan University, where he earned a<br />
degree in sports management. He enjoyed<br />
stints in athletics administration at the<br />
Southern Conference, College of Charleston<br />
and Florida State University before<br />
moving back to Highlands in 2019.<br />
Early on, Josh had a passion for community<br />
service, and one of his favorite initiatives<br />
when working with student-athletes<br />
was encouraging them to go out into the<br />
world and engage with and contribute to<br />
their communities. He also had the opportunity<br />
to work with the sports marketing<br />
department at the College of Charleston<br />
and learn some graphic design. He's been<br />
able to tap into these diverse skills and interests<br />
in his current role with the Health<br />
Foundation.<br />
“It has been so good to be back in Highlands,”<br />
says Josh. “I have always loved<br />
the Highlands community, and my wife,<br />
Carrie, and I knew it would be the perfect<br />
place to raise our girls. My family is also<br />
very involved in the community. Carrie<br />
and our daughters Maddie and Emmie<br />
come with me to many of the events sponsored<br />
by the Health Foundation and other<br />
non-profits.”<br />
Josh’s eldest daughter, Maddie, is on a<br />
pre-law track in college and interned last<br />
summer with Highlands Food Pantry.<br />
This summer she’ll be working with the<br />
International Friendship Center (IFC).<br />
His youngest daughter, Emmie, is a sixth<br />
grader at Highlands School. She plays volleyball<br />
and is on the middle school cheerleading<br />
team.<br />
Along with Josh, the small staff at the<br />
Health Foundation includes newly hired<br />
Executive Director Charlotte Muir and Director<br />
of Operations Rhonda Oakley. The<br />
Health Foundation’s mission is to lift the<br />
health and well-being for all in Highlands,<br />
Cashiers, and surrounding Western North<br />
Carolina communities by supporting a<br />
host of initiatives and healthcare grants.<br />
They strive to partner with organizations<br />
whose transformative, lasting solutions<br />
will advance their mission.<br />
A main focus for Josh and the Health<br />
Foundation has been supporting the projects,<br />
programs and services that increase<br />
access to behavioral health services,<br />
reduce stigma and bolster community<br />
awareness, education and understanding<br />
of behavioral health and mental health<br />
issues.<br />
<strong>May</strong> is Mental Health Awareness<br />
Month, and last year the Health Foundation,<br />
in partnership with the Counseling<br />
Center of Highlands, started a BEE Kind<br />
community program that proved to be very<br />
(Above): Josh Bryson throwing out T-shirts<br />
at a College of Charleston basketball game.<br />
Josh was in Athletic Administration at the<br />
College of Charleston.<br />
46 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Josh Bryson<br />
Director of Marketing &<br />
Communications, Highlands<br />
Cashiers Health Foundation<br />
» Hometown: Highlands<br />
» Fun fact: When Josh was 7<br />
years old, a Hollywood casting<br />
director came to town searching<br />
for a child to cast in a<br />
Hallmark Hall of Fame movie<br />
called Foxfire. Josh auditioned<br />
and won the role. He said a<br />
highlight was working with<br />
John Denver, who played his<br />
father, and Jessica Tandy and<br />
Hume Cronyn, who played<br />
his grandparents. “They<br />
couldn’t have been nicer and<br />
truly treated me like their<br />
grandson,” said Josh. The film<br />
won a Peabody Award and<br />
was nominated for a Golden<br />
Globe for Best Miniseries<br />
in Television or Film.<br />
» Education: Bachelor’s<br />
degree in sports management<br />
from Chowan University<br />
» Family: Wife Carrie, daughters<br />
Madelynne (Maddie)<br />
19 and Emory (Emmie) 12<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 47
southern drawl<br />
Josh Bryson as a child<br />
with John Denver. Josh<br />
played Denver’s<br />
child in the Hallmark<br />
Hall of Fame movie<br />
Foxfire, which won a<br />
Peabody Award and<br />
was nominated for a<br />
Golden Globe for Best<br />
Miniseries in Television<br />
or Film.<br />
successful. “Mental health begins with<br />
kindness,” says Josh, “and it doesn’t cost<br />
a thing to be nice to people. The response<br />
to our initiative was overwhelming. More<br />
than 20 organizations wanted to partner<br />
with us to spread the word about the importance<br />
of mental health.”<br />
Locals and visitors to Highlands could<br />
see BEE Kind signs and stickers on the<br />
windows of businesses all over town. The<br />
Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust hosted a<br />
hike to the top of Satulah Mountain; the<br />
Highlands Biological Station hosted forest<br />
48 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
Josh Bryson with his<br />
family. Wife Carrie and<br />
daughters Madelynne<br />
(Maddie) 19 and Emory<br />
(Emmie) 12.<br />
therapy walks; the Bascom provided youth<br />
art programs. The mayor of Highlands<br />
signed a proclamation declaring <strong>May</strong><br />
as Mental Health Awareness Month in<br />
Highlands, which also reduced the stigma<br />
around mental health.<br />
The BEE Kind initiative started a conversation<br />
for many about mental health,<br />
and it has continued. Strangers walk up to<br />
Josh to tell him their personal mental and<br />
physical health stories. Because of the program’s<br />
success, the Health Foundation is<br />
planning on a late-summer initiative that<br />
will focus on giving people the knowledge<br />
and resources to get and stay healthy. The<br />
initiative is still in the planning stages,<br />
but offerings could include exercise, stress<br />
reduction, nutrition and other educational<br />
programs.<br />
Additionally, the Health Foundation<br />
works to bring in speakers to discuss<br />
health and wellness with the community.<br />
Former Duke University women’s basketball<br />
coach Joanne P. McCallie spoke to a<br />
crowd at the Highlands Performing Arts<br />
Center about her bipolar diagnosis at age<br />
30. “The audience was really receptive to<br />
her message and learning about the challenges<br />
of living with a mental health condition,”<br />
says Josh.<br />
The Health Foundation began in 2019<br />
as the successor to the Highlands-Cashiers<br />
Hospital Foundation. Since the beginning,<br />
the Health Foundation has sought to<br />
address the unique healthcare challenges<br />
in our rural community, which include<br />
a shortage of healthcare professionals,<br />
a seasonal economy, and a significant<br />
amount of uninsured individuals. So far,<br />
the Health Foundation has awarded over<br />
100 grants to more than 75 organizations.<br />
As the central source of healthcare<br />
funding for the Highlands-Cashiers area,<br />
the Health Foundation seeks to collaborate<br />
with organizations that offer transformative,<br />
lasting health solutions. From<br />
providing critical primary care through<br />
the Blue Ridge Health – Highlands Cashiers<br />
clinic to supporting school nurses at<br />
local schools, their partnerships are the<br />
central way they help improve health and<br />
well-being for all on the plateau.<br />
Josh is proud of all the grants the Health<br />
Foundation has awarded, but as a parent,<br />
he is particularly thankful the Health<br />
Foundation has been able to put registered<br />
nurses back in schools, which is no longer<br />
the case for many public schools in the US.<br />
A school nurse is now available to help<br />
students at Blue Ridge School, Highlands<br />
School and Summit Charter School.<br />
“I’m so proud of the work we’ve done<br />
in our community to increase access to<br />
healthcare among all people living in the<br />
plateau,” says Josh. “And we are fortunate<br />
to have the incredible talent, resources<br />
and possibility for connection here with<br />
people and other organizations. Like every<br />
community, we have our challenges, but<br />
we also have a very generous community<br />
who believes in our mission.” P
nature wellness conservation fashion<br />
Spring<br />
Fashion<br />
Updating the<br />
wardrobe for spring<br />
PHOTO CAROLE SHEPARDSON<br />
See page 58<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 49
nature<br />
Mertensia virginica (Native bluebells) are<br />
early ephemeral spring flowers. Here they<br />
emerge in a rocky woodland, blooming<br />
clear blue before summer's tree canopy<br />
shades out their sunlight.<br />
At One with Nature<br />
What Artificial Intelligence Cannot Offer<br />
Story and photos by KRISTIN LANDFIELD<br />
THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIANS OFFER A BEAUTY SO GRAND THAT NO DOOMSDAY NEWS CYCLE<br />
could eclipse their splendor. Their natural treasures, carved by eons of time, remain unrivaled by the breakneck pace<br />
of the modern world. That said, nearly every day I hear about disarming advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI): an<br />
inevitable unknown with latent Pandoric consequences, terrifying in magnitude and mammoth in capability. From<br />
deep fakes, privacy violations, or uncontrolled super intelligence, to salvation from climate change, debilitating poverty,<br />
and myriad illnesses, AI will alter the human experience to seismic effect. Embedded in every conversation is the proposition that<br />
advances in AI will soon, and in some ways already have, outstrip human computing power by an order of magnitude. Indeed,<br />
specific AI algorithms act upon most of us in extensive ways—ways we do not yet understand. The future is now.<br />
Philosophers of science, tech developers,<br />
and consumers of AI all agree that General<br />
Intelligence is not yet captured by AI<br />
models, but most agree that something<br />
resembling “thinking beings,” indistinguishable<br />
from our own minds, are effectively<br />
inevitable. This is unnerving. Here<br />
is a prospect whose complexity we can only<br />
50 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
comprehend to the extent that we know we<br />
cannot comprehend it. Rather than slouch<br />
towards this abyss, I want to ask what we<br />
do have that cannot be stolen or trampled<br />
by artificially intelligent giants. If we lose<br />
our cerebral identity, what is preserved?<br />
Perhaps the answer lies in a redefinition of<br />
what makes us human; perhaps it is found<br />
in our physical connection to the natural<br />
world around us.<br />
For centuries we humans have prided<br />
ourselves on our intelligence. By this<br />
construction, it is intellect that separates<br />
us from our animal cohabitants. Our exceptional<br />
cognitive abilities, specifically<br />
our faculties for language and for self-
eflection, are paralleled by no other species.<br />
Regardless of our individual beliefs,<br />
the premise is always that our big frontal<br />
lobes allowed us to climb out of the brush,<br />
form complex societies, and access a higher<br />
existence. Our brains made us special. If<br />
we staked our humanity on the idea that<br />
our minds define us, what happens when<br />
that identity falls apart? This question<br />
only increases in urgency as sophisticated<br />
machines resemble human thinking ever<br />
more closely. However, Rilke wrote, “If<br />
we surrendered to earth’s intelligence,<br />
we could rise up rooted, like trees.” What<br />
does that mean, beyond an elevating sentiment<br />
that hints at transcendence? For me<br />
it means that by connecting with nature<br />
and identifying myself as part of it, I am<br />
granted an intimate experience of beauty,<br />
communion, humility, and order.<br />
According to 5th century Greek historian<br />
Heroditus, the Persian warrior-king Xerxes<br />
camped his troops among a grove of Sycamore<br />
trees for several days, so compelled<br />
by their beauty that even on the eve of war<br />
he found this hiatus a worthy enterprise. I<br />
have to believe that as these grisly warriors<br />
gazed at the silky white bark of the stately<br />
trees, they felt more aligned with their humanity<br />
than at any other time during their<br />
war campaign. So it is with all of us: we<br />
humans have the capacity for connection<br />
with nature in a way that defines us, arguably<br />
more essentially than our intellect or<br />
our premier status on the food chain. An<br />
Alzheimer’s patient, lost to her memory,<br />
lost to her former self, and tragically lost to<br />
her loved ones, can walk to a pond, be enraptured<br />
by a skein of wild geese rising to<br />
a crisp blue sky, and find her lost self, fully<br />
human in that moment. A renewed affiliation<br />
with nature—recognizing ourselves as<br />
more similar to other organisms than we<br />
are separate—may be the key to preserving<br />
our unique sense of humanity and hope in<br />
an unfathomable technoverse.<br />
The grand mountains of the Highlands-<br />
Cashiers <strong>Plateau</strong> harbor untold mysteries<br />
of biology: mysteries that are innumerable<br />
and inscrutable, even by a superintelligence<br />
whose ability to count and catalogue<br />
shows no limits. This is comforting.<br />
As I walk on a trail that teems with new<br />
spring life, the dew-wet base of my pants<br />
chills my legs and I find my feet in physical<br />
contact with the planet beneath me. It<br />
enlivens my senses to a world beyond the<br />
limits of my mind. <strong>May</strong>be I take some pictures<br />
of Hepatica flowers emerging from<br />
The tulip-like flowers of<br />
Magnolia x 'Butterflies'<br />
earn their name in early<br />
spring when their big buds<br />
open prior to presenting<br />
soft green leaves.<br />
“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves<br />
of strength that will endure as long as life lasts…There is<br />
something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of<br />
nature—the assurance that dawn comes after night, and<br />
spring after winter.” —Rachel Carson<br />
The cheerful yellow of Stylophorum<br />
diphyllum (Celandine poppy) fills a rich<br />
woodland floor with its sunny flower.<br />
last autumn’s leaves, then get distracted<br />
by the pictures on my phone before I again<br />
wake up and make contact with the forest<br />
around me. I trace my palm against some<br />
scratchy bark. I breathe in a woodsy musk.<br />
I feel the cool damp where I decided to sit<br />
on a wet rock. I draw a full deep breath,<br />
then maybe another, and I feel my furrowed<br />
brow relax, loosening from whatever<br />
inane thoughts or plans seemed important.<br />
Through this unpixellated experience,<br />
not my abstracted thoughts about the experience,<br />
I find my way back to presence,<br />
to this few square feet in which I stand.<br />
Here is a place with depth, with corporeal<br />
resonance, and with the comforting timbre<br />
of countless organisms around me. They<br />
exist in organic bodies that share basic cellular<br />
building blocks with the most ancestral<br />
part of me. Here is a system in which I<br />
am a part and which far exceeds anything<br />
I could know or compute. I am not a brain.<br />
I am not a machine. I am a piece of a magnificent<br />
whole. P<br />
Micranthes virginiensis (small-flowered<br />
Saxifrage) is a study in contradictions:<br />
its delicate fairy-like flowers betray the<br />
resilience required to thrive amid rock<br />
and moss.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 51
wellness<br />
Wellness Retreats<br />
A vacation for the mind, body and soul<br />
By MARIANNE LEEK<br />
WE ALL KNOW THAT TAKING A VACATION IS GOOD FOR THE SOUL, BUT WHAT IF SOMEONE<br />
told you that a vacation could transform your overall health and well-being? A wellness retreat is an alternative to<br />
what most American vacations have become - a week or two of overindulgence in food and alcohol and a sabbatical<br />
from exercise. Frequently named at the top of a short list of the best wellness retreats in the world, Hilton<br />
Head Health and Skyterra offer weeklong, all-inclusive resort stays where jumpstarting a healthier lifestyle is<br />
synonymous with fun! From the mountains to the sea, a wellness vacay is the perfect way to relax, reset, and reclaim your health.<br />
Hilton Head Health<br />
Hilton Head Health was first established<br />
in 1976 by behavioral psychologist Dr.<br />
Peter Miller as a four-week retreat that<br />
operated out of Hilton Head’s regional<br />
hospital and focused primarily on weight<br />
loss. Almost 50 years later, this premiere<br />
program ranks as one of the best<br />
for a myriad of reasons. With its gorgeous<br />
porches and Low Country charm,<br />
the Sweetgrass Inn provides each guest<br />
with luxurious accommodations close<br />
to everything Hilton Head Health has<br />
to offer. Guests are treated to a curated<br />
menu of gourmet cuisine and have access<br />
to the exquisite on-site Indigo Spa<br />
services. Each day, you can decide how<br />
you want to spend your time. <strong>May</strong>be a<br />
morning walk on the beach, followed by<br />
yoga. Perhaps a treading, kickboxing or<br />
circuit training class followed by a quiet<br />
afternoon sitting in the hot tub or enjoying<br />
a book poolside. How about a class<br />
on re-evaluating your relationship with<br />
alcohol or sugar or learning how to stock<br />
a healthy pantry? Interested in learning<br />
cooking strategies from award-winning<br />
chefs? A golf, kayaking, or dolphin cruise<br />
excursion? There are a million combinations<br />
