When Winter Cabins Need Supplies and Gear, Western North Carolina Gives You Many Options
As a visitor to western North Carolina, you may have searched through all of the available winter cabins to find the perfect spot, only to find when you’ve arrived that you need a good outfitter. Well, in the Asheville area, you’re in luck.
Here are some of your options:
At 140 Tunnel Road just east of the tunnel in Asheville, you’ll find Black Dome Mountain Sports (1-800-678-2367). The store is named after nearby Mt. Mitchell, at 6,684 feet the highest peak in the United States east of the Mississippi River, originally known to Native Americans as the Black Dome. In business since 1983, Black Dome Mountain Sports is a full-service outfitter and core climbing store. It sells outerwear, packs, sleeping bags, back-country gadgets and cookwear, footwear for hiking and trailrunning, snowboards and longboards, and a comprehensive selection of climbing gear.
A few minutes south of Asheville at 2623 Hendersonville Road in Arden, Diamond Brand Outdoors (1-800-459-6262) sells clothing for men, women and children as well as gear ranging from flashlights, lanterns and canteens to packs, hammocks, kayaks and much more.
And for an outfitting excursion that takes in a little history as well, depending on the road conditions from the winter cabins of western North Carolina vacationers, consider driving over to Highway 194 in Valle Crucis, site of the original Mast General Store (828-963-6511). Built in 1882 and opened in 1883, the old country general store was named in the early 1970s to the National Register of Historic Places. With the exception of 1978 through 1979, Mast General Store has been in continuous operation since its original opening.
Mast his expanded to eight locations including stores in Waynesville, Hendersonville and Asheville with a wide array of modern merchandise, but the original location takes you back to a simpler time, featuring mercantile items such as jams and jellies, real maple syrup, stone-ground cornmeal and rocking chairs along with food, hiking boots and shoes, clothing, toys, and more.
Finally, if the price of lodging in winter cabins has you looking for bargains, consider Second Gear (828-258-0757) at 444 Haywood Road in West Asheville for your outfitting needs. This outdoor gear consignment shop offers secondhand outdoor gear (including kayaks, canoes, mountain bikes, road bikes and camping equipment) as well as outdoor clothing, guidebooks and maps, and accessoriesall at very reasonable prices.
