We could not resist the opportunity to tour the Mount Airy area in North Carolina after watching so many episodes of Andy Griffith.
Mayberry Campground
The campground is located on land once owned by Chang and Eng Bunker, who were siamese twins. There are essentially no trees or bushes between the sites. But the pads are level and gravel. Cable was grainy and very poor. Wifi was unusable. Needed to use our own hotspot. Voltage was 118, but bumped up by our Hughes transformer. Water pressure was 45 psi. Seems like most people only stayed a couple of nights. They had a catch and release fishing pond. We watched a guy catch a fish and Jake went for it but luckily missed. Doesn’t need a fish hook in his mouth. Now when he sees water, he puts his nose in it looking for that fish. Too funny.
Chang and Eng Bunker
Mark Twain wrote a book called “The Siamese Twins” based on the Bunkers. They were born in 1811 in Siam, today known as Thailand. They were joined at the sternum. After they died, an autopsy revealed that their livers may have been fused or touching, so they would have died if surgical separation was attempted from blood loss…if not infection. They were discovered by a Scottish merchant who exhibited them around the world. After their contract was over, they settled in North Carolina. They may have been the first asians to become American citizens. They were above average in intelligance, did well financially, were Buddhists, excellent fisherman, good with firearms, and played the flute.
They married sisters and all 4 slept in a special bed built for four. The two couples had a total of 21 children. Over time, the sisters disliked each other, so 2 separate homes were built. The brothers would alternatively spend 3 nights at each home. There was only speculation on what their married life was like. Surprised no one has done a movie on their life. Maybe too real to be true. Unfortunately, the Civil War financially devastated the families. They briefly went on the road again doing exhibitions. Chang became an alcoholic and eventually had a stroke. In 1874, Chang died while they were asleep. Eng died approximately 3 hours later possibly from disseminated intravascular coagulation. They were 62.
Mount Airy
Downtown is old, dated, interesting, and touristy. A little too much Mayberry memorabilia, but fun nonetheless.
Andy Griffith
He was born in Mount Airy in 1926. He died in 2012 at the age of 86 from a heart attack. As a newborn, Andy lived with his relatives until his parents could afford to buy a house. His crib was a dresser drawer. He grew up listening to music. After graduating from Mount Airy High School, he attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and graduated with a Bachelor of Music degree. Andy was in numerous plays and films before he took the role of Sheriff Andy Taylor in fictional Mayberry in 1960. Don Knotts was one of his best friends. Knotts won multiple Emmy Awards as did Frances Bavier (Aunt Bee), for their performance in the show, while Andy was never even nominated. Andy stayed in contact with Knotts until Knotts death in 2006 from lung cancer. TV Land dedicated a statue honoring the show in Mount Airy. Andy came for the celebration.
Old North State Winery and Brewery
This is a nice restaurant, winery, brewery, and bar. We sampled some of their wines. Overall, they are good. They are light, low alcohol (12%), and easy to drink. They are all estate wines. Their reds were blends. Very different than California reds, which are full bodied, distinctive, and pushing 15% alcohol. We enjoyed a vegan flatbread and bottle of their Restless Soul red wine blend.
Round Peak Vineyards
We enjoyed their tasting room and views off the back patio. We were lucky in that the woman pouring was also in school to be a wine maker. It was fun learning more about North Carolina wines. Their prices are very good. Their reds are similar to Old North State Winery in that they are harvested with a low sugar content, too much water in the grapes, and underdeveloped fruit. Their frequent rains make it difficult to develop the sugar and flavor. Nevertheless, they are good table wines and worth the purchase. The Biltmore’s wines are better, but they import grapes/juice from California and their prices are higher.
Blue Ridge Parkway
We once again set out on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It was scenic, but not as dramatic as the Asheville area. There were more farms and houses. We came across what looked like a black rat snake. It was about 3 feet long.
Mabry Mill
We came for lunch, but the restaurant was still closed for the season. Ed Mabry built the mill in 1905. It was used to grind corn into course grain for livestock feed or corn meal for household use.
The mill’s stones were made of quartz from a local quarry.
Mabry added a sawmill, wheelwright shop, and blacksmith shop.
There were a number of old buildings and a still. The doorways were not very tall.
It was a nice walk in the woods. We came upon more Trillium and lilac.