that make each visit to Hilton Head<br />
Health unique. Whether your goal is<br />
to lose weight, spend quality time with<br />
family or friends, or kickstart a wellness<br />
plan, Hilton Head Health provides<br />
a comprehensive, individualized, fitness<br />
and wellness plan to meet your needs. A<br />
couple’s retreat, a girls’ trip, a solitary<br />
reset, H3 is a vacation from the ordinary<br />
and an extraordinary investment in your<br />
overall well-being. There’s a reason why<br />
most guests return year after year.<br />
PHOTOS PROVIDED BY HILTON HEAD HEALTH<br />
52 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 53
wellness<br />
Skyterra<br />
Skyterra Wellness is located in the beautiful<br />
Blue Ridge Mountains of western<br />
North Carolina, just minutes from the<br />
charming town of Brevard and a short<br />
drive from Asheville. Begin your day with<br />
a cup of coffee on the porch swing of your<br />
cabin or embark on a trail hike to get your<br />
body moving and to take in the stunning<br />
mountain vistas. Skyterra is the perfect<br />
location for those who want to immerse<br />
themselves in nature. Much like Hilton<br />
Head Health, visitors to Skyterra can<br />
choose a daily health and wellness plan<br />
unique to their own fitness, mobility, energy,<br />
and ability levels. Skyterra recently<br />
added pickleball courts and a Natatorium<br />
that houses a heated indoor pool, sauna,<br />
and outdoor hot tub year-round.<br />
Guests stay in beautiful, well-equipped<br />
lodges/cabins with a living room, fireplace,<br />
washer and dryer, and full kitchen. With a<br />
focus on holistic wellness, guests have access<br />
to individual and small-group therapy<br />
aimed at prioritizing self-care and stress<br />
management. Rather than emphasizing<br />
calorie restriction and dieting, visitors are<br />
encouraged to rethink their relationship<br />
with food and develop a natural inclination<br />
to nourish their bodies well with a variety<br />
of fresh foods. Guests can even learn basic<br />
gardening skills while helping to cultivate<br />
the on-site gardens that help supply the<br />
kitchen, thereby reimagining “gardening as<br />
a source of low-impact movement, a relaxing<br />
form of nature therapy, and a way to<br />
experience the satisfaction of growing their<br />
own food, all while maintaining the balance<br />
of nature.” Skyterra is all about enjoying life<br />
while finding peace and wellness through<br />
movement, recreation, and time spent outdoors.<br />
In addition to LoseSmart and Wellness<br />
Retreat options for adults, Skyterra offers<br />
therapeutic wellness retreats for young<br />
adults as well.<br />
If you only have a couple of hours or an<br />
afternoon, there are several local health and<br />
wellness spas located right here on the plateau,<br />
including Canyon Spa, The Spa at Old<br />
Edwards Inn, Taylor Spa, Mantra Massage<br />
Studio, Cashiers Spa, Cashiers Valley Fusion,<br />
and Yoga Highlands. For a unique experience,<br />
consider Wake Foot Sanctuary located in the<br />
historic Grove Arcade in downtown Asheville.<br />
Wake Sanctuary is the ultimate way to destress<br />
and elevate your self-care routine. Their<br />
hour-long aromatic herbal soaks, paired with<br />
a 20-minute foot, leg, shoulders, and head<br />
massage, and a pot of herbal tea are what<br />
dreams are made of. Be sure to ask for the NC<br />
local’s discount. Rated one of the best spas in<br />
North America, another local favorite is the<br />
Spa at the Omni Grove Park Inn. Everything<br />
about the Grove Park is pure serenity. Visitors<br />
should also check out Asheville Wellness<br />
Tours to book forest bathing nature therapy,<br />
goat yoga, or yoga and a hike.<br />
A wellness retreat such as Hilton Head<br />
Health or Skyterra is a great way to combine<br />
relaxation with movement and education<br />
while realigning your wellness routine<br />
and goals, but even if you only have an<br />
afternoon, you can certainly find plenty of<br />
local options for a wellness reset. P<br />
PHOTO PROVIDED BY SKYTERRA WELLNESS<br />
54 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
conservation<br />
Raise a Glass to the <strong>Plateau</strong><br />
Chemist Spirits, Old Edwards Inn and HCLT invite you to sip their Discovery Gin<br />
By JULIE SCHOTT<br />
“<br />
NATURE IS MY SANCTUARY, ALWAYS HAS BEEN,” SAYS DEBBIE WORD, CONSERVATION EASEMENT<br />
land donor and founder of Chemist Spirits. “I grew up barefoot in the woods where we spent all of our time outside,<br />
catching frogs and snakes, building forts and climbing rocks.” Today, Debbie has a sanctuary of her own in her<br />
conserved family property just outside of Cashiers. She discovered paradise among some of the world's oldest<br />
mountains and has taken steps to ensure it will remain protected forever by conserving her family land with<br />
Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust (HCLT). Now, a collaboration between HCLT, Chemist Spirits and Old Edwards Inn (OEI) is<br />
shining a light on conserving the wild places she has always loved.<br />
In the late 80s, Debbie and her husband,<br />
Brad, were living in Savannah with their two<br />
small children when they heard about the<br />
mountain town of Highlands and its cooler<br />
temperatures. They started vacationing on<br />
the plateau, and it wasn’t long before they<br />
fell in love with the area and its lush mountains,<br />
cool waters and small-town charm. In<br />
the mid 90s, they decided to take the leap<br />
and buy their own property. They searched<br />
and found a place steeped in the nature that<br />
drew them here, a place they named Firewater.<br />
It was just the tonic Debbie was looking<br />
for, and she wanted to protect it.<br />
After reading about “conservation easements,”<br />
a conservation tool that helps<br />
private landowners conserve their ecologically<br />
valuable land by donating some of<br />
their development rights, Debbie contacted<br />
HCLT to learn more about protecting their<br />
property this way.<br />
Chemist Spirits in Asheville, NC.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 55
conservation<br />
Like many easement donors, the Words<br />
worked with HCLT to carve out a few<br />
acres for their family home and protected<br />
the rest from future development with<br />
an easement, ensuring Firewater would<br />
remain the pristine place they fell in love<br />
with for generations to come. “We are<br />
stewards of the land, and we can hand this<br />
down,” said Debbie. “The way HCLT does<br />
it is beautiful; families can pass this down<br />
and still live here.”<br />
And so, the Word family can now enjoy<br />
their home surrounded by the majestic<br />
trees, clean waters and flourishing wildlife<br />
that Debbie loves, knowing that their<br />
land will remain in its natural state forever,<br />
which benefits us all. By conserving<br />
their family land, Debbie and Brad’s great<br />
grandchildren will have a chance to fall in<br />
love with this place, too.<br />
Land conserved with HCLT always provides<br />
public benefit, sometimes by protecting<br />
habitat for wildlife so animals have<br />
places to feed, breed, migrate and raise<br />
their young, or by protecting our water<br />
Signage for HCLT protected property.<br />
Firewater is now protected under<br />
a Conservation Easement with the<br />
Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust.<br />
(water that originates here eventually either<br />
makes its way to the Gulf or Atlantic<br />
depending on which side of the mountain it<br />
flows from, affecting all those in its path),<br />
or by protecting rare and endangered species<br />
of plants and animals because a diverse<br />
ecosystem is a healthy one.<br />
It was at their family cabin nestled<br />
deep in Firewater Gorge that Debbie’s life<br />
would take an unexpected and exciting<br />
turn. Debbie asked for a still for Christmas;<br />
it was a handmade five-gallon copper<br />
pot still. She says she wanted to figure out<br />
why moonshine tasted so bad, so she and<br />
her daughter, Danielle, who was a chemist,<br />
started experimenting with various<br />
recipes using local botanicals. Soon their<br />
hobby would lead to something more.<br />
One day, sitting around the kitchen<br />
table, they started to imagine how fun it<br />
would be to open their own distillery. Nearby<br />
Asheville had plenty of breweries, why<br />
not a distillery? Now, several years later,<br />
Chemist Spirits is a thriving business.<br />
The name was chosen in honor of Danielle<br />
and inspired by the inventiveness of<br />
prohibition era chemists who found a loophole<br />
to access contraband as the only legal<br />
producers of whiskey, to be prescribed by<br />
Waterfall Straight on Firewater.<br />
PHOTO STEPHANIE CONTRERAS; SIGNAGE PHOTO JULIE SCHOTT<br />
56 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
View up from Gorge<br />
on Firewater<br />
PHOTO STEPHANIE CONTRERAS<br />
physicians and sold by pharmacists to<br />
cure what ails you. With a 1920s speakeasy<br />
style tasting room in Asheville called<br />
Antidote and an award-winning, everexpanding<br />
selection of craft spirits, this<br />
female-led distillery has made a name for<br />
itself, earning national and even international<br />
recognition for their innovative and<br />
perfectly blended spirits.<br />
Now, in a unique collaboration, Chemist<br />
Spirits and the world class Old Edwards<br />
Inn have combined their creative talents to<br />
mastermind a gin that embodies a taste of<br />
the plateau’s wild places and helps to conserve<br />
them with Discovery Gin. A portion<br />
of the sales from Discovery Gin goes directly<br />
to HCLT to help keep the plateau wild.<br />
Discovery was released last fall and sold<br />
out locally within days. But never fear, it<br />
is being served throughout OEI properties<br />
and a second release is scheduled to hit<br />
shelves this spring.<br />
Local botanicals continue to provide<br />
inspiration for The Chemist, and most recently<br />
a few very special botanical ambassadors<br />
took center stage in Discovery Gin.<br />
Juniperus communis is a common juniper<br />
in some places but rare on the plateau.<br />
During the last ice age, a number of flora<br />
and fauna made their way to our area as<br />
our mountains were not glaciated (covered<br />
in ice), and the more moderate temperatures<br />
provided suitable habitat for some<br />
plants and animals that previously had<br />
not been here. Some of those species have<br />
remained and are known as glacial relics.<br />
A strand of juniper on HCLT-conserved<br />
Satulah Mountain is one of those glacial<br />
relics and was the inspiration for Discovery<br />
Gin. Sustainability is of the utmost importance,<br />
so berries were responsibly hand<br />
harvested with the help of HCLT.<br />
Discovery Gin also features multiflora<br />
rose, a botanical that is invasive here.<br />
Debbie says that they wanted to include<br />
this enticing but dangerous plant that is a<br />
menace on the plateau to raise awareness<br />
of the threat invasive species pose here.<br />
Education is key to fighting this problem.<br />
Invasive plants are non-natives that<br />
have been introduced to an area and<br />
outcompete native plants, reducing food<br />
sources and habitat availability for local<br />
wildlife. If invasives take hold, they could<br />
wreak havoc on our ecosystem, causing<br />
everything we love about this place to<br />
slowly unravel. Many invasive plants are<br />
used in local landscaping, so it is easy to<br />
unknowingly contribute to this problem.<br />
Burning bush, English ivy, Japanese knotweed,<br />
privet and bittersweet are just a<br />
few examples of species to avoid. To learn<br />
more, visit ncwildflower.org.<br />
Another way to ensure that the wild places<br />
of the plateau remain is to support those<br />
businesses that promote sustainability.<br />
Old Edwards Inn is no stranger to supporting<br />
conservation on the plateau and<br />
has been a HCLT Conservation Business<br />
Partner for the past several years. At certain<br />
OEI properties, guests can opt into<br />
a small donation at checkout, and this<br />
money goes directly to conserving our wild<br />
places and, perhaps more importantly,<br />
reminds those who love these mountains<br />
that protecting them is up to all of us. OEI<br />
is a founding member of the new Coins for<br />
Conservation initiative that helps local<br />
businesses support conservation. Contact<br />
HCLT’s Development Director, Julie<br />
Schott, at julie@hcltnc.org to learn more.<br />
Reflecting on why her family has supported<br />
conservation on the plateau both<br />
by conserving their own land and by being<br />
champions for the land through Chemist<br />
Spirits, Debbie said, “It’s always difficult<br />
to see pristine land completely torn apart.”<br />
While there can be tax benefits to conserving<br />
your land, that is not what motivated<br />
Debbie to protect Firewater. “I am very<br />
passionate about taking care of these<br />
mountains. It won’t happen unless people<br />
stand up and take action.”<br />
HCLT is a nationally accredited nonprofit<br />
land conservation organization that serves<br />
southern Jackson and Macon counties.<br />
Learn how you might conserve your land<br />
through easement or an outright gift: hcltnc.<br />
org. 828-526-1111, info@hcltnc.org. P<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 57
Art in the<br />
Afternoon<br />
Trendy fashion<br />
for the spring<br />
Photography:<br />
CAROLE SHEPARDSON<br />
Stylist: KATIE HERZ<br />
Models: SOFIA ADAMSON<br />
& SYLAS DIXON of<br />
Ursula Wiedmann Models<br />
CK Bradley Cece Gown $428;<br />
Kinross cashmere fringe wrap<br />
in Mango $330 at Wit's End,<br />
Highlands, NC<br />
Special thanks to The Bascom for<br />
allowing us to shoot on location.<br />
58 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Free People Maxi Dress<br />
$168 at Annawear,<br />
Highlands, NC<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 59
Johnny Was Wild<br />
Kalani Blouse $248;<br />
Gold Bangles $59<br />
each; Gold necklace<br />
$48; Dear John<br />
Vegan Leather Pant<br />
$110 at A Jones in<br />
Cashiers, NC<br />
60 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
On Him: Eton Floral Twill Shirt $280; Stenstroms<br />
Cashmere Crew Neck Sweater $445; Brax<br />
Chuck Hi-Flex Trouser $198; Peter Millar<br />
Venetian Loafer $245.<br />
On Her: Robert Friedman Linen Dress $385;<br />
Huber Gasser Cropped cardigan $475;<br />
Amsterdam Heritage Wide Leather belt $125;<br />
Popa White Leather Wedge $247; CUOIERIA<br />
Duffle Victoria Bag $365; Brackish Ke’oke’o<br />
Earrings $95, all at TJ Baileys in Cashiers, NC.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 61
Weavz Jacket $173;<br />
Tees By Tina $42;<br />
Lior Paris Sage<br />
Denim Pant $138 at<br />
The Look Boutique,<br />
Cashiers, NC<br />
62 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Crazy Larry Pant in Tulip<br />
$115; Metric Knits Sweater<br />
in Kiwi $99 at Spoiled<br />
Rotten in Highlands, NC<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 63
Overlook near Graveyard Falls.<br />
America’s Most Beautiful Drive<br />
The Blue Ridge Parkway awaits<br />
Story and photos by BRENDON VOELKER<br />
IT’S APRIL 1ST, AND JOKES ASIDE, WE ARE ALL FERVENTLY HOPING THE WINTER WEATHER IS FULLY<br />
behind us. Although another stray storm may tease the plateau, it’s safe to say that warmer temperatures are ahead, even<br />
if not arriving quite as quickly as we would like. For some, the arrival of spring means time in the garden. For others,<br />
hikes and visits to waterfalls. But there is a wonderful opportunity you may not have considered: a drive along America’s<br />
most stunning parkway.<br />
If you enjoy a relaxing and scenic drive,<br />
it’s time to fuel up and head for the Blue<br />
Ridge Parkway, an experience that offers<br />
something for everyone in the family.<br />
Considered one of America’s most scenic<br />
drives, you can experience the spring rhododendron<br />
blooms, the lilies through the<br />
summer, mountain ash of the fall, and the<br />
long-reaching views of winter.<br />
With over 15-million visitors in 2022,<br />
the parkway boasts the title as the longest<br />
linear park in the United States. While often<br />
confused as the largest national park,<br />
it’s technically a national parkway. What<br />
64 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
began as an ambitious undertaking in<br />
1933, following Virginia’s Skyline Drive<br />
in Shenandoah National Park, became<br />
something even grander.<br />
The initial budget for the project was<br />
$16 million. Although that number may<br />
reflect the cost of some of the plateau’s<br />
finest homes now, the inflation rate takes<br />
that number to nearly $400 million in<br />
today’s value. Granted, the project’s forecast<br />
was ultimately revised in many aspects.<br />
Today, a full-time staff is stationed<br />
along the roadway in key areas to answer<br />
questions and prune the landscape. Park<br />
rangers also patrol the roadway for safety.<br />
The maximum speed limit throughout the<br />
parkway is 45 mph, and there are several<br />
sections where it is lower. For safety, and<br />
to allow visitors to enjoy the views, these<br />
speed limits are strictly enforced.<br />
In the early days, the initial roadway<br />
was intended to take a much more northern<br />
