Llamas make for easy-going hiking companions when visiting the Carolina mountains.
By ADELE WOODYARD
Published September 7, 2003
[Photo: Adele Woodyard]
Roger and Penny Thorpe start their trek in the Pisgah National Forest with the llamas that will carry their packs.
CLYDE, N.C. - Despite bright sunlight, the blue-gray haze that gives the Great Smoky Mountains their name still clings to the peaks. From the second-story deck of WindDancers Lodge, a B&B in this village, I can see a cluster of people and dogs on the dirt lane below. They shrink back from the wooly, long-necked animals tied to a post and rail fence. It's doubtful any of the people have been that close to a llama before.
Related to camels, llamas have been known to spit and I, too, was leery the first time I got close to one. But these animals - with their long-lashed, limpid brown eyes and thick, soft coats - actually prefer to hum in your ear.
Led by WindDancers owners Gale and Donna Livengood, two families from the Midwest and a pair of young women are soon to trek to the B&B's campsite and spend the night under the stars. Co-owner Gregg Livengood will lead Penny and Roger Thorpe from Endicott, N.Y., and me to hike a shorter trail, and we will spend the night in comfortable beds.
Before we take off, Gregg explains how the llama originated on the central plains of North America 40-odd-million years ago. Camels eventually left for what is now Asia and the Middle East, while llamas headed for South America.
Domesticated in Peru about 5,000 years ago, llamas have been used as pack animals since the time of the Incas. Today they are more apt to carry gear for vacationers, such as us, on increasingly popular soft-adventure treks, both in North America and abroad. Unlike horses, these sure-footed animals are not easily spooked. However, because they can carry no more than 120 pounds, only small children can ride them.
After a few words of instruction, Gregg hands each of us the lead to a trail companion whose ears stand up like a pair of parentheses. We follow Gregg in single file along a narrow dirt path in the Pisgah National Forest. Huffing along the steep, up and down the trail - mostly up - it's a relief each time the animals make frequent stops to strip leaves from trees and bushes.
Pausing for breath, my new trail partner blows a soft puff on my neck. With his quiet manner and padded, two-toed feet, that's the only sound he makes.
When we reach a wooden table and benches built over a rippling creek, Gregg fires up the grill. Tethered to a line strung between the trees, our llamas munch on leafy plants. We fortify ourselves with grilled chicken, pasta salad, fruit, brownies and wine before trekking back to the lodge.
Opened in May 1999, the main, or Llama Lodge, has a two-story central room with huge stone fireplace and tables for family-style dining, a kitchen and two guest rooms on the first floor. A loft with pool table and well-stocked video library separates the two second-floor guest rooms.
The Hickory Lodge holds a pair of two-bedroom units - each with full kitchen, perfect for families or small groups - while the Maple Lodge contains three efficiency units.
Lodge interiors are fascinating: Each of the several guest rooms divided among the three buildings is decorated in an international motif. Mine was the Kenya Room, where wicker and rattan furniture shared space with a bamboo canopy, primitive masks and artifacts.
Other rooms had such monikers as Bali, Peru, Appalachia, Africa, Mexico and Indonesia, with decors to fit. ButWhatever the name, each has a gas log fireplace, VCR and - along with a separate shower - the luxury of a deep hot tub to ease the muscles after a llama trek.
Perhaps best of all, each lodge has broad wooden decks with rocking chairs, enticing you to relax and enjoy a breathtaking view. "We've had some guests," Donna says, "who just want to sit on the porch and read."
Guests who like to rough it will go for the campsite, for which WindDancers furnishes tents and bedrolls along with the food. On my visit, Ellie Barker from St. Petersburg, and her sister Suzanne, from New York, are setting up their tent. Three boys and a girl, 10 to 16, toast marshmallows over a fire ring.
One of the parents, Laurie Elwell from Wisconsin, says they found WindDancers while surfing the Internet. Whatever their experience in sleeping with the ground for a mattress, as darkness falls they take turns telling ghost stories around the fire.
There are plenty of things to see and do within a short distance of WindDancers Lodge: Hiking and biking trails wander for miles through the forest. Horseback riding, whitewater rafting, fishing streams, golf courses and gem-mining operations are all within Haywood County.
Waynesville is a charming mountain town where brick sidewalks on Main Street lead past shops full of antiques, collectibles, handcrafts and art galleries. Restaurants range from drive-ins to gourmet dining.
The Museum of North Carolina Handcrafts is in the historic Shelton House, two blocks off Main Street. Built in 1875, the house is on the National Register and is a perfect setting for such collections as hand-carved dulcimers, quilts, Indian artifacts and rare pottery.
Farther afield are the towns of Asheville to the east, Maggie Valley and Cherokee to the west. Plan on a full day to tour the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, less than an hour's drive. The 250-room chateau, built by George Vanderbilt in 1895, is the largest private home in America; the estate covers more than 8,000 acres.
- Adele Woodyard is a freelance writer living in Tampa.
If you go
GETTING THERE: From I-40, take Exit 15 (Fines Creek Road); turn right on Fines Creek Road, left on Martins Creek Road, then follow signs.
STAYING THERE: Contact WindDancers Lodging and Llama Treks, 1966 Martins Creek Road, Clyde, N.C. 28721; 828 627-6986 or toll free 877 627-3330; e-mail: info@winddancersnc.com Web site: www.winddancersnc.com
Room rates range from $130 plus tax (for up to two to a room) in the Llama Lodge to $195 plus tax (up to four) for a luxury two-bedroom suite. Children are welcome. Lunch or dinner treks: $40 per person; reservations and four-person minimum required for treks.
OTHER LLAMA TREK OPERATORS: Among the outfitters in North Carolina using llamas are:
East Fork Llamas, Marshall, N.C.; (828) 689-5925 Hawesdene Llama Treks, Andrews, N.C.; 1-800-447-9549 Road's End Llamas, Marshall, N.C.; (828) 680-9429 Rock Cabin Farm Llama Treks, Bahama, N.C.; (919) 620-6977.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact North Carolina Travel and Tourism, 1-800-847-4862, www.visitNC.com: Waynesville Chamber of Commerce, 1-877-456-3073; Cherokee Indian Reservation, www.cherokee-nc.com
