Iconic North Carolina Park Is Finally Reopening 9 Months After Hurricane Helene
Chimney Rock State Park reopens June 27, nine months after Hurricane Helene's devastation.
A temporary bridge and road repairs now allow access to park.
Advance reservations with limited capacity will be required via chimneyrockpark.com.Chimney Rock State Park is set to reopen exactly nine months after being devastated by Hurricane Helene.
The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources and N.C. State Parks announced today that Chimney Rock State Park, as well as the iconic Chimney Rock attraction, will reopen to visitors on Friday, June 27—the nine-month anniversary of Hurricane Helene's deadly assault on western North Carolina.
Chimney Rock, the tiny North Carolina town roughly 25 miles southeast of Asheville that's home to the park, was nearly wiped off the map by flooding caused by the storm. Experts say it was the hardest-hit spot in a region where the destruction stretched for hundreds of miles.
'Chimney Rock is a western North Carolina jewel,' Governor Josh Stein said in a statement. 'Reopening the state park will draw tourists back to this area. I am pleased that DNCR, DOT, and local leaders in Chimney Rock were able to get this park open for people to enjoy and so local businesses can thrive.'
Access to the park, where tens of thousands of visitors climb the famous 315-foot granite monolith for sweeping views of the Blue Ridge Mountains each year, has been limited since September 2024 due to the loss of the park entrance bridge. The N.C. Department of Transportation just recently completed work on a temporary bridge and repairs to the park's roads.
'The reopening of this iconic park is another positive step toward recovery in western North Carolina,' N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources Secretary, Pamela B. Cashwell, said in a news release. 'We could not reopen Chimney Rock without the swift work of the N.C. Department of Transportation and the leadership from Governor Josh Stein and his recovery team.'
Park hours will reportedly be announced soon. Capacity will be limited due to ongoing recovery and rebuilding efforts in the area, a news release notes. Advance reservations will be required to access the Chimney Rock attraction via chimneyrockpark.com, which will go live approximately one week prior to the reopening.
Read the original article on Southern Living
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
4 days ago
Flooding and rock slides close heavily damaged I-40 section in Smoky Mountains
HARTFORD, Tenn. -- Heavy rain, flooding and a rock slide have again closed a section of the major cross country highway Interstate 40 along its narrow corridor through the Great Smoky Mountains. The slide and flood happened Wednesday afternoon around mile marker 450 in Tennessee, just to the west of the state line with North Carolina, the Tennessee Department of Transportation said on social media. Crews continued to work Thursday to get the water and rock off the highway and had not released when they think the road could be reopened, the DOT said. The flooded section is part of 12 miles (19 kilometers) of I-40 in North Carolina and Tennessee that was washed away or heavily damaged by flooding that roared through the Pigeon River gorge during Hurricane Helene in late September. Crews repaired and shored up enough of the old highway to open one narrow lane in each direction in March. The lanes are separated by a curb several inches high that had to be removed to let vehicles stuck by the flooding and rockslide to turn around and go the other way. About 2.5 to 3.5 inches (63 mm to 89 mm) of rain fell in the area over about three hours, according to the National Weather Service. The permanent fix to stabilize what's left of the road will involve driving long steel rods into bedrock below the road, filling them with grout and spraying concrete on the cliff face to hold them in place. It will take years. I-40 runs from Wilmington. North Carolina to Barstow, California, and any detour around the Great Smoky Mountain section is dozens of miles. Trucks have gotten stuck on twisty narrow mountain roads and are banned on another major highway through the area U.S. 441 through Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
San Francisco Chronicle
4 days ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Flooding and rock slides close heavily damaged I-40 section in Smoky Mountains
HARTFORD, Tenn. (AP) — Heavy rain, flooding and a rock slide have again closed a section of the major cross country highway Interstate 40 along its narrow corridor through the Great Smoky Mountains. The slide and flood happened Wednesday afternoon around mile marker 450 in Tennessee, just to the west of the state line with North Carolina, the Tennessee Department of Transportation said on social media. Crews continued to work Thursday to get the water and rock off the highway and had not released when they think the road could be reopened, the DOT said. The flooded section is part of 12 miles (19 kilometers) of I-40 in North Carolina and Tennessee that was washed away or heavily damaged by flooding that roared through the Pigeon River gorge during Hurricane Helene in late September. Crews repaired and shored up enough of the old highway to open one narrow lane in each direction in March. The lanes are separated by a curb several inches high that had to be removed to let vehicles stuck by the flooding and rockslide to turn around and go the other way. About 2.5 to 3.5 inches (63 mm to 89 mm) of rain fell in the area over about three hours, according to the National Weather Service. The permanent fix to stabilize what's left of the road will involve driving long steel rods into bedrock below the road, filling them with grout and spraying concrete on the cliff face to hold them in place. It will take years. I-40 runs from Wilmington. North Carolina to Barstow, California, and any detour around the Great Smoky Mountain section is dozens of miles. Trucks have gotten stuck on twisty narrow mountain roads and are banned on another major highway through the area U.S. 441 through Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
I-40 shut down along Tennessee-North Carolina border due to flooding, landslide months after Helene
COCKE COUNTY, Tenn. - A significant stretch of Interstate 40 near the Tennessee-North Carolina state line was closed in both directions Wednesday evening after heavy rainfall triggered flash flooding and a landslide, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation. Doppler radar indicated that a locally heavy thunderstorm produced more than an inch of rain in a short period, leading to standing water along the main thoroughfare between Cosby, Tennessee, and Clyde, North Carolina. Photos shared by TDOT showed a tractor-trailer and several other vehicles stopped in the mud and debris that had overtaken the interstate, rendering the roadway impassable. Engineers were reported to be en route to assess the situation, but transportation officials warned that the closure could last for an extended period. No injuries were immediately reported, but officials expressed concern about the risk of additional slides and unstable terrain in the surrounding area. Treasured Discoveries Surface As North Carolina Lake Is Drained During Helene Revitalization A nearby portion of I-40 was previously closed for more than four months following severe damage caused by Hurricane Helene in September 2024. While emergency repairs allowed for the interstate to reopen early in 2025, full restoration is expected to be a multi-year process and not finish before 2028. Interstate 40 is a vital east-west corridor connecting the mountainous regions of eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina. With the latest closure, drivers are now facing significant delays, with detours that may add an hour or more to travel times through the region. Transportation officials are urging drivers to use I-81 and I-26 as an alternate route until the affected stretch of highway can safely reopen. Chimney Rock, North Carolina, Recovery Shows Progress Post-helene The National Weather Service office in Morristown, Tennessee, issued a Flash Flood Warning for the area after receiving reports of stranded motorists. The alert has since been rescinded, but forecasters continue to emphasize the dangers of flash flooding during summer thunderstorms. According to NWS forecasters, just six inches of fast-moving water can knock an adult off their feet, and a foot of floodwater is enough to carry away most vehicles. Transportation officials are encouraging the public to stay up to date if their travels take them between Knoxville and article source: I-40 shut down along Tennessee-North Carolina border due to flooding, landslide months after Helene