route through the Unaka Mountains<br />
but, through lobbying efforts, the passage<br />
was moved closer to Asheville as the city<br />
was in an economic downfall following the<br />
Great Depression. The northern route was<br />
to cross the Unaka Mountains and lead
Cherry Cove Overlook.<br />
View near Mount Mitchell.<br />
into the Great Smoky Mountains National<br />
Park but was routed through town instead.<br />
Today, Unaka Mountain Road is a 12-<br />
mile unpaved road tracing the ridgeline<br />
across the mountaintop with endless<br />
wildflowers, photo opportunities, and<br />
campsites along the Appalachian Trail. It<br />
remains a popular destination for professional<br />
photo shoots with Erwin, TN as the<br />
closest city. One central area on the road<br />
has become known as the Beauty Spot.<br />
By World War II, the road was nearly<br />
320-miles long and about half complete.<br />
By the mid-1950’s, an initiative was put<br />
in place to have the roadway completed<br />
by 1966, marking the 50th anniversary<br />
of the program’s inception. From a labor<br />
standpoint, work was split between multiple<br />
agencies. Most of the construction was<br />
done by private contractors, but a variety<br />
of New Deal public works programs were<br />
also employed, including the Works Progress<br />
Administration (WPA), the Emergency<br />
Relief Administration (ERA), and<br />
the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).<br />
Due to environmental concerns, the final<br />
segment of the Parkway wasn’t opened<br />
until 1987. Possibly the most recognized<br />
section of the entire 469-mile drive, the<br />
Linn Cove Viaduct passed through delicate<br />
and rare ecosystems, leading to extreme<br />
opposition from environmental conservationists.<br />
The adjacent Grandfather<br />
Mountain that the roadway passes around<br />
is also home to 16 distinct ecosystems and<br />
dozens of rare or endangered plant and<br />
wildlife species. Its completion marked<br />
one consecutive motorway from Cherokee,<br />
NC to Front Royal, VA, less than 90-minutes<br />
from Washington, D.C.<br />
The sheer beauty of the roadway cannot<br />
be overstated. Rhododendron and mountain<br />
ash fill the understory at higher elevations;<br />
aging hemlock, oak, pine, maple,<br />
and birch abound; bear sightings around<br />
Asheville are plentiful as the bears often<br />
migrate up from the lower neighborhoods<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 65
Southern Appalachian spruce-fir Forest.<br />
to scavenge for food. Deer are also common<br />
in areas, and the selection of avian<br />
life is quite profound. A field reference<br />
guide is an excellent investment and commonly<br />
found at many state parks and<br />
local outfitters. Monarch butterflies also<br />
vary in frequency each year, but if you<br />
catch it at the right time, the display is<br />
spectacular. Be mindful driving, however,<br />
as there are a seemingly endless number<br />
of tunnels that require you to slow down<br />
and turn on your headlights.<br />
From west to east, the Parkway can be<br />
divided into four distinct segments: Pisgah,<br />
<strong>Plateau</strong>, Highlands, and Ridge. The<br />
first, Pisgah, is the one many of us know<br />
and love and the destination most visitors<br />
from the plateau should try first. Beginning<br />
in Cherokee, near the entrance to the<br />
Great Smoky Mountains National Park,<br />
the Parkway meanders its way through<br />
the Qualla Boundary, an area set aside<br />
for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians<br />
(EBCI), and the only remaining Cherokee<br />
reservation west of the Mississippi.<br />
The roadway quickly climbs into a<br />
southern-Appalachian spruce-fir forest<br />
nearing 5,000-feet, then makes its way<br />
to Waterrock Knob. A highlight of this<br />
region, this towering overlook offers views<br />
to both the east and west, making it an<br />
ideal destination for a sunrise or sunset.<br />
A visitor center and restrooms are also<br />
available in the warmer months.<br />
Importantly, the park’s policy on overnight<br />
camping is vague, leading many<br />
camper vans to pursue a quiet overlook for<br />
66 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
the evening. Even so, rangers have stated<br />
that some of the easily accessible overlooks<br />
have been subject to crime, particularly<br />
the defacing of infrastructure and the disturbance<br />
of critical landscapes, so visitors<br />
should take care.<br />
If visiting from Highlands or Cashiers,<br />
the closest places to jump on the scenic<br />
road are Balsam Gap between Waynesville<br />
and Sylva or the southern terminus<br />
in Cherokee. Less than 90 minutes to either,<br />
you can hop on and drive as far as<br />
you’d like. A common option is to get on<br />
at Balsam Gap and drive to Asheville, especially<br />
if planning a trip to the Biltmore<br />
Estate during your visit. The Parkway<br />
crosses a road just minutes from the estate<br />
and offers plenty of options for dining<br />
and a wide range of accommodations.<br />
When it comes to driving the Parkway,<br />
Green Knob Fire Tower.<br />
the speed limit generally sits at 45 mph or<br />
less with overlooks rarely more than five<br />
minutes apart. Although most overlooks<br />
are cleared for the sweeping mountain<br />
views, some have been abandoned or<br />
neglected to allow nature to reclaim the<br />
land. There is no doubt, however, that the<br />
Parkway allows for some of the state’s most<br />
astounding mountain views by car with<br />
a minimal impact to the environment,<br />
the essence of the Cherokee word “Cataloochee,”<br />
meaning “waves upon waves of<br />
mountains” or “fringe standing erect.”<br />
In addition to the low speed limit, you’ll<br />
also notice that the Parkway contains no<br />
painted lines along the outside of the road.<br />
This was done to maintain the wild and<br />
natural feel of the environment by limiting<br />
impact on nature’s aesthetics. The roadside<br />
barriers and guardrails are also built<br />
using a natural wood construction, much<br />
of which is rumored to come from the area.<br />
For details on road conditions, openings,<br />
and questions regarding the road,<br />
a central visitor center is located near<br />
Asheville and can be contacted by phone<br />
at (828) 298-5330. A road conditions page<br />
is also available at www.nps.gov, a critical<br />
resource if attempting to drive in the<br />
winter or following major weather events.<br />
Be sure to bookmark it on your phone<br />
before you leave, as cell reception doesn’t<br />
exist in all areas. Some sections near<br />
Asheville and Roanoke tend to stay open<br />
year-round, though closures are frequent<br />
in the winter as they don’t salt or treat the<br />
road in order to preserve its longevity. P
Southern Appalachian<br />
spruce-fir Forest.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 67
Family Fun on the <strong>Plateau</strong><br />
Opportunities for adventure are endless<br />
By ANNE DUCHAC<br />
THE HIGHLANDS-CASHIERS PLATEAU IS A UNIQUE AND BEAUTIFUL PLACE FOR FAMILIES TO STAY<br />
and explore. The area is well known for its natural beauty, boasting waterfalls and hiking trails at every turn,<br />
including Whiteside Mountain, Gorges State Park, Whitewater Falls, Panthertown Valley, Silver Run Falls and many<br />
more. But that’s just the beginning. Read on to learn about some surprising hidden gems for family fun in and around<br />
our lovely mountains.<br />
The Village Green is one of Cashiers’<br />
biggest treasures. Executive Director<br />
Ashlie Mitchell says that “families...love<br />
exploring our 13+ acre park. They can<br />
ride their trikes and bikes on the trails,<br />
discover critters in our wetlands, and<br />
take in nature among the birds on our<br />
newly rebuilt Boardwalk.” There are also<br />
beautiful gardens with native, seasonal<br />
plantings, and 8 towering sculptures scattered<br />
throughout the grounds, as well as<br />
a covered pavilion with picnic tables and<br />
charcoal grills. Younger children love<br />
Village Play, a castle-inspired play area<br />
with swings, monkey bars, forts, poles,<br />
and balance challenges. One of the newest<br />
additions to the Green is Storywalk, an<br />
interactive trail experience where families<br />
can “read along and move along” with a<br />
children’s story book.<br />
All the events hosted by The Village<br />
Green are designed to be family-friendly,<br />
ranging from 4th of July fireworks to the<br />
Village Nature Series, to the Wednesday<br />
Farmer’s Market. The Calendar of Events<br />
can be found on their website (www.villagegreencashiersnc.com),<br />
but a fan favorite<br />
is Groovin’ on the Green, held every<br />
Friday night at 6 beginning on <strong>May</strong> 24th.<br />
The crowd-pleasing bands always play familiar<br />
tunes that are sure to get everyone<br />
dancing out on the lawn. There are food<br />
and beverage vendors, and every concert<br />
features “Kids Zones” where the kids can<br />
run around and throw balls, play tag, and<br />
enjoy the open space.<br />
PHOTOS PROVIDED BY THE HIGHLANDS BIOLOGICAL FOUNDATION.<br />
68 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Not to be left out, Highlands offers its<br />
own kid-friendly live music. Families can<br />
take in free outdoor concerts every Friday<br />
and Saturday evening beginning <strong>May</strong> 17th<br />
through October 12th. Mark your calendars<br />
for “Friday Night Live” at the Town<br />
Square on Main Street or “Saturdays on<br />
Pine” held at Kelsey-Hutchinson Founders<br />
Park where you can hear local and regional<br />
musicians perform all season long.<br />
Another amazing way for families to explore<br />
nature together is through Bigelow’s<br />
Botanical Excursions (bigelowbotanicalexcursions.com).<br />
Adam Bigelow, a botanist<br />
and horticulturist, leads slow walks in<br />
the woods, teaching about native plants<br />
gears his talks to the ages and interests<br />
of the participants, noting that younger<br />
kids are quickly fascinated and awestruck<br />
by what they see, and teens particularly<br />
enjoy learning about poisonous plants and<br />
exploding seed pods. Bigelow’s walks take<br />
place on Fridays from March to October,<br />
with morning and afternoon options. He is<br />
also available for private group walks at a<br />
location of the group’s choosing. He recommends<br />
joining his email list (bigelownc@<br />
gmail.com) to learn about the location of<br />
the weekly walks, as well as other presentations<br />
and workshops.<br />
The Highlands Biological Station is<br />
a must-see for families. It features a research<br />
movies on their phones after examining<br />
a pair of butterfly wings. Another section<br />
of the Nature Center features live snakes,<br />
turtles, salamanders, toads, crawfish, and<br />
snails. There is also a gift shop and a large<br />
exhibit room filled with Cherokee artifacts<br />
and history, local geology, and a display<br />
about the forest canopy. On Tuesday<br />
nights, visitors can enjoy fun programs<br />
like Going Batty, Salamander Meander,<br />
and Amazing Moths.<br />
From June through August, the Nature<br />
Center offers 4-day nature day camps for<br />
children ages 5-13. Kids participate in nature<br />
hikes, “discovery voyages” where the<br />
children pick a topic and explore the garden<br />
looking for examples, water quality<br />
PHOTO PROVIDED BY BIGELOW’S BOTANICAL EXCURSIONS<br />
and wildflowers and telling stories about<br />
indigenous folk ways. His goal is to reconnect<br />
people with nature, and to educate<br />
them about plants and their connection to<br />
us. “Almost anyone can do these walks,”<br />
he says. “We’ll wander in the woods for 2<br />
hours, and at the end of the walk, we’re<br />
only 20 minutes from where we parked.”<br />
Bigelow combats what he calls “plant<br />
blindness” by awakening people’s desire to<br />
explore and see the beauty and significance<br />
of the abundant plant life in the area. He<br />
Summer camp session through the Nature Center at<br />
the Highlands Biological Station. Photos provided by<br />
the Highlands Biological Foundation.<br />
and teaching lab, a nature center and<br />
natural history museum, and a 12-acre<br />
garden with trails and boardwalks, including<br />
a bog with carnivorous plants! The<br />
Nature Center is an interactive experience<br />
that features an exploration room for<br />
younger kids with labeled specimens and<br />
a microscope, an x-ray machine for examining<br />
birds and reptiles, a fluorescent<br />
rock exhibit, and a reading corner. Holly<br />
Theobald, Lead Education Specialist, says<br />
she’s seen children tell stories and make<br />
testing, and soil analysis, as well as making<br />
crafts and playing games. Camps fill<br />
up fast, so register as early as possible. Go<br />
to their website (www.highlandsbiological.<br />
org) and sign up for their e-newsletter for<br />
updates on programming.<br />
(Left) Bigelow’s Botanical Excursions, led by Adam<br />
Bigelow, a botanist and horticulturist, offers<br />
wonderful opportunities to learn about native<br />
plants and wildflowers as well as indigenous folk<br />
ways. Fridays from March to October.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 69
The Pisgah Astronomical Research<br />
Institute, known as PARI, is another<br />
amazing site filled with intriguing history<br />
and exhibits. Located in the Pisgah National<br />
Forest, the site was first used by NASA<br />
in 1963 to communicate with satellites and<br />
manned space flights over the East coast,<br />
then by the Department of Defense from<br />
1981 to 1995, initially to intercept Russian<br />
satellite communications during the Cold<br />
War. In 1998, it became a research and<br />
education facility. It is a certified Dark Sky<br />
Park due to its low light pollution. Laura<br />
Galloway, in charge of Press Relations,<br />
says that “sometimes it’s so dark, it’s scary.”<br />
But this makes for exceptional viewing of<br />
the Milky Way, meteor showers, and other<br />
nighttime sky phenomena.<br />
PARI offers guided gallery tours where<br />
people can touch space shuttle artifacts<br />
and other objects that have been to space<br />
as well as meteorites that have fallen to<br />
earth, and view an extensive collection<br />
of rocks and minerals. Visitors can also<br />
explore the campus on foot, take a guided<br />
outdoor site and history tour on a shuttle<br />
van, and participate in evening optical<br />
viewings with a PARI astronomer. Upcoming<br />
events can be found on their website<br />
(www.pari.edu) and include solar eclipse<br />
and meteor shower viewings and Space<br />
Day. They also offer one and two-week<br />
overnight camps throughout the summer<br />
where kids can plan a mission to another<br />
planet, learn the research process used by<br />
professionals in space science, and explore<br />
lunar and Martian geography. The camps<br />
are extremely popular, so campers should<br />
be registered by early <strong>May</strong>.<br />
Whitewater Equestrian Center’s<br />
trail riding expeditions (www.funhorse-<br />
backriding.com) gets rave reviews from<br />
visitors. Guides are praised for their focus<br />
on safety and how kind and informative<br />
they are. Their guided trail rides provide<br />
stunning 360-degree views of mountain<br />
ranges and lakes, and guests can even ride<br />
on the Cherokee Footpath, which has been<br />
traveled by the likes of American pioneer<br />
Daniel Boone. Guides make the rides fun<br />
and educational by focusing on local Native<br />
American history. One guest recalls<br />
how a guide, who had “walked the entire<br />
trail with a young girl, holding onto her<br />
horse,” pointed out the different kinds of<br />
native mosses, describing how indigenous<br />
peoples used them.<br />
Brookings Anglers (www.brookingsonline.com)<br />
offers everything you need<br />
for a fly-fishing adventure. Families can<br />
schedule half or full-day guided trips, but<br />
PHOTOS PROVIDED BY PARI<br />
70 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
long-time guide Marc Laurin says that a<br />
half day is best for families with younger<br />
kids. He also suggests choosing the option<br />
to fish in private waters because families<br />
will have room to spread out and enjoy<br />
well-managed waters—and likely catch<br />
bigger-than-average fish. To make the<br />
most of a trip, children need to be able to<br />
safely wade in and out of water, so 8 years<br />
old is a good minimum guideline. All gear<br />
and instruction are provided, as well as<br />
lunch if guests book a full day of fishing.<br />
Brookings also offers float trips and fishing<br />
school. Laurin advises booking 1-2<br />
months in advance if possible.<br />
Signal Ridge Marina (www.signalridgemarina.com)<br />
offers pontoon boat<br />
rentals for a leisurely day exploring Lake<br />
Glenville and its many beautiful coves and<br />
waterfalls. They also rent tritoons, which<br />
go up to 30 mph and are a good choice for<br />
larger groups who want a little more excitement,<br />
as well as canoes, kayaks, and<br />
paddle boards. Rentals are available on<br />
an hourly or daily basis, and dogs are welcome<br />
to join the boating party.<br />
The Highlands Pool Complex is the<br />
place to go for swimming. The locker rooms<br />
are well-appointed, and the entrance fee is<br />
nominal. It has a shallow wading area for<br />
