Adventure Awaits in Morganton NC.

Adventure Awaits at Nature’s Playground!

Morganton is nestled in Burke County which is situated in the foothills of the legendary Blue Ridge Mountains. Burke County truly is “Nature’s Playground”.

Historical Courthouse in Morganton. Picture taken by Ashley Scott with ANS Photography.

Morganton and Burke County as a whole have many things to offer the community and visitors, such as hiking, camping, fishing, events downtown, and so much more.

In Morganton renovations were just completed to the historic courthouse square. It will encompass many activities, like the TGIF summer concert series, and various festivals and events. Just down the road from this historic courthouse you can rent a room at the newly built Fairfield Inn and Suites Downtown Hotel. The hotel is said to be critical to the future development of Morganton and Burke County as Nature’s Playground!

Fonta Flora Trail

The Burke County Parks and Recreation Department operates three county parks and provides various youth and adult sports programs for residents. A primary focus of the department is on the continuing development of the Fonta Flora Trail near Lake James. Although the trail is not yet complete, it is open for hiking and biking. Fonta Flora Trail is already drawing a ton of visitors to the region. When the trail is completed, it will loop Lake James. Future expansion plans are that Fonta Flora will eventually connect the trail to the Greenway in Morganton all the way to Asheville.

Morganton has a multitude of parks, trails, outdoor events such as the Linville Gorge and the Catawba River Greenway.

Catawba Greenway

The Catawba River Greenway is special to locals in Morganton and is equally enticing to visitors. The Greenway is a nearly 5-miles of paved, fully accessible walking trails with FIVE access points. The trail connects to recreational facilities from the Catawba River Soccer Complex to Freedom Park and Catawba Meadows Park. It is even connected to a new fabulous restaurant, Town Tavern that is located right along the Greenway.

Town Tavern

Town Tavern has an outside patio that leads straight to the river. Since Town Tavern is waterfront, they have built a new area where you can get off the river to come grab a bite to eat. They put out a sign that reads: “Dock here, Eat here, Drink here”. It is an area where you can tie off up to 5 different tubes, or kayaks. This restaurant features many events on their outside patio. It’s safe to say this is a new town favorite and is a must see!

Burke County has Lake Access.

Burke County offers Lake James, and Lake Rhodhiss. Lake James has many great things. Check out the Lake James State Park if you are around the area and looking for outdoor fun, or just a serene view. Lake James offers a range of activities on the 6,812 acres it has. You can go hiking, biking, swimming, boating, finishing, camping, picnicking and so much more! The Paddy’s Creek area of the park offers a beach with a roped off swimming area. It also has kayak and paddle board rentals during the summer months.

Lake Rhodhiss has plans to be a part of the North Carolina Wilderness Gateway Trail System. The Trail System will connect Valdese to South Mountain State Park, in Southern Burke County and Chimney Rock State Park, 25 miles south of Asheville. In addition to new trails and wilderness access, the park will feature kayak launches, a fishing pier, a dog park more than four miles of hiking trails and a greenway along the scenic shoreline of Lake Rhodhiss.

Like to go hiking?

Speaking of Hiking, there are so many options to hike in Nature’s Playground, also known as Burke County. You can go to the Linville Gorge and go up to Wiseman’s view or see the waterfalls! Burke county has South Mountain State Park. South Mountain is in one of the North Carolinas most rugged areas. It includes 40 miles of trails for hikers, equestrians and mountain bikers as well as 20 backpacking campsites at six locations. This park is ideal for the outdoor lover, it even features an 80 foot waterfall!

There is so much to do and see in Burke County. We highly recommend checking out Discover Burke for more information on things to do or see.

Images provided by Ashley Scott with ANS Photography.