Brevard, NC — Mixing with Zest

When I was in middle school and early high school, every summer I would go to Duke Young Writers Camp (DYWC) at Duke University in North Carolina. I’m sure everyone who grew up going to camp thinks that their camp experience was the BEST, but Duke holds a very special place in my heart (and will forever be my favorite camp). I was able to explore my love of writing, meet new people from around the world, see familiar faces each year, and grow in my independence. When I think of DYWC, I get a rush of nostalgia and have nothing but sweet memories and gratitude for having been able to have those experiences.

For some, I’m sure a writing camp sounds like the farthest thing they would want to do in the summer, but for me, it was the EXACT opposite. I took classes like social injustice, writing a college essay, stage stealing (an acting class that incorporated script writing), poetry, hip hop dancing, and so so so many more classes and electives. I was able to learn from animated professors and other creative minds, all of whom had so much passion for their subject that is was impossible not to be in awe of their teaching.

Since from my days at Duke (many many many years ago), I haven’t been back to North Carolina. That is, until a few weeks ago.

During Covid, my husband and I have been working from our home in New Jersey. We moved at the beginning of Covid (our move just so happened to coincide with the pandemic).

We knew we wanted a change of scenery and wanted to take a few days off of work, but wanted to do it in a responsible way. So, we decided to pack up the car and drive to Lake Tiroga, near Brevard, North Carolina. It’s one of four man-made lakes at Connestee Falls. Door to door, it was about an 11 drive from our home in Jersey to the VRBO. (If you make the drive, I highly recommend going through Taylor Swift’s entire discography…it really makes the time fly. I also recommend The Washington Posts’s Presidential Podcast on Spotify).

We rented a VRBO and enjoyed a week of fishing, hiking, and reading (I finished “I Found You” by Lisa Jewell - which I highly recommend. 4/5 stars, for sure).

We did three hikes while we were there. The first was less of a “hike” and more of an extended walk. We brought our fly rods hoping there would be an area for good fly fishing, but we didn’t have much luck. On our second attempt, however, we got to see Whitewater Falls, which some claim is the “highest waterfall east of the Rockies.”

From the top of Whitewater Falls, there’s a hiking trail you can take down to a stream where you can fly fish. It was absolutely beautiful! We only saw two other people the entire time. We even kicked our shoes off and stuck our feet in the cool water.

*This was where we did some fly fishing after taking the trail down from Whitewater Falls.*

On our way back to our VRBO, we stopped and had the most delicious southern barbecue at Magpie Meat & Three. Due to Covid, they have only outdoor seating (but they have plenty). I ordered the smoked sausage, grits, fried okra and Edmund’s Oast Blonde Ale, a delicious craft beer from not too far away in Charleston, South Carolina!

Last but not least, we hiked The John Rock Trail. For a while, I wondered if we were ever going to make it to the top, but alas we did. It was pretty rainy every afternoon while we were in North Carolina, but we decided to start this hike mid-morning…which looking back might not have been the best idea. About 2 miles in, it started torrentially downpouring. When I say “downpouring”, I mean we were, truly, SOPPING wet…wading through mud…there’s no use in even wearing a rain jacket kind of wet. But, when we made it to the top, it cleared and we had the beautiful view below! The hike makes for a fun memory, but the view made it worth it in the moment.

Overall, it was a great trip and I can’t wait to go back to North Carolina. I’m hoping one day I can make it back to Duke as well. I’m sure walking the campus this many years later will bring back all the memories that have been on my mind today.