small children, and an extremely popular<br />
pool slide for the more adventurous and confident<br />
swimmers. The Highlands Dog Park,<br />
as well as Harris Lake Park are located<br />
nearby, offering something for everyone – including<br />
furry family members. For more details,<br />
go to www.highlandsnc.org/recreation.<br />
Other fun spots include The Pines Recreation<br />
Area on Lake Glenville, which<br />
offers a beautiful sandy beach and swimming<br />
area, and Earthshine Lodge, home<br />
of the beloved llama hike. For delicious<br />
refreshment, Slabtown Pizza and Crossroads<br />
Custard are family favorites.<br />
Village Green Director Ashlie Mitchell<br />
sums it up: “I genuinely can't think of a<br />
weekend where something isn't going on,<br />
and if there isn't...then that's a good signal<br />
to just enjoy the outdoors and nature that<br />
our village is nestled within!” P<br />
The Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute<br />
(PARI) offers many opportunities for families,<br />
including opportunities to touch space shuttle<br />
artifacts and meteorites that have fallen<br />
to earth as well as exceptional viewing of<br />
the Milky Way, meteor showers and other<br />
nighttime sky phenomena. PARI also offers one<br />
and two-week overnight camps in the summer.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 71
Unlikely Thru-Hiker<br />
Following the Footsteps of “Mr. Fabulous”<br />
By CARLA BECK<br />
MOVING FROM NOVICE TO NATURAL, DERICK LUGO DISCOVERED A PASSION FOR OUTDOOR<br />
adventuring that would eventually transform his savvy New York swag into experienced thru-hiking confidence.<br />
Completing the 14-state Appalachian Trail (AT) in 2012 quickly launched Lugo into a world of bear cables,<br />
backpacks, and blazes. Now, with a presence as an outdoor influencer, Lugo hopes to educate and inspire others<br />
with his motto of “Peace, love & all that good stuff!”<br />
Derick Lugo, Mr. Fabulous,<br />
on the Continental Divide<br />
Trail in 2022.<br />
According to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy,<br />
approximately 3,000 people attempt<br />
a thru-hike of the AT each year, but<br />
only about 25% reach completion. Additionally,<br />
annual surveys report that more than<br />
90% of AT thru-hikers identify as white.<br />
How then did Derick, a Black Hispanic<br />
more at home navigating the city subway<br />
than following trail blazes, complete the<br />
longest hiking-only footpath in the world?<br />
Lugo’s 2019 memoir The Unlikely Thru-<br />
Hiker chronicles his journey from Derick<br />
72 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
to “Mr. Fabulous,” establishing his identity<br />
as an author and athlete. From the<br />
beginning chapters, readers understand<br />
Derick’s willingness to learn from and accept<br />
what is to come supersedes his inexperience.<br />
Lugo admits he was determined<br />
to remain optimistic despite his lack of expertise,<br />
“I had so much going against me,<br />
so the one thing I knew I had to be was<br />
positive.” He approached each morning<br />
focused on his goal, “Katahdin, nothing<br />
less.”<br />
As someone who lived in the vibrant<br />
diversity of New York City, Derick was<br />
unprepared for the surprise and delight<br />
his dreadlocks would initiate on the trail.<br />
“The realization that I may be somewhat<br />
of an anomaly on the Appalachian Trail<br />
gives me much to ponder. Moreover, it<br />
sparks in me a strong desire to share my<br />
experience with those who have never<br />
heard of this long-distance trek. If more<br />
individuals like me, the backcountrychallenged<br />
and the urbanites, were aware
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 73
of this astonishing trail, then perhaps there<br />
would be more outdoorsy types of all colors–<br />
and fewer unlikely thru-hikers.” (The<br />
Unlikely Thru-Hiker). From hosting his<br />
2021 Unlikely Stories Podcast to his most<br />
recent accomplishment of the Continental<br />
Divide Trail (CDT) in 2022, this time as a<br />
sponsored athlete, Derick continues to inspire<br />
other “unlikely” adventurers. In the<br />
ten-year gap between his two long-distance<br />
treks, Derick shares that his presence as a<br />
person of color was still an exception.<br />
With this in mind, Derick concentrates<br />
his attention on finalizing his recent children’s<br />
book and his second memoir with the<br />
working title The Good, Bad, & the Fab: A<br />
Continental Divide Trail Journey. Although<br />
both projects demonstrate Derick’s enthusiasm<br />
for the outdoors, the children’s book reflects<br />
the heart of a younger Derick through<br />
the eyes of “Dex,” a kid growing up in Harlem.<br />
Since Derick plans for “Dex” to grow<br />
along with his audience, fans can expect<br />
a multitude of adventures in what Derick<br />
hopes will be a popular book series. As for<br />
his latest memoir, Derick reveals that “Fab”<br />
was a natural transition from his original<br />
trail name. Thru-hiking camaraderie begs<br />
the question, “What’s the meaning of your<br />
trail name?” Lugo’s reply speaks purely<br />
to his well-known wit, “It’s short for ‘Mr.<br />
74 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
Fabulous,’ but we don’t need to be formal<br />
out here.” So, what do “The Good” and the<br />
“Bad” represent? Did Derick, the AT adventurer,<br />
lose his trademark optimism while<br />
traversing the Rockies on the CDT?<br />
Even on the Appalachian Trail, Lugo admits<br />
there were days he struggled to smile<br />
through the harsh weather and terrain.<br />
Whether it was the unexpected snow in the<br />
Smokies, the unrelenting rocks in Pennsylvania,<br />
or the uncomfortable drenching rain,<br />
Derick never denied the intensity of the<br />
journey. He simply decided to accept it: “The<br />
most essential tool I have is acceptance.<br />
Rain will be part of my thru-hike, no matter<br />
what. I will have to trek through areas<br />
that may have significant snowfall early in<br />
spring and endure thunderstorms that can<br />
hit with little warning. This journey will go<br />
better if I don’t dread and curse the things I<br />
cannot control.” (The Unlikely Thru-Hiker).<br />
Derick carries this lesson with him as<br />
he prepares for his next adventures. First,<br />
he is planning a “redemption” hike of Vermont’s<br />
almost 300-mile Long Trail this<br />
coming September. Derick had attempted<br />
an earlier hike along the trail but had to<br />
abandon it due to illness. In the months<br />
before he begins The Long Trail, Derick<br />
will split his time between putting the final<br />
touches on his manuscript, hiking along<br />
nearby trails, and traveling for speaking<br />
engagements. He has a new appreciation<br />
for “protecting your peace at all costs” as<br />
he avoids outside distractions that threaten<br />
to suffocate his artistic creativity. Derick<br />
strives to build connections and relationships<br />
more than accumulate things, understanding<br />
that it is the people he meets who<br />
provide the “stories behind” his adventures.<br />
Once Derick returns from hiking The<br />
Long Trail, he will set his sights on earning<br />
his status as a “Triple-Crown Thru-Hiker.”<br />
This distinction is for hikers who have<br />
completed the Appalachian Trail, The Continental<br />
Divide Trail, and The Pacific Crest<br />
Trail (PCT). With more than 100 mountain<br />
passes and a significant portion of the trail<br />
classified as wilderness, the PCT usually<br />
takes about five months of dedicated hiking<br />
to complete. Undoubtedly, Derick will<br />
meet those challenges with his signature<br />
mantra, “Peace, love, & all that good stuff!”<br />
Lugo plans to tackle the PCT in the Spring<br />
of 2025, and fans can once again expect him<br />
to bring us along in a third memoir soon<br />
after. In the meantime, you can purchase<br />
Derick’s first memoir The Unlikely Thru-<br />
Hiker: An Appalachian Trail Journey at<br />
all major bookstores. For a signed copy, as<br />
well as a list of Lugo’s upcoming events,<br />
visit www.dericklugo.com. P
Derick Lugo at the<br />
summit Katahdin, the<br />
Northern Terminus of<br />
the AT.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 75
Architect Chris Barth of Meyer Greeson<br />
Paullin Benson Architecture/Interiors<br />
made sure this Craftsman-style home<br />
in High Hampton fit seamlessly into its<br />
surroundings.<br />
PICTURE LOOKING OUT ON A GORGEOUS SPRING<br />
afternoon. The bright blue sky is dotted with fluffy, white<br />
clouds, and birds are gleefully flitting around in the warm<br />
sun. The promise of a well-earned, relaxing weekend is<br />
ahead—but so is gridlocked, endless traffic on I-85 in<br />
Atlanta. Reality will lean more on the side of honking horns and wailing<br />
sirens. A thirty-minute commute will likely take an hour or more. For<br />
Teddy and Courtney Russell, having a place for their family to escape<br />
the everyday hustle and bustle of their busy lives in Atlanta became a<br />
top priority.<br />
When the Russells began dating over twenty years ago, they<br />
often traveled to Highlands as part of their courtship. Both have<br />
a love of the outdoors, and they were attracted to the bountiful<br />
hiking trails and fly-fishing opportunities as well as the award-<br />
76 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
A True Family<br />
Getaway<br />
Togetherness and adventure<br />
High Hampton style<br />
By BRITTANY CONLEY<br />
Photos by GIL STOSE PHOTOGRAPHY<br />
The Landscape Architect and owner<br />
of ruho Designs, Jesse Holt, worked<br />
with the homeowners to ensure<br />
the landscaping honored the native<br />
plant pallet and complemented the<br />
architectural design of the home.<br />
winning golf. But there’s plenty to do outside of Highlands, as<br />
well. “For the past seven years, we’ve fallen in love with Cashiers<br />
from visiting friends who have homes in the area,” says Courtney<br />
Russell, who adds that the pandemic was the final push<br />
they needed to purchase their own home-away-from-home on the<br />
Highlands-Cashiers <strong>Plateau</strong>.<br />
With three children, ranging from middle school to college,<br />
in tow, it isn’t always easy to find a place that will suit everyone’s<br />
wants and needs, but because the Russells had spent over<br />
twenty years exploring the plateau and already had a local circle<br />
of friends, they knew exactly where they wanted to build their<br />
respite away from the city. “Our family loves to be active. Our oldest<br />
son plays a lot of golf, our daughter plays soccer year-round,<br />
and our youngest plays basketball, lacrosse and also loves golf.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 77
We all love to play pickleball, and it's one of the things we can<br />
play together,” says Mrs. Russell. Naturally, the family had their<br />
hearts set on building a home in a place that could provide all of<br />
that and more: the High Hampton community. “[High Hampton]<br />
has really become a special place for our family as there is so<br />
much we are able to do together,” adds Mrs. Russell.<br />
With the primary goal being a place that would provide ample<br />
time for adventure and togetherness, the Russells got to work,<br />
hiring Lehotsky & Sons Builders, a group known to share the<br />
same values when it comes to family. Aside from the stunning<br />
gallery of custom homes, whole and partial remodeling projects,<br />
additions, and renovations, one of the first things that stands out<br />
while browsing their website is the emphasis on a special vow<br />
they make to clients. “We treat all our clients like members of our<br />
extended family and every home as if it were our own, regardless<br />
of the size or scope of the project,” reads Lehotskyandsons.com.<br />
78 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Atlanta-based interior<br />
designer Jessica Bradley<br />
of Jessica Bradley Interiors<br />
worked with the light<br />
to create cozy, inviting<br />
spaces.<br />
Floor-to-ceiling windows can be<br />
found throughout this lovely home,<br />
effectively bringing the outdoors in.<br />
John Lehotsky, owner and founder of Lehotsky & Sons, hasn’t<br />
always lived on the plateau, nor did he mean to become a permanent<br />
resident. “My parents actually found the area, and I came<br />
to build their retirement home. During that process, I met the<br />
Schmitt Brothers in Highlands and ended up working for them<br />
for years before I branched out on my own,” says Lehotsky. After<br />
he met his wife, life here just made sense, and together the<br />
Lehotskys (just like the Russells) have three children. “We have<br />
raised three boys on this mountain and just love the people, climate<br />
and views,” he adds, which is one reason he founded his own<br />
firm in 2005. The Russells appreciated that Mr. Lehotsky was so<br />
engaged throughout the entire build process, and John Lehotsky<br />
was glad to expand his close-knit clientele. “Teddy and Courtney<br />
are great fun to be around, and we have enjoyed welcoming them<br />
into the family,” he says.<br />
Building a home in High Hampton is something all area builders<br />
look forward to, for a variety of reasons. “High Hampton is a<br />
place synonymous with Cashiers. We have built several homes<br />
for people who had come to High Hampton for years as children—<br />
and now come with their own children and grandchildren,” says<br />
Lehotsky. “The Golf course is stunning; the new facilities are<br />
amazing; and it’s a great place to bring your family and enjoy the<br />
surroundings.”<br />
The Russells wanted to keep things classic, but chic. “Because<br />
this was a second home to us, we really wanted a simple floor plan<br />
designed around capturing the view and efficient use of the space<br />
based on family needs,” says Mrs. Russell. They felt the best way<br />
to achieve this was to rely on an open concept, something that<br />
would allow the family to feel as if they were really sharing the<br />
space. The Craftsman-style plan from architect Chris Barth of<br />
Meyer Greeson Paullin Benson Architecture/Interiors was one<br />
they fell in love with immediately, for it provided spaciousness<br />
while maintaining a cozy atmosphere.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 79
The kitchen is part of an open-floor concept<br />
that promotes togetherness and brings<br />
the outdoors in. Lehotsky & Sons Builders<br />
did a masterful job making the vision of<br />
the homeowners come to life, taking full<br />
advantage of the plentiful light.<br />
“Our top priority was to create an indoor [and] outdoor space<br />
that felt seamless. We have a large opening from the kitchen to<br />
the outdoor screened porch. We pretty much leave this open all<br />
day. The divider is an accordion style door that can be pushed all<br />
the way to one side, opening the space and bringing the outdoors<br />
in,” says Mrs. Russell. Bringing the outside in was a major theme<br />
for the Russells and their Atlanta-based interior designer, Jessica<br />
Bradley of Jessica Bradley Interiors. They accomplished this<br />
in many ways, including utilizing floor-to-ceiling windows in as<br />
many spaces as made sense. “I am a huge fan of natural light, so<br />
it was extremely important for me to have lots of windows....The<br />
whole front and back of the house [are all] large paned windows.<br />
You can see right through the back of the house from the front.”<br />
The exterior of the home needed to be just as spectacular as the<br />
home itself. Teddy Russell is a veritable expert in landscaping,<br />
as owner of a commercial landscaping firm that services several<br />
80 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
The home decor is classic,<br />
but chic and offers a<br />
perpetual nod to the<br />
breathtaking surrounds.<br />
major cities and states. For their High Hampton home, however,<br />
they hired landscape architect and owner of ruho Designs, Jesse<br />
Holt. The joint expertise shines with an unassuming asphalt<br />
drive and motor court that is hidden by a garden wall. “The goal<br />
of the landscaping was to honor the native plant pallet and provide<br />
a complement to the architectural details of the craftsman<br />
home without feeling heavy-handed with an over design of the<br />
surrounding,” says Mr. Russell. In sync with nature, they purposefully<br />
placed plants in a natural, unorderly way to mimic a<br />
cottage garden in the front. The back of the property, however,<br />
was a bit more intentional. “We added symmetry with the grove<br />
style planting to create a focal point drawing you towards the<br />
dry laid boulder and the rock face of Chimney Top." What family<br />
wouldn’t enjoy their very own, private view of one of the area’s<br />
most iconic places?<br />
Since the pandemic, many families are realizing the importance<br />
of togetherness and fostering community. Thanks to the<br />
exceedingly talented team at Lehotsky & Sons, the Russell<br />
family has a High Hampton home that will provide them with<br />
generations of warm memories. If you’d like to learn more about<br />
Lehotsky & Sons Builders and the services they offer, you can<br />
visit them online at www.LehotskyAndSons.com, stop by their<br />
office at 87 Chestnut Square in Cashiers or give them a call at<br />
828-743-5864.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 81
Large and plentiful<br />
windows give this<br />
