Wherever you are, do your best to take time to see what kind of outdoor beauty is around you. It can be as simple as a bee on a flower, bird on a feeder, or a hike in your local park. There's plenty of places to visit that can be hidden from plain sight, you just have to look for them.
However, this is not one of those "hidden" places. This is an NC state park! I hadn't been to this park before, and I had the opportunity to visit Lake James State Park for a short time while in the mountains. I'm thankful for it, as I have a good feel for where I'd like to spend more time in the park when I go back to visit for a more extended time.
-The park already has miles of hiking trails off the two main accesses of the park. If you like mountain biking, they've got you covered too! Two shorter loops and two longer ones so you have choices depending on your time and ability. There's also planning of rental cabins, RV and group camping, more trails, and when I visited, looked like a state-of-the-art new visitors center under way as well.
-Plenty of camping at the park as well, however, some of those sites are access by boat only, which can be kinda cool, gives you a sense of seclusion with no roads being right behind your tent.
-Speaking of boats, make sure to bring your boat, kayak, or canoe. Oh and fishing gear. Oh and swimsuit...in the summer anyway. Not right now, it was 32 degrees and windy...like 20-30mph gust windy. So yeah. BUT, once it's warm, bring that boat down! There's plenty of fishing to be had here, with many of the popular game species existing in the lake.
If that doesn't help you decide whether you should visit the park, then well maybe I can convince you by showing you some pictures. As soon as you drive in, you see an overlook to the Linville Gorge.
