Weekend for fine color -- and fine crafts -- in Asheville area

This may be a better weekend than you thought for heading up to the Asheville area.

The color report at www.exploreasheville.com says leaf coloration is moving down the mountains, and notes that foliage is getting prime at Biltmore Estate and in such nearby areas as  Cullasaja Gorge, the Blue Ridge Parkway and Cradle of Forestry.

Moreover, this weekend the Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands is going on at the U.S. Cellular Center, 87 Haywood St., in downtown Asheville.

The event is staged twice a year -- four days in July, four in mid-October. It is regarded as one of the best craft shows in the country.

You'll see the fine work of members of the Southern Highland Craft Guild, a nonprofit formed during the Great Depression; the craft fairs started in 1948 as a way for members to show and sell their creations.

Work at the juried show includes jewelry, wood, leather, fiber, clay, metal and more.

The  Southern Highlands Craft Guild photo at the top of this page shows jewelry by metal smith Linda Azar, a guild member working in Asheville.

Any time of the year, you can see the work of guild members at the Allanstand Craft Shop at the Folk Art Center on the BRP, on Asheville's outskirts; at the Southern Highland Craft Gallery at Asheville's Biltmore Village; the Parkway Craft Center at Moses Cone Manor, on the Parkway near Blowing Rock.

The guild includes more than 900 members in the mountain regions of nine states in the Southeast. You can additionally see work by guild artisans at Cumberland Crafts, at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, near Middleboro, Ky.; and Arrowcraft, in Gatlinburg, Tenn.

What makes the Craft Fair of  the Southern Highlands go-worthy is this: You have the chance to see more than 200 artisans in a juried show that also features craft demonstrations and live regional music.

It's also in a large, indoor venue.

If  you have an affection for Appalachian folk art -- or are doing your holiday shopping early - this is a don't-miss event.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Sunday (Oct. 16-18); 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday (Oct. 19).

Admission is $8; free for 11 and younger.

Details: www.southernhighlandguild.org. 

Black Mountain singled out as prime fall destination

Staffers at National Geographic's online Beyond the Guidebook page  have released a list of their  individual picks for best fall trips -- and Black Mountain, in eastern Buncombe County,  is among them.

Their list, in the order places were mentioned: 

Shenandoah National Park/Skyline Drive, Virginia

Bermuda

Albuquerque, N.M., International Balloon Fiesta

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sonoma County, Calif.

Black Mountain

Austin, Texas

Bhutan

Pittsburgh

Horseshoe Canyon Ranch, Jasper, Ark.

Grenada

In picking Black Mountain, National Geographic Travel production assistant Becky Davis writes, "Growing up in Florida, my parents took us here every year to experience a taste of changing seasons and cooler weather—and what an amazing taste! The hiking trails that yield awe-inspiring views of multi-colored landscapes are myriad. We would take walks around Lake Tomahawk and watch the geese swim by, surrounded by mountains. Warming up with a hot concoction from downtown’s Dripolator Coffeehouse is a must, as is partaking in one of Black Mountain’s seasonal festivities, which include ghost tours, art festival and a harvest fair.”

Black Mountain was on National Geographic Travel's list of best fall trips last year.

On their 2014 list of best fall trips:

Enchanted Circle Scenic Drive, Taos, N.M.

Lake Maggiore, Italy

Cincinnati (for its Oktoberfest)

Hot Air Balloon Festival, Taunggyi, Myanmar

Diwali (a Hindu festival), Agra, India

Pirates Week National Festival, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

Buenos Aires, Argentina (spring walks)

Snorkeling in cenotes (caves) in Quintana Roo, Mexico

The photo at the top of this post shows Black Mountain in autumn. The image is from www.exploreblackmountain.com -- that area's Chamber of Commerce website -- which has visitor information.

Apple tourism? It's not too late for core events

2014 apple festivals? Well,  North Carolina's official fete in Hendersonville was Labor Day weekend. And South Carolina's, held in Westminster, was the weekend of Sept. 5-6.

But the season for apple-appeal lasts longer than that other fall benchmark, leaf-peeper season, and there are still fruit fests to come.

The Brushy Mountain Apple Festival is Oct. 4 in North Wilkesboro, and the Taylorsville Apple Festival is Oct. 18 -- the same day as Waynesville's Apple Harvest Festival.

And the fun doesn't end there. It just changes a little ‑- into cider .

CiderFest NC returns for its second year Nov. 2, at Asheville's Western North Carolina Farmers Market. Cider makers, mostly from the Carolinas and Virginia -- more than 13 in all -- will be featured. Also at the 1 to 5 p.m. event: cider and cheese tastings, apple press demos, cheese making demos, live bluegrass-flavored music  (the Jon Stickley Trio) and activities for the kids.

Hard cider and non-alcoholic organic cider pressed by organic apple growers in the area, will be served. There will be apple cider pretzels, too.

 Items will also be available for purchase.