Craftsman-style home<br />
the feel of a retreat.<br />
82 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Architectural details add to the chic<br />
feel of this family lodge, tucked deep<br />
inside High Hampton.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 83
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dining review chef profile in the kitchen restaurant guide<br />
Cara Cara<br />
Panna Cotta<br />
A delectable tasting menu<br />
at Roots & Vine<br />
PHOTO CAROLE SHEPARDSON<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 85
Haute Cuisine<br />
Roots & Vine offers an experience like no other<br />
By KAY WEST » Photos by CAROLE SHEPARDSON<br />
490 Carolina Way<br />
Highlands, NC 28741<br />
Thursday - Sunday<br />
5:00 - 8:30 PM<br />
AS THE 2023 SUMMER<br />
season was winding down<br />
in Highlands, and autumn<br />
awaited its turn, Curtis<br />
Higgins was preparing to<br />
open a restaurant and looking for the right<br />
chef. Kalen Fortuna was an experienced chef<br />
looking for the right restaurant that would<br />
allow him free rein of expression.<br />
Fortuitously, the stars aligned to bring<br />
the seekers together, and the glorious outcome<br />
is Roots & Vine, an elegant, intimate<br />
space with lofty aspirations, offering a<br />
dining experience unlike any other on the<br />
plateau.<br />
Higgins—with decades under his own<br />
apron as a professional chef—originally<br />
intended the small building on a wooded<br />
corner lot to be Prime Highlands Steakhouse.<br />
That changed when he met Fortuna<br />
and his partner/sous chef Rose Rumpel.<br />
Fortuna grew up on Isle of Pines and<br />
grew into being an executive chef at highprofile<br />
resorts and restaurants such as<br />
Little Palm Island off the Florida Keys and<br />
Peninsula Grill in Charleston. Taking a<br />
breather from large dining rooms, he was<br />
“hanging out” with his friend Cassidee<br />
Dabney, executive chef at Blackberry Farm,<br />
pondering his next move when he was<br />
alerted to an opportunity in Highlands.<br />
Despite having no interest in a steakhouse,<br />
he made the drive to meet Higgins at what<br />
was planned as a steakhouse.<br />
“I had interviewed about 25 chefs, and<br />
none were right,” Higgins recalls. “When I<br />
met Kalen and Rose, it kind of clicked that<br />
we should do a tasting menu.”<br />
It was a perfect match. “I wanted to team<br />
up with someone who wanted to offer the<br />
best in the area,” Fortuna says. “Who saw<br />
the value in extending hospitality beyond a<br />
meal to an experience.”<br />
(Above:) Katahdin lamb raised in Eastern<br />
Pennsylvania. Lamb ground into sausage<br />
with Lebanese seasoning piped into a slice<br />
of sirloin, rolled in a collard leaf, wrapped in<br />
caul, seared and cut into discs, topped with an<br />
heirloom carrot emulsion. (Right): Airy yeast<br />
rolls tucked in a linen napkin, golden tops<br />
glistening with salted honey, the perch for<br />
sliced Lady Edison Ham.<br />
The steakhouse was chopped, and in its<br />
place a multi-course, prix fixe tasting menu<br />
culling the freshest ingredients from local<br />
producers was borne, offering unique items<br />
from Appalachia’s vast expanse with everything<br />
from vinegars to butter made in house.<br />
Over the holidays, Fortuna and Rumpel<br />
suggested to Higgins a name change to better<br />
reflect what was coming out of the kitchen;<br />
in January, Roots & Vine made its debut.<br />
The menu has also evolved since the<br />
86 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
opening and will continue to do so. “It’s<br />
kind of a living concept,” explains Fortuna.<br />
“We eased into it when we opened, aware<br />
that the idea of a no-choices menu might<br />
not work right off the bat. We introduced<br />
a tasting menu with four of the six courses<br />
having options.”<br />
Because the product is sourced seasonally,<br />
dishes will change frequently, month<br />
to month, or week to week should Fortuna<br />
and Rumpel perfect an idea they’ve worked<br />
on and feel it’s ready for its reveal. The<br />
winter <strong>2024</strong> menu will be far different<br />
than the opening winter 2023 menu; Fortuna<br />
is actively developing relationships<br />
(Above:) Interior of Roots & Vine in Highlands. The interior is lush and elegant, boasting buttery<br />
leather banquettes and upholstered modern armchairs; (Left, top:) Cara Cara panna cotta<br />
layered in a mold with Grand Marnier coulis, toasted vanilla and orange ice cream, crowned<br />
with a delicate tuille cookie; (Left, bottom:) Left to right: Sous Chef Rose Rumpel and Chef Kalen<br />
Fortuna at Roots & Vine in Highlands.<br />
with local farmers and fishermen, and the<br />
Roots & Vine pantry will be stocked with<br />
items from spring, summer and fall harvests<br />
Fortuna preserves, pickles or cures.<br />
Fortuna credits his maternal grandmother<br />
in Appalachian Ohio and Kentucky with<br />
demonstrating those techniques and values,<br />
as well as the cast iron skillet he uses to<br />
sear WNC-sourced Wagyu striploin that is<br />
the luscious segue from entrée to dessert.<br />
The bread course would be right at home<br />
on any southern table, albeit more sophisticated<br />
than country ham and biscuits. Airy<br />
yeast rolls are tucked into a linen napkin,<br />
golden tops glistening with salted honey,<br />
the perch for sliced Lady Edison Ham. A<br />
seashell is a whimsical ramekin for cultured<br />
butter made in house, centered with<br />
blackberry chutney, sprinkled with toasted<br />
sunflower seed crumble.<br />
The first course will likely be chilled –<br />
in March one option was beet salad with<br />
smoked Kentucky bleu cheese, Cara Cara<br />
orange and candied pecans.<br />
Fortuna calls the North Carolina yellowfin<br />
tuna dish a tribute to his paternal<br />
grandmother, a Lebanese immigrant who<br />
had a restaurant in Detroit for 20 years.<br />
Helping in that kitchen, he discovered<br />
his calling. “I grew up eating my grandmother’s<br />
kibbeh,” he says. “In Lebanon it’s<br />
a raw lamb dish, but because I grew up on<br />
the water and lived in Key West, I like to<br />
experiment with seafood.”<br />
The tuna is dry aged on site, cubed and<br />
tossed in a sauce with flavor profiles of cinnamon<br />
and all-spice, resting on a mound<br />
of labneh (Lebanese yogurt) in a puddle of<br />
chive oil. Marcona almonds add crunch<br />
and clusters of tiny white pearls are likely<br />
everyone’s introduction to eggs harvested<br />
from snails raised in the mountains of New<br />
York state. Unlike traditional caviar’s hint<br />
of ocean, the taste is of moss and pine.<br />
Katahdin lamb raised in Eastern Pennsylvania<br />
lands in a subsequent course, in<br />
two forms – sausage with Lebanese seasoning<br />
piped into a slice of sirloin, rolled<br />
in a collard leaf, wrapped in caul, sous vid,<br />
seared, cut into discs, topped with an heirloom<br />
carrot emulsion.<br />
Memories of childhood trips to the mall<br />
with his mom are behind Fortuna’s Orange<br />
Julius-inspired dessert of Cara Cara<br />
panna cotta layered in a mold with Grand<br />
Marnier coulis, toasted vanilla and orange<br />
ice cream, crowned with a delicate tuille<br />
cookie.<br />
Décor in the main dining room and windowed<br />
side room is minimalist—reflecting<br />
Curtis and Julie Higgins' personal taste<br />
—providing a pristine canvas for the main<br />
show; buttery leather banquettes and upholstered,<br />
modern armchairs comfortably<br />
seat a maximum of 45 diners.<br />
“We’re not for everyone,” says Higgins.<br />
“We’re not big enough to be for everyone.<br />
We are for people looking for an experience<br />
they can’t get anywhere else. Our goal is to<br />
be the best restaurant in North Carolina.” P<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 87
chef profile<br />
The Story in Food<br />
Chef Rodney’s creations nourish the soul<br />
By MARIANNE LEEK » Photos by CAROLE SHEPARDSON<br />
THERE’S SOMETHING SPECIAL<br />
about cooking for and feeding<br />
others, and that sentiment is not<br />
lost on Chef Rodney Smith of<br />
The Ruffed Grouse Tavern, the<br />
full-service restaurant of The Highlander<br />
Mountain House. He explained what makes<br />
the creative process of preparing a meal so<br />
meaningful, “There's just that feeling of<br />
creating a dish that will take someone to a<br />
level of happiness or bring people together.<br />
Food has always been at the center of just<br />
about anything important. It's a need to<br />
sustain life; it's a restoration of the soul, a<br />
transfer of energy from one item or being to<br />
another. The science behind it is romantic<br />
in its own way. If someone is enjoying the<br />
food I create, my takeaway is that they are<br />
restored for the next day. It's why we’re<br />
always creating, always going to the next<br />
step, and asking ourselves in the kitchen,<br />
‘Am I happy with this?’"<br />
That level of excellence and expertise, as<br />
well as his approach to creating both beautiful<br />
and nourishing meals, was immediately<br />
apparent to owner Jason Reeves, and<br />
he is excited to welcome Chef Rodney, “who<br />
brings years of experience in some of the<br />
country’s best kitchens to Highlands and is<br />
unveiling incredible new seasonal menus<br />
inspired by the bevy of local produce and<br />
ingredients available in the area.” The<br />
Ruffed Grouse Tavern is an intimate, English-style<br />
country pub and Appalachian<br />
tavern that has become an important gathering<br />
spot for locals and travelers alike. It’s<br />
the perfect place to enjoy a delicious locally<br />
sourced, seasonal meal, relax over a pint<br />
and a gourmet burger, or gather with your<br />
friends for Bluegrass Sunday Brunch.<br />
Chef Rodney grew up in the Midwest<br />
and graduated in 2010 from the Arts Institute<br />
of Minnesota with a Bachelor of<br />
Applied Science in Culinary Arts, but his<br />
love of cooking started long before that.<br />
“It really became evident that I wanted to<br />
be a chef in my early teens when I began<br />
to write recipe ideas and test them on my<br />
sometimes-reluctant mother. She has inspired<br />
most of my work ethic and, in fact,<br />
has been my biggest supporter throughout<br />
my career.” You might even say cooking<br />
is in Chef Rodney’s DNA, as he was<br />
deeply influenced by his grandfather, who<br />
was also a chef and restaurant owner in<br />
Wisconsin. “When I was growing up, my<br />
grandfather seemed so much like a superhero;<br />
he seemed so strong, like the guy you<br />
wanted in your corner through the hardest<br />
times. One of my greatest wishes is that<br />
my grandfather was still around, and the<br />
two of us could throw on a couple of aprons<br />
and start working up the latest creation to<br />
inspire. Unfortunately, he passed when I<br />
was still pretty young.”<br />
There’s no doubt Chef Rodney’s grandfather<br />
would be proud of his grandson’s career<br />
journey, which started in Minnesota and<br />
later took him to some of the most esteemed<br />
kitchens in the South, before eventually<br />
bringing him to Highlands. “After 18 years<br />
in Minnesota, I felt I needed to branch<br />
out and learn new foods and techniques<br />
outside of the Twin Cities. So, I decided<br />
to travel and work around the country for<br />
the next 3.5 years learning new techniques<br />
and ideas, and working with whoever was<br />
willing to teach. I landed in Atlanta in December<br />
of 2019 for an executive role within<br />
Proof of the Pudding.” During his time in<br />
Atlanta, Smith also served as a culinary<br />
director for Perfectly Portioned Nutrition<br />
meal prep, and 5K Hospitality, and he was<br />
instrumental in helping 5Church transition<br />
to a farm-to-table model.<br />
But one of his most valuable culinary<br />
learning experiences was owning and operating<br />
a food truck, The Northern Nomad.<br />
“My biggest takeaway from the 2 years with<br />
my business was really digging in for a<br />
(Above):Chef Rodney Smith of The Ruffed<br />
Grouse Tavern, the full-service restaurant of<br />
The Highlander Mountain House.<br />
88 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
udget from nothing. Secondly, I would have<br />
to say self-confidence and reliability. I've<br />
learned a lot about myself - that if I show<br />
up and be honest about what I believe in<br />
cuisine-wise, people will believe it as well.”<br />
He explained that the creative element of<br />
cooking is much like telling a good story,<br />
“I'm sitting with you and telling a story and<br />
you're following along with every plot twist.”<br />
Smith’s time in Atlanta also taught him<br />
the importance of work-life balance, “I<br />
nearly worked myself into the ER twice.<br />
As a result, I learned to rest when needed,<br />
whether that be mentally or physically.”<br />
When he’s not in the kitchen at Ruffed<br />
Grouse, you’ll likely catch him outdoors,<br />
“In any off-time I allow myself, I'd have to<br />
say spending quality time with Micala on<br />
our many adventures is my favorite.”<br />
Chef Rodney discussed what brought<br />
him and his partner Micala to Highlands,<br />
“Inner peace and the Highlander Mountain<br />
House itself brought me to Highlands.<br />
During the process of getting to know Jason<br />
and what he was inspired to turn The<br />
Ruffed Grouse into, I visited a few times<br />
and honestly fell in love with the area.<br />
It very quickly became evident that this<br />
would be my next home.”<br />
Smith is grateful that his life’s journey<br />
brought him to the plateau, and he looks<br />
forward to building a life here. “Being able<br />
to start my day overlooking the Appalachians<br />
and to take in the smell of crisp, clean<br />
air as I'm running to the basement for vegetables<br />
really hits home. I'm here to stay<br />
for as long as the community will let me. I<br />
love this place and I have so many culinary<br />
stories to tell.” P<br />
(Right, from top): Potato Bisque garnished<br />
with charred wood oil, togarashi and osetra<br />
cavier; Whipped Ricotta dressed with peppered<br />
honey and served with cranberry-walnut toast;<br />
Signature Cappuccino; A French 75 made with<br />
Empress 1908 Indigo Gin, an Old Fashioned<br />
with Maraschino cherry juice, and an espresso<br />
martini, a customer favorite.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 89
Fresh Spring<br />
Delights<br />
Photos<br />
and Recipes by<br />
KAITLIN GOODING<br />
90 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
As the weather starts to warm up,<br />
we begin looking to those bright spring<br />
vegetables and fruits for new recipe<br />
inspiration. Although spring temperatures<br />
can bring some hot days, don’t let it deter<br />
you from trying this delicious beet<br />
soup. Make the spring salad for a light<br />
side or pair it with the seared salmon for<br />
a show-stopping main dish. Toss the salad<br />
with the Dijon dressing for a salad you<br />
won’t be able to resist. And these protein<br />
balls will upstage any candy tempting<br />
you this Easter and will leave you feeling<br />
full longer. Cool off one afternoon in the<br />
shade with this fresh strawberry banana<br />
smoothie or start your day off right and<br />
enjoy one for breakfast.<br />
Beet Soup<br />
Servings: 2-3<br />
Ingredients<br />
2 russet potatoes (peeled, diced)<br />
2 small beets (peeled, dliced)<br />
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice<br />
1 tsp sugar<br />
2 tbsp butter<br />
1/2 onion (minced)<br />
1 garlic clove<br />
2 cups chicken broth<br />
1/2 cup heavy cream<br />
Salt & pepper<br />
Chopped fresh dill to garnish<br />
Radish, thinly sliced to garnish<br />
Directions:<br />
1. Preheat oven. Add potatoes and beets to<br />
a bowl and toss in olive oil. Add the vegetables<br />
to a rimmed baking sheet, season<br />
with salt & pepper. Roast in the oven until<br />
beets and potatoes are tender, about 30-<br />
35 minutes. Remove from the oven.<br />
2. Add a large saucepan to your stove and<br />
cook the onions, potatoes, garlic, sugar,<br />
and beets in the butter and cook for 5<br />
minutes. Add the broth, salt & pepper<br />
(as desired), let simmer for 15 minutes.<br />
Transfer to a blender and mix until smooth.<br />
3. Pour the soup back into the saucepan<br />
and mix in the cream and lemon<br />
juice. Continue stirring the soup until<br />
warmed though. Pour into your bowls<br />
and garnish with dill and radish slices.<br />
Arugula Spring Salad<br />
Servings: 2<br />
Ingredients<br />
2 cups spinach<br />
2 cups arugula<br />
1 cup fennel (thinly sliced)<br />
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds<br />
1-2 thinly sliced radishes<br />
1/2 cup Parmesan (grated)<br />
Salt/ Pepper (as desired)<br />
Dijon Dressing<br />
Ingredients<br />
Pinch of kosher salt<br />
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil<br />
1 tbsp honey<br />
1 garlic clove (minced)<br />
1/2 tbsp shallot (minced)<br />
1/2 tsp Dijon<br />
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice<br />
1 tsp red wine vinegar<br />
Directions:<br />
1. Mix spinach and arugula together and<br />
create a bed of greens on the plates.<br />
2. Thinly slice the radish and fennel<br />
and add to the plated greens.<br />
3. Add the pumpkin seeds and fresh grated<br />
cheese on top. Add the delicious Dijon<br />
vinaigrette (see below) or dressing<br />
of choice. Season with salt & pepper.<br />
