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i had a little time today, so i turned on some good ole bluegrass and made the 15 minute-ish drive to black mountain. asheville really almost runs into black mountain, thanks to swannanoa and east asheville, so there is really no excuse for you to not make the drive as well. you won’t regret it you can either take the highway (I-40) or the old business highway 70. i decided to take I-40 out there, and hwy. 70 through, swannanoa, back. the day was just way too pretty to just park and go inside some coffeeshop. i needed a mini-roadtrip.
black mountain is a cute, little mountain town that is a hub for tourists (tons of retirees) and mountainy, granola, tree-hugging young people. if there are other people here, i did not see them today. to be fair, other people may be working. but, it was a totally different vibe than in asheville, where you see all kinds of people all of the time. sometimes i wonder if people work in asheville… of course, i’m certain people could (or do!) wonder that about me. anyway. black mountain is adorable, picturesque, and a great place to wander around. a perfect place for nature lovers.
i parked my car (hopefully in a legal spot) after driving through the 3-4 downtown streets and almost busted my door open trying to get out because i was bubbling over with excitement. it was so beautiful. have i said that it was beautiful? it’s not so much the town, although it is a cozy place, but the weather today, which made the town seem even more amazing than usual. still, there’s a railroad track with some buildings around it, running right through the town, which makes it even more intriguing and awesome. i love me an old train station harkening to days gone by. i can just imagine what it was like back in the day… at the train station. people saying hello and goodbye. horses tied up. a general store open where people gathered for buy the necessities and to just chat with each other… a simpler time.
yeah. black mountain makes me think of a simpler time. it’s cool and funky, but not quite like asheville. it’s small and it’s got all that you really need. yeah, i think of black mountain as asheville’s little cousin. and a place i needed to get to know better. so i can appreciate it in it’s own right.
i still had no idea where i was going to fika, so i walked the streets looking for any of the three coffeehouses i had on my list. but i didn’t have my list with me, so i didn’t know what any of them were called. no biggie. you know i like to just go with the flow. and you know what? pretty soon, my problem was solved. i found the dripolator.
after taking tons of photos outside and answering questions about what i was doing ( i get that every day now. it’s crazy), i opened the awesome door at the awesome entrance and walked in. the first thing that caught my eye was the set of 3 sofas gathered around a coffee table. yes! then, i saw poles covered with posters and fliers and such – a typical asheville kinda thing. local business are always well supported in this area. i was feeling good about this place. it felt cozy. homey.
then, i noticed the tables, filled with people doing their own thing. and the coffee bar, and the chalk boards, and all the funky-ness. yep. this’ll do. oh, i just have to tell you… they had a special today. a coffee drink called “the heisenberg” – iced coffee with a shot of espresso in a crystal blue jar. breaking bad, anyone? how much fun is that?!
there were retired couples, older men on their computers or with their heads buried in books, and young twenty-somthings who were most likely college students at surrounding college & universities. it truly was split like that. i was most definitely the only woman alone, and the only one somewhere between the age of 30 and 50. it was crazy. but it was a cool balance between people working and reading, and people gathering to spend time together. i love it when a place is balanced like that. but, the decor completely lent itself to both activities.
i started off on one of the sofas, naturally. but, soon, i was overrun by 4-5 college guys – now, do not picture frat boys or jocks. these boys were nature lovers. as was every single person in there, no matter what age. everyone had on chacos, jeans, skirts, t-shirts, hiking shoes, flannel shirts. there were no hipsters here. no suits. no froo froo, frilly chicks. and i must admit, it felt damn nice. but, i wanted to get some work done, so i left the boys to their conversations about what happened last night for a recently abandoned table where i could type better.
i got settled in, and realized that i could have stayed there for quite a while. and, had i stayed longer, i would have most definitely partaken in some of the fresh, delicious goodies and breads they had. i am assuming it was delicious because it sure did look delicious, and i overhead a few people talking about how delicious it was. the coffee sure was yummy. and, of course, the food & coffee were organic. and the coffee was ground and brewed right there, always making for a better cup. oh no, am i becoming a coffee snob now?
it’s funny, though. i am getting a sense of what i like best in a coffeehouse/coffee den/ cafe. we’ll see how it ends up when i finish my 40 days – not too much time left, you know?! luckily, i still have 2 more places to visit in black mountain, so i’ll get a chance to let that place sink into me a little more. so, far, it’s been totally worth the short little drive. especially since it is a chance to leave the busy city and step into a town that is clearly a filled with not only nature lovers, but some stunning nature as well.
namaste. /liz
the dripolator coffeehouse. 221 w. state street . black mountain, nc 28711