There is an admission fee for adults, though -- $30 -- and attendance is limited to 700 tickets. Proceeds will benefit the Green Building Council, which promotes "green" building practices in the Asheville area.

Order tickets at http://ciderfest.wncgbc.org/

Biltmore plans fall wine events

Too early to think about autumn?

 For leaf-peeping, certainly. People start thinking about drives in the N.C. mountains around Labor Day and are ready to head to the hills in mid-September. Truth be told, leaf coloration most years isn't even peak in Quebec and northern New England until the end of that month.

But planning has its advantages -- especially when it comes to selecting any post-Labor Day weekend to head out of town. Our lives in the metro area are simply that busy.

Up in Asheville, Biltmore is also busy in the months ahead, and their schedule of special events is already out. 

September is N.C. Wine Month at the estate, with a full lineup of wine tastings, Live After 5 concerts (they continue through Oct. 25) and Friday wine-paired dinners at the Market Gardener’s Cottage or the winery. There are winery tours and Grand Tasting events. Ongoing wine-related activities include a daily "Red Wine & Chocolate" seminar.

Wine events are held at Antler Hill Village & Winery, Biltmore House and Gardens and other estate locations.  Details: http://bit.ly/1AUwuOz. 

Special over-weekend deals at the Inn on Biltmore Estate include a Labor Day package (Aug. 30-Sept. 1), a Fall Celebration package timed for Halloween events (Oct. 24-26) and the Our State Package (Oct. 31-Nov. 2), which highlights Biltmore's agricultural history.

Another reason for planning a Biltmore trip in advance? Starting Sept. 2, you can save $12 on daytime admission when your ticket is purchased online seven or more days in advance. Book six days ahead of your visit and you can save $7.

For details on programs and admission: www.biltmore.com.

Forecasting fall color? An every-fall hassle

It never fails: Every year when late summer temperatures are in the 80s in Charlotte and the forests of Quebec are utterly green, editors here start to whisper, "What are the leaves like? Are they turning?"

These hard-working people don't get out much.

The first leaf story this year was published Sept. 7.

The Observer's Sunday Travel pages, which go online the Friday before at charlotteobserver.com/travel, offers weekly foliage updates. They kicked in the weekend of Sept. 29 this year, with leaves being "Prime/Peak Now" in parts of Ontario, Quebec, Minnesota, Maine and New Hampshire.

How did I know what leaves are like elsewhere? I called the tourism people at these and other provinces and states.

 And in the weeks that follow, I touch base weekly with every state as far south as Virginia -- and with 15 tourism organizations in Western North Carolina and Upstate South Carolina. Updates continue through Oct. 27.

Some states have remarkable prognostication tools: Click to their leaf page, select the dates and  you'll know  how the following week is shaping up, leaf-wise.

The biggest hassle is having to call tourism people at state and provincial agencies to ask, "How are the leaves going to be next week?"

"Well, it depends on where you are."

Yes, I know.

"And it varies from year to year."

Yes, I know.

"And it depends on elevatiion."

Yes, I know.

"And the temperature and other stuff."

Yes, I know.

"So it's kind of hard to say."

We're only looking for "Prime/Peak Now," "Prime/Peak Soon" or "Coming Later" status: Pick one. We're not doing an investigative piece about their mother's pancreas nor asking where they buy their lottery tickets. We're looking for an educated guess, for pity's sake.

The last resort is to say, "Will you just look out your window?"

Wednesday after Wednesday.

The tourism people in the Carolinas are easier to deal with, possibly because they don't have the large staff turnovers that often afflict state agencies. There's little song and dance about what I seek. Over the years of doing this, they've become leaf-line lean-ons.

"Oh, hi!" one told me the first time I called this year. "When October rolls around, I knew you'd be calling. How's the headache this Wednesday?"

These people, from North Wilkesboro to Brevard, Mars Hill to Marion to Oconee County, S.C., are glad I call: It helps reduce the number of calls they get from people wanting to know how the leaves are.

Observer colleague Steve Lytle runs a leaf update that publishes Fridays in the Observer; a main source for his what's-turning information is Appalachian State professor Howard Neufeld, an authority on leaf coloration. Neufeld, in fact, was featured in the Observer's Sci-Tech pages on Oct. 14.

(You can scroll up to the top and see a photo of Neufeld published with the Sci-Tech interview.)

That said, Neufeld is in the leaf-changing business: While he might honestly report that leaves are at "peak" right now atop Mount Whatever, leaves might still be still utterly green down down the slope at the county seat.

Elevation certainly complicates when "peak" is in season in Western North Carolina. On the other hand, the great variance in any county's elevation makes for additional leaf-peeping weekends there.

Try your hand at what I do Wednesdays in October.

Got a friend in Burnsville? Hendersonville? Forest City? Call and ask how the leaves are likely to look next week.

If he or she says, "Well, it depends on where you are..." just cut to the leaf chase and say, "Will you just look out the window?"