Add the seared salmon for a more<br />
substantial meal. (see next page)<br />
Directions:<br />
1. Add all ingredients to a blender to<br />
blend smooth. If you don’t have one<br />
available, add ingredients to a mason<br />
jar and shake until dressing is well<br />
mixed.<br />
2. Put it in the refrigerator in an airtight<br />
container and use up to a week.<br />
Shake before using.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 91
Simple Seared Salmon<br />
Servings: 2<br />
Ingredients<br />
2 salmon filets<br />
2 tbsp olive oil<br />
Salt & pepper to season<br />
Cast Iron Skillet<br />
Directions:<br />
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F<br />
2. Add skillet to stove top and pour olive oil in. Heat<br />
the skillet to medium or medium/high.<br />
3. Season your salmon with salt and pepper. Once the oil is<br />
warmed through, add your salmon flesh side down and<br />
cook for 5-6 minutes or until it has a brown crisp layer.<br />
4. Flip the salmon skin side down and transfer to the oven<br />
for 5-6 minutes or until it is cooked all the way through<br />
Be careful not to overcook.<br />
5. Add on top of our arugula spring salad for a delicious dinner.<br />
92 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
Protein Ball Snack<br />
Ingredients<br />
1/4 cup coconut flakes (unsweetened)<br />
1 tsp cinnamon<br />
1/2 tsp vanilla<br />
1/2 cup water<br />
1.5 cups almonds<br />
1/4 cup flax meal<br />
1 serving vanilla protein (of choice) *optional<br />
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips<br />
Directions:<br />
1. Add all ingredients into a high-powered blender<br />
and mix until it has formed a dough-like<br />
consistency.<br />
2. Remove the dough from the blender and add the<br />
chocolate chips, mixing it all in.<br />
3. Roll the dough into one-inch balls.<br />
4. You can eat right away or refrigerate in an airtight<br />
container and enjoy throughout the week.<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 93
Strawberry-Banana Smoothie<br />
Servings: 2<br />
Ingredients<br />
1 banana (can use fresh or frozen)<br />
2 cups strawberries (can use frozen or fresh)<br />
1 cup milk (can substitute nondairy or water)<br />
1/2 tsp vanilla extract<br />
1/2 tsp cinnamon<br />
1/2 cup ice (if not using frozen fruit)<br />
1 tbsp peanut butter (can substitute almond butter<br />
or other alternative)<br />
Directions:<br />
1. Add all ingredients into a blender<br />
and blend until smooth.<br />
2. Pour into a cup and enjoy.container and enjoy.<br />
94 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
JJUUUNEE 5 ---- 2222222222 JJUUULY 222224 ---- AUUUG... 11110 OCCT... 11111111 ---- 2222266 DEECC... 66 ---- 222221111<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 95
Airy yeast rolls<br />
tucked in a linen<br />
napkin, golden tops<br />
glistening with salted<br />
honey, the perch for<br />
sliced Lady Edison<br />
Ham at Roots & Vine.<br />
Whiteside Brewing Co. (C) 128 Hwy 107,<br />
828-743-6000. Serving up American pub-grub<br />
with handcrafted beers that change seasonally.<br />
Wings, paninis, soups, salads, burgers and<br />
sandwiches. Try the Whiteside burger, salmon<br />
BLT or the Reuben. Large outside seating area<br />
and several TVs for watching your favorite<br />
sports. Lunch and dinner. Closed on Wed.<br />
Asian<br />
Asia House (H) 151 Helens Barn Ave., 828-<br />
787-1680. Authentic Asian eatery serving<br />
Chinese, Japanese and Thai dishes, including<br />
sushi, hibachi, soups and curry. Kani<br />
salad, red snapper, beef and scallops and red<br />
curry chicken are some of the favorites. Full<br />
bar. Lunch and dinner. Closed on Wed.<br />
Bakery<br />
American<br />
Ready to Eat?<br />
Use our restaurant listings to find the best<br />
eating and drinking on the plateau.<br />
4118 Kitchen + Bar (H) 64 Highlands<br />
Plaza, 828-526-5002. With a casual dining<br />
ambience, this New American cuisine eatery<br />
offers a delectable menu that changes seasonally,<br />
using fresh, local ingredients. Craft<br />
cocktails, beer and wine. Lunch and dinner<br />
Tue-Sun.<br />
Cornucopia Restaurant (C) 16 Cashiers<br />
School Rd., 828-743-3750. A cozy open-air<br />
cottage is a local staple, serving an American<br />
menu of soups, salads, sandwiches and entrees.<br />
Try their Savannah crab cakes, trout<br />
piccata, chicken pot pie or famous house<br />
Reuben. Lunch and dinner, seasonally.<br />
Panthertown Cafe (T) 16614 Rosman Hwy,<br />
828-883-5551. A casual and family-friendly<br />
eatery serving country-style breakfast and<br />
lunch. Eggs, bacon and biscuits, and tasty<br />
burgers and sandwiches. 7:30 a.m. - 3 p.m.<br />
Mon-Fri (Sat-Sun seasonally).<br />
Mica’s Restaurant & Pub (S) 25 Logan<br />
Creek Trail, 828-743-5740. A down-home tavern<br />
serving American cuisine like NC rainbow<br />
trout, filet mignon and prime rib. Burgers,<br />
sandwiches, soups, salads and pizza. Large<br />
covered patio with a fire pit and live music. Full<br />
bar, beer and wine. Lunch and dinner daily.<br />
Mountain Fresh Grocery & Wine Market<br />
(H) 521 E. Main St., 828-526-2400. An upscale<br />
grocery and specialty shop that offers a deli,<br />
grill, wood-fired pizza, bakery, butcher and<br />
wine. Stop in for breakfast, lunch or dinner<br />
daily, enjoy a glass of wine or craft beer, or take<br />
home a dinner-to-go during winter season. Catering<br />
and custom cakes are available.<br />
Primary Restaurant + Bar (H) 310 Main St.,<br />
828-526-3555. A contemporary American eatery<br />
with classy digs and a large bar area. Salads,<br />
burgers and sandwiches for lunch and entrees<br />
for dinner. Try the braised lamb shank, sesame<br />
seared ahi tuna and Carolina trout. Full bar,<br />
wine and beer. Lunch and dinner Thurs-Mon.<br />
The Hidden Valley Tavern (S) 3638 US-64,<br />
828-866-3144. High end food from down to earth<br />
people. Blend of American and Italian Cuisine.<br />
For lunch, try the Penne Alla Vodka or Salmon<br />
Piccata. For dinner, try the pecan-crusted trout<br />
or the fillet. Closed Sunday and Monday.<br />
Locations: (C) Cashiers; (H) Highlands; (S) Sapphire; (SM) Scaly Mountain;<br />
(T) Lake Toxaway<br />
Cake Bar (H) 2252 Dillard Road, 828-421-<br />
2042. A cozy speakeasy for the sweet-tooth, offering<br />
decadent handcrafted desserts, wines by<br />
the glass, cappuccino and espresso. Live jazz<br />
on the weekends. Savor on-site or take-out.<br />
Calder's Coffee Cafe (H) 384 Main St., 828-<br />
200-9308. A coffee shop with bagels flown<br />
in from New York, locally-made cinnamon<br />
rolls, authentic Welsh Cakes and a variety of<br />
pastries. Open 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.<br />
Sugar Cloud Baking Company (C) 113<br />
Hwy 64-E, 828-774-9709. An award-winning<br />
bakery and wedding cake boutique. Specializing<br />
in gourmet cupcakes, donuts, Macarons,<br />
cookies, handcrafted pies and custom<br />
cakes. Follow on social media for hours.<br />
Bar/Pub<br />
Highlands Wine Shoppe (H) 269 Oak St.,<br />
828-526-4080. A cozy wine shop with a cellar<br />
collection of rare and hard-to-find wines. Sample<br />
up to 16 wines at the Napa Wine Station.<br />
Gift baskets and Riedel glassware. Open daily.<br />
Satulah Mountain Brewing Company<br />
(H) 454 Carolina Way, 828-482-9794. Producing<br />
a premium craft beer, the brewery offers<br />
8 high-craft beers in their taproom. Try<br />
the Tuckasegee Gold or the Sunset Saison.<br />
Open Thur-Sat.<br />
Sapphire Mountain Brewing Company<br />
(S) 50 Slicers Ave., 828-743-0220. A pubstyle<br />
eatery overlooking Sapphire Mountain<br />
PHOTO CAROLE SHEPARDSON<br />
96 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
and the golf course. Small plates, salads, pub<br />
grub and entrees. Try the smokehouse burger,<br />
steak frites or a wood-fired pizza. Full bar,<br />
wine and several craft beer selections. Lunch<br />
and dinner, Thur-Sun.<br />
SlopeSide Tavern (S) 217 Sapphire Valley<br />
Rd., 828-743-8655. Enjoy a menu where<br />
traditional tavern favorites get a little twist.<br />
Full bar with wine and large selection of local<br />
beers. Indoor and outdoor seating, dog friendly.<br />
Open every day but Tuesday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.<br />
Live music every Thursday from 6 - 9 p.m.<br />
The FIX Restaurant Bar & Lounge (S)<br />
3093 US-64, 828-743-7477. Sapphire's spot<br />
for upscale bar food enhanced with sports bar<br />
amenities. Serves a casual breakfast, lunch<br />
and brunch while dinner brings in a finer<br />
dining experience. Winter hours vary. Closed<br />
Tuesdays.<br />
The High Dive (H) 476 Carolina Way, 828-<br />
526-6400. A late-night bar where the locals<br />
and visitors come for libations and stay for the<br />
fun. Enjoy karaoke on Tuesdays and live music<br />
on Fridays. Tue-Sun beginning at 4 p.m.<br />
The Ugly Dog Pub (C) 25 Frank Allen Rd.,<br />
743-3000; (H) 294 S. 4th St., 828-526-8364.<br />
Two locations that offer a casual and relaxed<br />
atmosphere, serving American pub grub, like<br />
chef-created burgers, sandwiches, salads and<br />
soups. Full bar, regional craft beers and wine.<br />
Live music with top talent weekly. Lunch,<br />
dinner, Sunday brunch.<br />
Barbecue<br />
Blue Hound BBQ (SM) 7420 Dillard Rd.,<br />
Southern Appalachian BBQ crafted from<br />
locally-sourced meats, produce, and wood.<br />
Open for breakfast and lunch Tuesday-Saturday.<br />
Everything made from scratch and<br />
with love on the smoker.<br />
Cashiers Valley Smokehouse (C) 281 Hwy<br />
64 W, 828-547-2096. The perfect casual spot<br />
to kick back and enjoy a great meal of honestto-goodness<br />
pit cooked barbeque pork, chicken<br />
or beef, with homemade sauces for every<br />
taste. Their home cooked sides will make you<br />
reminisce of bygone days, with Sunday dinner<br />
tables laden with vegetables, homemade<br />
potato salad, slaw and baked beans.<br />
Highlands Smokehouse (H) 595 Franklin<br />
Rd., 828-526-3554. Enjoy real pit barbecue,<br />
including pulled pork, brisket, ribs and classic<br />
Southern sides. Also offering tasty burgers,<br />
tacos, stew and vegetarian options. Full<br />
bar and beer. Lunch and dinner, Wed-Mon.<br />
On The Side Barbeque (C) 78 Hwy 64-E,<br />
828-743-4334. Located at the Cashiers Farmers<br />
Market, this take-out eatery serves sandwiches<br />
like pulled pork, smoked turkey, beef<br />
brisket and egg salad. Take home ribs and<br />
BBQ by the pound and sides. Open seasonally.<br />
Bistro<br />
Don Leon's (H) 828-482-1513. Fresh Mediterranean<br />
Food in a cozy and friendly environment.<br />
The gyro is the local favorite, but<br />
the go-to lunch spot for fast, fresh mexican food, and the best margaritas in highlands<br />
highlandsburrito.com • Dine in or Pick up To Go • (828) 526-9313<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 97
everything on the menu is certain to satisfy.<br />
Tues-Sat, 11 a.m. - 3 p.m.<br />
Four65 Woodfire Bistro + Bar (H) 465 Main<br />
St., 828-787-2990. Enjoy handcrafted Neapolitan<br />
wood-fired pizza, cast-iron sandwiches,<br />
small plates and salads in a modern Mediterranean<br />
eatery. Try the Polpette (homemade pork<br />
meatballs), cast-iron grilled cheese or choose a<br />
tomato-based or olive oil-based pizza baked to<br />
perfection. Lunch and dinner, Wed-Mon.<br />
Zookeeper Bistro (C) 45 Slab Town Rd.,<br />
828-743-7711. Casual dining for breakfast and<br />
lunch, serving American dishes like caramel<br />
apple French toast and Western omelet, or try<br />
the Slabtown burger or Jackson County club.<br />
Beer and wine. 7:30 a.m. - 2 p.m., Tue-Sun.<br />
Café<br />
Bella’s Junction Café (SM) 20 Old Mud<br />
Creek Rd., 828-526-0803. A casual dining<br />
café serving American fare. Salads and<br />
sandwiches for lunch, like salmon BLT and<br />
Reuben, and for dinner try a homemade<br />
pizza or the stuffed flounder, prime rib or<br />
lobster ravioli. Lunch Thur-Sat, dinner Fri-<br />
Sat, Sun brunch.<br />
Celebrating<br />
40 Years of<br />
Fine Dining!<br />
Enjoy international cuisine while<br />
overlooking beautiful Lake Sequoyah.<br />
Book Reservations by phone<br />
or online with RESY<br />
Open nightly, 5:30-9pm<br />
1536 Franklin Road, Highlands<br />
828-526-2338<br />
ontheverandah.com<br />
98 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
Blue Bike Café (H) 423 N. 4th St., 828-<br />
526-9922. A casual breakfast and lunch café<br />
offering breakfast all day, and tasty burgers,<br />
sandwiches and salads for lunch. Try<br />
the grilled portabella with sweet potato tots<br />
or the smoked chicken salad. Open daily 7<br />
a.m. - 3 p.m., closed Wed.<br />
Buck’s Coffee Café (C) 6 Hwy 107 S., 828-<br />
743-9997. The local’s hangout most mornings,<br />
offering fresh brewed coffee and tea, along<br />
with breakfast, lunch and dessert items. Try<br />
the egg & cheese English muffin or a grilled<br />
Panini. Open daily 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.<br />
Calders Coffee Café (H) 384 Main St.,<br />
828-200-9308. Calders serves up fine classic<br />
coffee, tea, wine and food. Select from<br />
breakfast and lunch sandwiches like ham<br />
and cheese croissants or smoked salmon.<br />
Fressers Courtyard Café (H) 470 Oak St.,<br />
828-526-8847. A small take-out café with patio<br />
tables offering delicious baked goods, hearty<br />
burgers and sandwiches, and their famous<br />
thick-cut Fresser fries. Full-service catering is<br />
available. Lunch and dinner seasonally.<br />
Deli/Ice Cream<br />
Crossroads Custard & Cold Brew (C) 45<br />
Slab Town Road, A-6, 828-743-1888. Experience<br />
the house-made, rich, soft-serve custard<br />
available in 24 flavors. Also serves shakes,<br />
smoothies, cold brew coffee, floats, sandwiches,<br />
bagels and more. Closed Mondays.<br />
Kilwins (H) 341 Main St., 828-526-3788. An<br />
old-fashioned confectionery serving original<br />
recipe ice-cream, hand-crafted chocolates,<br />
Mackinac Island fudge, handmade sweets<br />
and gift baskets. Try top sellers like turtle<br />
fudge or milk sea-salt tuttles. Open daily.<br />
Fine Dining<br />
Canyon Kitchen (S) 150 Lonesome Valley<br />
Rd., 828-743-7967. An upscale restaurant<br />
serving New American cuisine in a rusticchic<br />
ambience. Enjoy a four-course meal with<br />
selections like flounder crudo, duck boudin,<br />
seared diver scallops and apple foster cheesecake.<br />
Full bar and extensive wine list. Dinner<br />
Wed-Sun, <strong>May</strong>-Oct.<br />
Highlands Tavern (H) 205 South 4th St.,<br />
828-526-9002. An upscale, eclectic tavern<br />
that will blow your socks off. Be sure to order<br />
the focaccia while studying the ever-changing<br />
menu. Enjoy your culinary adventure. Dinner<br />
Fri-Tues, 5 to 11 p.m.<br />
Lakeside Restaurant (H) 531 Smallwood Ave.,<br />
828-526-9419. A fine dining experience within a<br />
cozy cottage on Harris Lake, offering fresh seafood<br />
and American fare. Local rainbow trout, Carolina<br />
grouper and Maryland-style crab cakes are favorites.<br />
Extensive wine list. Dinner Tue-Sun.<br />
Madison’s Restaurant & Wine Garden<br />
(H) 445 Main St., 828-787-2525. Awarded the<br />
AAA Four-Diamond Award, Madison’s offers<br />
a seasonal, farm-to-table fine dining service<br />
in the elegant Old Edwards Inn. Enjoy lush<br />
dishes like Painted Hills beef ribeye and Sunburst<br />
trout, along with an extensive wine list.<br />
Lunch and dinner daily.<br />
On The Verandah (H) 1536 Franklin Rd.,<br />
828-526-2338. An upscale eatery offering international<br />
cuisine and seafood, with a romantic<br />
atmosphere overlooking Lake Sequoyah. Enjoy<br />
dishes like spicy Thai coconut shrimp, filet<br />
mignon, Creole chicken and seared scallops.<br />
Extensive wine list. Dinner nightly, seasonally.<br />
Ristorante Paoletti (H) 440 Main St., 828-<br />
526-4906. Enjoy refined Italian dining in an elegant<br />
European-style atmosphere. Handmade<br />
pasta, veal, beef, lamb, elk and several fresh<br />
seafood dishes comprise the extensive menu.<br />
Over 850 wines to pair with your meal. Earned<br />
Wine Spectator’s Best of Award of Excellence<br />
since 1987. Dinner nightly, seasonally.<br />
Roots & Vine (H) 490 Carolina Way, 828-<br />
526-3555. An extraordinary tasting-menu<br />
only restaurant with organic and regionally<br />
sourced ingredients. Menu changes daily and<br />
will include 6 or more courses of the finest<br />
cuisine on the plateau. Dinner Thurs-Sun.<br />
The Library Kitchen & Bar (S) 184 Cherokee<br />
Trail, 828-743-5512. An historic upscale<br />
eatery with a casual and modern vibe, serving<br />
dishes with German influences from Michelinstar<br />
trained Chef Johannes. Try the pistachio<br />
crusted Georgia quail or the coriander sautéed<br />
Carolina trout. Full bar, wine and beer. Catering<br />
available. Dinner Tue-Sat.<br />
The Orchard Restaurant (C) 905 Hwy<br />
107 S., 828-743-7614. A restored farmhouse<br />
serving southern-inspired American cuisine<br />
with an elegant, rustic ambience. Try the<br />
trout Chattooga, Grimshawe’s ribeye or apple<br />
bourbon pork osso buco. Full bar, extensive<br />
wine list and beer. Dinner Wed-Sat.<br />
Stubborn Seeds at Mill Creek (H) 445 North<br />
4th St., 828-2000-0813. Fine dining with<br />
an international flair. Enjoy small plates of<br />
shrimp, octopus, mushroom ravioli, meatballs,<br />
potatoes and more. Large plate offerings<br />
include salmon, elk tenderloin, porkchop, and<br />
paella for two, among others. Your palate will<br />
be both surprised and elated. Tues-Sun 5 to 10<br />
p.m.; Sat. 12. p.m. to 11 p.m.
