Boone (North Carolina)

Boone is a town in Watauga County nestled in the North Carolina Mountains, part of Appalachia. It is the home of Appalachian State University and is the county seat.

Climate
Boone can be said as having a diverse climate with a big fluctuation of temperatures throughout the year. Although Boone is located in the American South, its climate can be more comparable to the northeastern United States with long cold winters and warm, but less humid summers. Winters are cold and snow is common with afternoon temperatures rarely getting above 40°F (4°C). Low temperatures during the winter typically drop to as low as 17°F (-8°C). January is the snowiest month when as much as 10 inches (25 cm) can fall, making it the most popular time of the year for skiers and snowboarders. Throughout the year, Boone on average receives about 35 inches (89 cm) of snow. Springs are generally cool with afternoon temperatures around 61°F (16°C). Fall is very popular amongst "leaf lookers," long-distance travelers looking at fall foliage across the Appalachian Mountains. Temperatures during fall are generally comparable to spring with afternoon temperatures falling below 70°F (21°C). Summers are much cooler than the rest of the American South and far less humidity. Average summertime high temperatures typically stay under 80°F (27°C) with frequent afternoon showers and thunderstorms when as much as an inch of rain (2.5 cm) can fall at a given time. June is the wettest month when about 5 inches (12.7 cm) of rain falls. Relative humidity in the summer generally stays under 80 percent, unlike most of the southeast.

Get in
Access is primarily by private vehicle. Fly to Charlotte, Raleigh , Asheville , or Greensboro. From Charlotte, take I-77 north to US-421 and go west or I-85 South to US 321 North at Gastonia. From Raleigh or Greensboro, take I-40 west to US 421 west at Winston-Salem. From Asheville, take I-40 east to US 321 at Hickory and head north to Blowing Rock.

Greyhound buses serve Boone and are a cheap option from major cities like Atlanta and Charlotte.

Seven times a day, the Hickory Hop shuttle goes from Charlotte to Hickory (1 hour from Boone). Continuing taxi service is available, and shuttle service is planned.

Other options include ridesharing such as the link below. See also Craigslist Ridesharing Board

Bus
AppalCART has eight bus routes running in Boone. The buses are free to use within city limits.

Foot
The downtown area is very compact and easily walkable. The remainder of town is well provided with sidewalks and some bike lanes, making non-automotive transportation a reasonable idea.

Taxi

 * Blue Bird Transportation Services

Ski
In skiing season, there are several nearby mountains that offer skiing.

Eat
Downtown Boone along King Street is home to many local restaurants and specialty shops. }}

Sleep
Trying to find lodging in Boone or nearby Banner Elk or Blowing Rock is a disaster. There are thousands of cabins around, and no consolidated way to search them. Websites are awful, ranging from out of date and poorly maintained, to unhelpful or even nonfunctional. Several others have no online search capability, expecting you to call, or manually read as many as 100 individual cabin listings each on a separate page. Of sites that do have search capability, it's generally inadequate; searching for "lodging near ski slopes" might show places as far as 30 minutes away, with its location just described as "Boone".


 * Watauga Lake Cabins, +1 803-524-5185, offers a range of cabins from simplistic to high-end, this cabin rental company has been offering vacation homes to visitors of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Appalachia for nearly ten years. Cabins that are perfectly centric to the great Watauga Lake, Cherokee National Forest and the town destinations of Boone and Blowing Rock.
 * Watauga Lake Cabins, +1 803-524-5185, offers a range of cabins from simplistic to high-end, this cabin rental company has been offering vacation homes to visitors of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Appalachia for nearly ten years. Cabins that are perfectly centric to the great Watauga Lake, Cherokee National Forest and the town destinations of Boone and Blowing Rock.
 * Watauga Lake Cabins, +1 803-524-5185, offers a range of cabins from simplistic to high-end, this cabin rental company has been offering vacation homes to visitors of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Appalachia for nearly ten years. Cabins that are perfectly centric to the great Watauga Lake, Cherokee National Forest and the town destinations of Boone and Blowing Rock.
 * Watauga Lake Cabins, +1 803-524-5185, offers a range of cabins from simplistic to high-end, this cabin rental company has been offering vacation homes to visitors of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Appalachia for nearly ten years. Cabins that are perfectly centric to the great Watauga Lake, Cherokee National Forest and the town destinations of Boone and Blowing Rock.
 * Watauga Lake Cabins, +1 803-524-5185, offers a range of cabins from simplistic to high-end, this cabin rental company has been offering vacation homes to visitors of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Appalachia for nearly ten years. Cabins that are perfectly centric to the great Watauga Lake, Cherokee National Forest and the town destinations of Boone and Blowing Rock.

Resorts
Most locations that offer skiing also have resorts. They tend to be more expensive than lodging in town, but will keep you closer to the activity.

Mill Ridge Resort in Banner Elk on NC 105 offers 1-5 bedroom homes for rent which include tennis, swimming pool and hiking. millridgeresort.com

Go next

 * West Jefferson
 * Blowing Rock
 * Linville Gorge
 * Mountain City