From Table to Table

This will finish up our trip to the Carolinas. Of course, there was a lot more that happened while we were on the trip- we got to catch up with a lot of my friends, go to church and even contra dance, but I don't have photos of all that. So with out further ado, I give you Table Rock...

Table Rock State Park is located northwest of Greenville in Pickens County near Pumpkintown (I kid you not). It's a wonderful park with 2 lakes, a lodge, camping sites, and several trails. But the highlight is the "Table Rock" which is a large mountain that has a sheer rock face shooting up from the base of the mountain. We took the Pinnacle Trail (yellow) which doesn't actually go to the top of Table Rock, but rather the adjoining Pinnacle Mountain.

But from a rock face area on Pinnacle, you can get a good view of Table Rock and also the foothills below. It was a little hazy, so we couldn't see Greenville. After more that 3 miles of hiking and at least 1600 feet in elevation, Rufina and I reached our goal.

I had to break out my goofy hat from my international travels for the occasion.

After the 3 mile hike down, we stopped to get this photo on our way out.

Later that night, I surprised Rufina with a nice dinner near Ceasar's Head State Park (which is on the South & North Carolina border). We stopped off at the overlook at the park and could see the other mountains through the haze- including Table Rock.

We had a great dinner at the Mountain House Restaurant which sells sandwiches & sweets during the day and has fine dining at night. They are only open from Memorial Day to Labor Day and they only serve dinner on the weekends. I had a delicious beef tenderloin and Rufina had chicken and mushrooms in a puff pastry and we split a slice of carrot cake for dessert. The restaurant is a charming little building with stone walls and dining out on the wrap around porch.

We really had a great time on our trip and were so glad to catch up with so many friends and see so many wonderful places. Rufina even had the best salad she has had while back in the States (2 Chefs downtown Greenville). And it was so great to have the opportunity to share places and people that are very meaningful to me with her.