The Restaurant at the Greystone (T) 220<br />
Greystone Ln., 828-966-4700. Known for its<br />
breathtaking views of the lake and mountains,<br />
fresh, seasonal cuisine and enchanting<br />
fire-lit ambience, the Lakeside Dining<br />
Room welcomes guests for breakfast, lunch,<br />
dinner, and Sunday brunch.<br />
The Ruffed Grouse Tavern (H) 270 Main<br />
St., 828-526-2590. Enjoy a locally sourced,<br />
seasonal menu, craft cocktails, extensive<br />
wines and a curated selection of craft beers<br />
and ales by the wood burning fireplace in<br />
the eclectic tavern or outside on the wrap<br />
around terrace. (Dec-<strong>May</strong>) Breakfast, lunch<br />
and dinner served Wed -Sat, brunch on Sunday.<br />
(June-Nov) Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner<br />
Tues-Sat, brunch on Sunday.<br />
Native Prime Provisions (C) 69 Cashiers<br />
Shopping Center Ingles Plaza, 828-743-<br />
3743. Come enjoy a gourmet lunch at the<br />
Chef's Counter. Menu changes daily as the<br />
chef uses only the freshest ingredients.<br />
Entrees often include sushi, lobster rolls,<br />
tempura fish and veggies, gumbo, peel and<br />
eat shrimp and filets. Lunch only. Wed-Sun.<br />
Wild Thyme Gourmet (H) 343 Main St.,<br />
828-526-4035. An upscale eatery serving<br />
Asian-influenced American cuisine. Specialty<br />
dishes include spicy stir-fry waterfall<br />
beef tenderloin, herb crusted rack of lamb<br />
and salmon with Vidalia onion crust. Wine<br />
list won Wine Spectator Award of Excellence<br />
in 2018. Lunch and dinner daily.<br />
Wolfgang’s Restaurant & Wine Bistro (H)<br />
474 Main St., 828-526-3807. Enjoy an eclectic<br />
menu of German, American and Cajun cuisine<br />
by nationally recognized Chef Wolfgang. An<br />
intimate and upscale bistro serving up dishes<br />
like Venison Au Poivre, pecan crusted shrimp<br />
and roast loin of lamb. Award-winning wine<br />
list. Dinner Wed.-Sun., seasonally.<br />
Italian/Pizza<br />
Slab Town Pizza (C) 45 Slab Town Rd., 828-<br />
743-0020. Enjoy New York style pizza with<br />
handmade dough and fresh toppings. Build<br />
your own pie or choose from one of their specialty<br />
pizzas. Calzones, salads and sandwiches.<br />
Beer and wine. Lunch and dinner, Tue-Sun.<br />
The Pizza Place of Highlands (H) 365 Main<br />
St., 828-526-5660. A community staple since the<br />
mid ‘70s, offering an extensive menu selection of<br />
pizza, calzones, sandwiches, salads and a kid’s<br />
menu. Lunch and dinner, Mon-Sat.<br />
Villa Amato (T) 15887 Rosman Hwy, 828-885-<br />
7700. Classic homemade Italian fare like eggplant<br />
parmesan, lasagna, penne vodka, pizza, Stromboli<br />
and calzones. Lunch and dinner, Mon-Sat.<br />
Mexican<br />
Chile Loco (C) 45 Slab Town Rd., 828-<br />
743-1160. Casual dining in a friendly atmosphere,<br />
serving authentic Mexican fare.<br />
Tacos, soups, fajitas, tortas, steak, chicken<br />
and specialties like chalupas, tostadas and<br />
chimichangas. Full bar, beer and wine.<br />
Lunch and dinner, Mon-Sat.<br />
El Azteca Rainforest Bar & Grill (H) 72<br />
Highlands Plaza, 828-526-2244. Authentic<br />
Mexican cuisine using fresh, local ingredients,<br />
featuring ceviche, tacos, fajitas, enchiladas<br />
and burritos. Full bar, beer and wine.<br />
Lunch and dinner daily.<br />
El Manzanillo (C) 30 Hwy 64-E, 828-743-<br />
5522; (H) 30 Dillard Rd., 828-526-0608. Two<br />
locations offering authentic Mexican cuisine.<br />
Burritos, fajitas, quesadillas, enchiladas,<br />
steak, chicken and seafood. Margaritas,<br />
wine and beer. Lunch and dinner daily.<br />
Las Margaritas (C) 127 Hwy 64-E, 828-745-<br />
6900. Traditional Mexican cuisine with the<br />
freshest of ingredients. Don't miss the fabulous<br />
margaritas, and venture out to try the California-inspired<br />
Mexican cuisine. Open daily.<br />
Los Vaqueros (H) 30 Dillard Road, 828-482-<br />
7040; (T) 9 Toxaway Falls Rd., 828-966-7662.<br />
Fantastic, authentic Mexican cuisine using<br />
only the freshest ingredients. For a nice surprise,<br />
try the shrimp cocktail. Open daily.<br />
Highlands Burrito (H) 226 S. 4th St., 828-<br />
526-9313. A lively burrito eatery, serving up<br />
specialty burritos like roast pork and garliccilantro<br />
steak. Tacos, quesadillas and homemade<br />
soups. Lunch Mon-Sat<br />
Take-Home Meals<br />
Dusty’s Rhodes Superette (H) 493 Dillard<br />
Rd., 828-526-2762. A 2nd generation, family<br />
run specialty foods store, with a butcher<br />
shop, sundries, take-home prepared meals,<br />
wine and gifts. Tue-Sat.<br />
Rosewood Market (H) 117 Franklin Rd., 828-<br />
526-0383. A fixture in Highlands for homemade,<br />
prepared foods to-go and catering. Choose from<br />
over 150 menu items with local favorites like<br />
lemon-caper chicken or baked halibut.<br />
The Kitchen CarryAway & Catering (H)<br />
350 S. 5th St., 828-526-2110. Short on time?<br />
Come in for high-quality, made-from-scratch<br />
take-home meals. Also offering full-service<br />
catering for any occasion. Open seasonally.<br />
EST<br />
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HIGHLANDS, NC<br />
2019<br />
BLUE BIKE CAFE<br />
A Casual and Affordable Café<br />
Offering Delicious Food<br />
Check out our New merchandise.<br />
T-shirts, hats, mugs, homemade jam.<br />
Breakfast and Lunch<br />
423 N 4th Street, Highlands NC<br />
828-526-9922<br />
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<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 99
REAL ESTATE FORUM | Special Advertising Feature<br />
382 Hurrah Ridge<br />
Scaly Mountain<br />
This home sits on 5.19 acres in the Highland Gap<br />
community. Conveniently located on the Atlanta<br />
side of Highlands near Dillard and Sky Valley,<br />
Ga., it combines tranquility with accessibility. The<br />
expansive windows in the living room showcase this<br />
breathtaking view while the floor-to-ceiling fireplace<br />
anchors the space. The kitchen features a sizable<br />
island, and flows into the dining area. The main floor<br />
owner's suite boasts a luxurious bath and access to<br />
the covered deck. Upstairs, guests can indulge in their<br />
own retreat, complete with a sitting area in the loft.<br />
With its generous, open floor plan, this home fosters<br />
seamless interaction between rooms, whether you are<br />
entertaining a large family or intimate gatherings.<br />
MLS# 103790 | Offered for $897,000<br />
The Michaud/Rauers Group<br />
(828) 526-4101<br />
MeadowsMountainRealty.com<br />
160 Pipers Court<br />
Highlands<br />
Every detail was meticulously considered in the creation<br />
of this custom-made residence situated on a cul de<br />
sac within Highlands Country Club. Cathedral ceilings<br />
grace the living room, which is enhanced by a striking<br />
fireplace. The kitchen showcases top-tier Bosch, Sub<br />
Zero, and Kitchen Aid appliances, complemented<br />
by stunning cabinetry featuring Taj Mahal granite<br />
countertops. An expansive island provides ample seating.<br />
An adjacent pantry features a built-in desk and an<br />
additional refrigerator/freezer. Flowing from the dining<br />
and living areas is a bright, spacious sunroom, that leads<br />
to a captivating stone patio complete with an outdoor<br />
kitchen. A 1,600 bottle wine cellar with a cork floor and a<br />
stylish wet bar beckon.<br />
MLS# 103802 | Offered for $3,495,000<br />
Don Collins<br />
(828) 226-5243<br />
MeadowsMountainRealty.com<br />
199 Upper Lake Road<br />
Highlands<br />
What happens when a mountain cabin grows up? It<br />
becomes a magical showplace that retains the charm<br />
of the cabin while incorporating upscale spaces,<br />
a kitchen that would delight any cook, and lush<br />
landscaped grounds on almost two and a half acres.<br />
Its idyllic setting is enhanced by a tranquil lake, perfect<br />
for honing one's casting skills. A charming pitch and<br />
putt three-hole golf practice area awaits. Greenthumbed<br />
enthusiasts will delight in the meticulously<br />
landscaped gardens. The interior exudes warmth and<br />
sophistication, featuring a luminous primary suite<br />
complete with a sun-drenched sunroom, a lavishly<br />
appointed bathroom, an expansive walk-in closet,<br />
and a private screened porch.<br />
MLS# 103747 | Offered for $3,400,000<br />
The Michaud/Rauers Group<br />
(828) 526-4101<br />
MeadowsMountainRealty.com<br />
257 Meadow Way<br />
Sapphire<br />
Escape to your mountain retreat in the River Chase<br />
neighborhood! This charming town home offers<br />
the perfect blend of cozy comfort and convenient<br />
amenities. Step into the inviting great room, where<br />
a stunning fireplace awaits. The open floor plan<br />
connects to covered decks on two levels. Relax<br />
in the spacious master bedroom, complete with<br />
a walk-in closet, upgraded walk-in shower, and<br />
private deck. Ownership grants you access to<br />
Sapphire Valley amenities such as golf, tennis,<br />
swimming, boating, skiing, and more! Have dinner<br />
at one of Sapphire Valley's many restaurants or<br />
venture to Cashiersf or more dining and charming<br />
shops. Your mountain retreat awaits - don't miss it!<br />
MLS# 103727 | Offered for $267,000<br />
The Michaud/Rauers Group<br />
(828) 526-4101<br />
MeadowsMountainRealty.com<br />
100 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
126 Winsome Way<br />
Cashiers<br />
This well-maintained, fully furnished, three<br />
bedroom, three bath log home in Trillium is only<br />
10 minutes from the crossroads in Cashiers. Three<br />
bedrooms and two baths are on the main level<br />
and a bonus room and bath are in the loft. Ample<br />
space for a recreation room with a pool table or<br />
potential office space at the back of the home.<br />
There is a porch on each side and a wonderful<br />
fire pit area. Great rental potential, and no club<br />
membership required. Close to Lake Glenville<br />
and Cashiers with easy year round access.<br />
Encapsulated crawl space.<br />
MLS# 103697 | Offered for $765,000<br />
Don Collins<br />
(828) 226-5243<br />
MeadowsMountainRealty.com<br />
10 Gibson Street<br />
Highlands<br />
This magnificent property boasts five bedrooms and<br />
five-and-a-half baths, alongside a delightful onebedroom<br />
guest cottage. On the main level, a spacious<br />
kitchen flows into the dining room and living room,<br />
both with large fireplaces. A sunroom features large<br />
windows, and there are two bedrooms, a full- and a<br />
half-bath, laundry room, pantry, and mudroom. The<br />
upper level holds the primary bedroom, complete<br />
with its own fireplace, an updated bathroom, and<br />
walk-in closet. This level also houses two guest<br />
suites, a bonus room with bathroom, and a second<br />
laundry facility. The updated guest cottage features<br />
a kitchenette, a bedroom, and a bathroom, plus a<br />
charming, covered porch equipped with a fireplace.<br />
MLS# 103685 | Offered for $3,978,600<br />
The Michaud/Rauers Group<br />
(828) 526-4101<br />
MeadowsMountainRealty.com
59 Whiteside Cove Road<br />
Cashiers<br />
"The Pines": This 1950's rancher has undergone an<br />
extensive HGTV-like renovation! Fresh, open, light<br />
and roomy, the all on one level home is perfect for<br />
large families or golf foursomes, each "player" having<br />
their own space. A connected two car garage was<br />
recently converted into the primary en suite bedroom<br />
with french doors to its own patio. The home has<br />
beautiful wood floors, vintage metal windows,<br />
painted wood and brick interior walls, and tile floors in<br />
the bathrooms. A newly constructed two car garage<br />
and covered walkway has been added in the paved<br />
parking area. The almost 4 acre rolling expansive lawn<br />
is an excellent property for a guest house, gardening,<br />
badminton, play areas for family and pets.<br />
MLS 102606 | Offered for $4,800,000<br />
Beth Townsend<br />
828.421.6193<br />
beth@cashiers.com<br />
66 Bent Tree Lane<br />
Cashiers<br />
This classic mountain beauty is located in the<br />
Chattooga Club just five minutes from Cashiers and<br />
offers beautiful indoor and outdoor spaces. The great<br />
room features floor to ceiling stone fireplace and<br />
along with the dining room and kitchen opens up to a<br />
large outdoor covered porch with vaulted ceilings and<br />
stone fireplace. The large primary suite on the main<br />
level along with four spacious suites are located on<br />
the upper and lower levels. A cozy sitting area upstairs<br />
provides a lovely place to lounge, and the large family<br />
room on the lower level with bar/kitchenette is perfect<br />
for game day and entertaining. A lower deck off the<br />
family room offers views of the beautiful landscaping<br />
surrounding the home.<br />
MLS 102949 | Offered for $4,199,000<br />
Liz Harris<br />
828.342.3194<br />
liz@cashiers.com<br />
494 East Ridge Road<br />
Cashiers<br />
Situated within the gated community of Cedar Hill,<br />
it offers serenity and convenience, just minutes from<br />
town with a majestic mountain backdrop. The great<br />
room welcomes you with cathedral ceilings, stone<br />
fireplace, handsome beam work, and French doors that<br />
seamlessly connect to the upper-level stone terrace.<br />
The chef's kitchen and dining area effortlessly combine<br />
modern design with functionality. The kitchen opens to<br />
a spacious screened porch with its own stone fireplace.<br />
The owner's suite features a morning bar, an expansive<br />
walk-in closet, and a spa-like bathroom complete<br />
with a double-sided fireplace. Also on the main level<br />
are a private study, powder room, and laundry room.<br />
Upstairs, three en-suite guest bedrooms await. A<br />
shared loft features its own morning bar and deck.<br />
MLS 103036 | Offered for $3,500,000<br />
Liz Harris<br />
828.342.3194<br />
liz@cashiers.com<br />
190 Logan Lane<br />
Cashiers<br />
This stunning home on 9 acres has spectacular<br />
mountain views. Step into a sizable great-room with<br />
a dining area, floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace, and a<br />
wall of windows. The kitchen is well equipped with<br />
a Subzero refrigerator, Viking cooktop with grill,<br />
