Swimming

Cool off in summer with some old-fashioned fun!

If "roughing it" is more to your taste, there are classic "swimming holes" in nearby national forests. One of the best and more easily accessible "swimming holes" is Wildcat Lake in Banner Elk. It's a scenic jewel and a family-friendly place for swimming and sunbathing on a white sand beach, summer picnicking, boating, and fishing for brook, rainbow, and brown trout, plus bluegill and bass. Lifeguards are on duty-and admission is free. The lake is open from June to August-the warmest part of the cool summers in the Boone Area.

The Boone Area also has a wide variety of hotels, motels, and resorts with excellent swimming pool facilities. There are also swimming complexes open to the public in Boone and Blowing Rock, with lifeguards on duty.