warming drawer, volumes of cabinets and instant<br />
hot water spigot. Just off the kitchen is charming<br />
den / library. Also on the first floor is a lovely primary<br />
bedroom with fireplace and ensuite bath, large cedarlined<br />
closet, and doors leading out to the deck. In<br />
addition, there is a guest bedroom on the main floor<br />
with ensuite bath. Downstairs is a spacious den with<br />
wood-burning fireplace, three bedrooms, two with<br />
ensuite baths and large cedar-lined closets.<br />
MLS 102229 | Offered for $2,995,000<br />
John Barrow, 828.506.9356<br />
john@cashiers.com<br />
Sandy Barrow 478.737.9664<br />
sandy@cashiers.com<br />
1812 Cherokee Trace<br />
Cashiers<br />
Located within the prestigious Wade Hampton Golf<br />
Club, this home boasts long range mountain views,<br />
golf course views 5-minutes to Cashiers. Featuring 4<br />
bedrooms, 4.5 baths between the Main House and<br />
Carriage House, and two bonus rooms in the main<br />
house. The main house has a vaulted great room with<br />
a stone fireplace and a cozy dining room and kitchen<br />
with a second fireplace. A large primary suite with<br />
two walk-in closets and private porch is located on the<br />
main level. Upstairs, is a guest en-suite and two bonus<br />
rooms. A large, covered porch off the great room<br />
with a continuing side porch allows you to take in the<br />
views. The Carriage House features two additional<br />
guest en-suites and small wet bar.<br />
MLS 102267 | Offered for $2,400,000<br />
Liz Harris<br />
828.342.3194<br />
liz@cashiers.com<br />
140 Hemlock Woods Drive<br />
Highlands<br />
Meticulously cared for and thoughtfully updated,<br />
this home has so much to offer. Perfectly located<br />
between Highlands and Cashiers! The split<br />
floor plan gives the primary and guests plenty<br />
of privacy. Immaculately renovated kitchen<br />
with Italian marble countertops and stainless<br />
steel appliances. The primary suite has its own<br />
entrance, private bathroom, and extra bonus<br />
room which would be perfect for an office or<br />
nursery. This home is being offered fully furnished<br />
with very stylish furnishings, so you can start using<br />
the home right away. Adorable fenced in backyard<br />
with an outdoor shower so you can soak up our<br />
beautiful mountain air!<br />
MLS102912 | Offered for $720,000<br />
Maggie Elmer<br />
803.493.5734<br />
maggie@cashiers.com<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 101<br />
February/March <strong>2024</strong> | 101
travel<br />
The Smithsonian National<br />
Museum of Natural History.<br />
Journey Through the World’s<br />
Largest Free Museum Complex<br />
Washington D.C.’s informative attractions<br />
By KATIE MCELVEEN<br />
MUSEUMS CAN BE EXHAUSTING, ESPECIALLY IF YOU'VE SPENT $30 TO VISIT AND YOU WANT TO<br />
get your money's worth. That hours-long slog past endless paintings—or sculptures or butterflies or whatever is<br />
on display—is enough to make anyone but a super fan swear off the experience. But what if you could pop into a<br />
building, pay nothing, check out the Hope diamond or the only Leonardo da Vinci painting on display in America<br />
or pieces of the Apollo 11 spacecraft—and walk right back out?<br />
Thanks to an English scientist named James Smithson, who died<br />
in 1829 and left his entire estate in the United States to found “at<br />
Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment<br />
for the increase and diffusion of knowledge,” you can.<br />
No one knows why Smithson bequeathed more than $500,000 to a<br />
country he had never visited, but we should all be glad he did. Comprising<br />
of 22 museums and nine research facilities, the Smithsonian<br />
Institution is the world’s largest museum, education and research<br />
complex. It’s also free to all.<br />
102 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com<br />
As a college student in Washington, D.C. and, later, an entry-level<br />
professional, that free entry provided me with cultural experiences I<br />
wouldn’t have been able to otherwise afford. Even better, there was<br />
no pressure to stick around. Once I’d seen what I came to see, I could<br />
walk out. But, more often than not, something would catch my eye<br />
and, before I knew it, the afternoon had flown by.<br />
Recently, I found myself back in D.C. With a couple of days to explore<br />
the city, I headed straight to my comfort zone: the Smithsonian.<br />
While all the things I loved about it were still there, I was knocked<br />
PHOTOS PROVIDED BY DESTINATION DC
African American<br />
Civil War Memorial<br />
Smithsonian<br />
American Art<br />
Museum/National<br />
Portrait Gallery<br />
Smithsonian National<br />
Museum of Natural History<br />
Waldorf Astoria Lobby<br />
Washington DC<br />
out by the technology, which enhanced the experience with buttons<br />
to push, sounds to hear, screens to watch and even fossils to touch.<br />
The changes were particularly evident at the National Museum of<br />
Natural History. When I was a kid, you came to the museum to see<br />
the dinosaur bones, which were displayed in a stark but sunlit hall<br />
that first opened in 1911. Children (and adults) still come to see the<br />
massive skeletons, but, these days, those bone fossils (yes, they’re<br />
real) now are part of a museum-wide initiative to tell the Earth’s<br />
unfolding story. Instead of towering above the scene, as it had for<br />
more than 100 years, Tyrannosaurus Rex, for instance, has been<br />
repositioned as the fierce predator it was and appears to be eating<br />
a Triceratops. In the mammal room, the ferocious taxidermy tiger<br />
is no longer confined to a glass cube but is leaping overhead as if in<br />
pursuit of prey, claws extended to their terrifying full length and<br />
eyes fully alert. Each gallery is immersive, too, filled with sounds<br />
that one might hear while, say, hiking through the jungle in search<br />
of tropical birds.<br />
The Museum of American History is a jumble of Americana, three<br />
million artifacts that use everything from Dorothy’s ruby slippers<br />
from the Wizard of Oz and Julia Child’s kitchen to Abraham Lincoln’s<br />
hat and the original Star-Spangled Banner, to trace all the<br />
facets of America’s story. There are collections of election buttons;<br />
gowns worn by First Ladies; Vince and Larry, the 1970’s crash test<br />
dummies; stagecoaches; trains and weaponry. It’s a lot, but a crowdpleaser,<br />
especially if you’re traveling with others or with children,<br />
who will love the interactive exhibits. Just don’t forget to reserve a<br />
space: the hands-on activities are free, but space is limited.<br />
Where the Museum of American History feels more free-form, the<br />
Museum of African American History & Culture stays tightly focused<br />
on the documentation of African American life, history and culture.<br />
The museum’s lower floors, which spiral upward from three levels<br />
below ground, are dedicated to the evolution of slavery, from its earliest<br />
beginnings to the passage – and fallout – of the Civil Rights Act in<br />
1964.<br />
I learned that, before the 14th century, Europeans traded with their<br />
African counterparts as equals and that the continent supported a<br />
huge diversity of languages and cultures. Further along, the tools of<br />
slavery and racial oppression are on full display, in all their horrifying<br />
reality. Through it all, I found myself thinking about what it must have<br />
taken to survive and to find the energy and hope to see and celebrate<br />
moments of joy in a life that offered little. It was painful, but, for me, a<br />
step toward understanding what it means to be an American.<br />
The upper levels are organized by topic. Cultural expression—<br />
music, art, theater, cooking, fashion—occupies the top floor; minigalleries<br />
display costumes as video screens showcase performances.<br />
Other levels are devoted to military service, sports and exploring<br />
family history.<br />
When you need a break from any of the museums, grab a snack at one<br />
of the surprisingly delicious on-site restaurants, browse at a well-curated<br />
museum shop or simply head outside to the National Mall, where you<br />
can wander freely into whatever museum strikes your fancy.<br />
Where to stay<br />
Occupying Washington, D.C.’s historic Old Post Office building, the<br />
Waldorf Astoria is perfectly positioned for both museum-hopping and<br />
exploring the lively Penn Quarter neighborhood. There’s easy access to<br />
Metro, too, which makes it easy to get virtually anywhere in the city.<br />
Within the hotel, a nine-story lobby is topped by a stunning glass ceiling;<br />
lavish guestrooms have been carved out of the offices of former postal<br />
employees. Look hard and you can still see some of the original doors. P<br />
<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 103
the last reflection<br />
How to Keep People Out of the Kitchen<br />
Hosting 101<br />
By ANNE WOLFE POSTIC<br />
NO MATTER WHAT KIND<br />
of party you may be throwing,<br />
everyone ends up in the<br />
kitchen. Eh. That’s a little<br />
too definitive for my taste,<br />
because there are always exceptions. If<br />
you have a small ballroom, or an enormous<br />
dining room (one that seats at least 40<br />
guests), as well as a full staff to prepare,<br />
serve and clean, then your kitchen probably<br />
doesn’t attract guests like moths to<br />
a flame. (Unless your chef is particularly<br />
attractive, charming, and single. Lucky<br />
you!) But I digress. And I have neither a<br />
ballroom nor a large dining room. Perhaps<br />
you, like me, would prefer not to be crowded<br />
in the kitchen as you put the finishing<br />
touches on your culinary creations (or, you<br />
know, stealthily remove the packaging in<br />
an attempt to pass various dishes off as<br />
your own). So, what’s an easily distracted<br />
cook without a ballroom to do?<br />
When approaching a problem, I always<br />
start with the same premise: No one is trying<br />
to annoy me. This is doubly true when<br />
you’ve invited someone to your home for a<br />
party. People love parties! And if they really<br />
can’t stand you (unlikely, as there are<br />
usually signs), they’ll simply decline your<br />
kind invitation. So, let’s start with assuming<br />
positive intent.<br />
As your guests arrive, if you’re still in<br />
the kitchen, they’ll join you simply to say<br />
hello. Also, it feels awkward to sit around<br />
while your host toils away in another<br />
room. No matter how stellar your culinary<br />
reputation, they ultimately came to enjoy<br />
your company. If it was just about food,<br />
they’d stay home in stretchy pants and<br />
order a fabulous meal from a restaurant.<br />
Now that we know why they’re there, let’s<br />
deal with it.<br />
First, consider having as much of your<br />
meal prepared ahead as possible. You may<br />
be able to chop things, prepare a sauce, or<br />
set the table the day before. Of course major<br />
prep isn’t always feasible, especially<br />
in the case of impromptu invitations. If<br />
you’ll still be cooking when guests arrive,<br />
prepare a “mise en place.” Measure and<br />
set out your ingredients ahead of time, in<br />
order of how you’ll use them. This makes<br />
it much easier to socialize without losing<br />
track of what you’re doing.<br />
Second, have your cohost or a trusted<br />
friend offer drinks as soon as people walk<br />
in the door. Load a bar cart with ice,<br />
glassware, cocktail napkins and some of<br />
the more popular drinks. Put the cart in<br />
a prominent spot in the room where you’d<br />
like people to congregate. Or just use<br />
a small table. Speaking of that trusted<br />
friend, if you live alone or live with a slacker,<br />
mentally identify a friend or two who<br />
you can ask to come a few minutes early.<br />
They can keep you company, answer the<br />
door while you touch up your lipstick, run<br />
interference as you scramble in the kitchen,<br />
offer drinks, and tell people where to<br />
put coats and bags. They can dissuade you<br />
when you start to freak out about hosting<br />
the worst party ever. They know better.<br />
Third, prepare some small appetizers to<br />
go in the room with the drinks. This makes<br />
it obvious that you want people to hang<br />
out there. Doesn’t have to be anything<br />
fancy! Olives, nuts, cheese and crackers,<br />
whatever. People love snacks.<br />
Fourth, be ready to at least say hello,<br />
because most guests feel weird not greet-<br />
ing their host, especially when said host<br />
is all stressed and sweaty in the kitchen.<br />
Bonus: if you put the snacks you’ve prepared<br />
on a tray in the kitchen, you can ask<br />
one of your earliest guests to please take<br />
that tray into the living room or wherever.<br />
This gives them a job that requires them<br />
to get out of your physical space. People<br />
love jobs.<br />
Most importantly, remember that nothing<br />
has to be perfect. Have you ever been<br />
invited to someone’s home and later wondered<br />
why they invited you? Because the<br />
food wasn’t very good, the house wasn’t as<br />
clean as it should have been, or they didn’t<br />
give you a five-star experience? (And if<br />
you have wondered those things, please<br />
rethink your priorities. And maybe find<br />
a good therapist?) There’s a reason Yelp<br />
doesn’t let people review private parties.<br />
Because being invited to someone’s home<br />
is a privilege and a pleasure. The reason<br />
your guests follow you into the kitchen<br />
is because they’re excited to see you, and<br />
tickled pink to have made the guest list.<br />
If they’re crowding you, remind them that<br />
you’re no pro and they might want to give<br />
you a little space so they don’t get cut or<br />
burnt. And after that? Bask in the love! P<br />
PHOTO PIXABAY<br />
104 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
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<strong>April</strong>/<strong>May</strong> <strong>2024</strong> | 3
4 | The<strong>Plateau</strong>Mag.com
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