Gambolin’ Man sent me an e-mail asking if I’d ever seen a movie set in Winston-Salem called “Goodbye Solo.” Turns out I’m such a movie geek that I had in fact seen it: the story goes like this: African cab driver meets bitter old white guy who offers to pay him $1,000 to take him to Blowing Rock in the Blue Ridge Mountains. One way. Solo is the name of the cabbie; William is his fare. Solo is convinced William plans to take one last leap off Blowing Rock, and the movie chronicles Solo’s quest to save William from himself. It’s a touching indie drama; worth a look if you’re into that sorta thing.

So Gambolin’ Man wanted the story on Blowing Rock — so named because strange wind patterns there cause the wind to blow vertically upward; it actually send snowfall in the wrong direction. Here’s a passage from the Wikipedia entry on the nearby village of Blowing Rock:

The Blowing Rock area was once fought over by the Cherokee and Catawba Native American tribes. According to legend, two lovers – one from each tribe – were walking near the rocks when the man received a notice to report to his village and go into battle. When his lover urged him to stay with her, he became so distraught that he threw himself off the blowing rock into the gorge. The woman prayed to the Great Spirit to return her lover, and the Spirit complied by sending a gust of wind which blew the man back up the cliff and landed him safely on the blowing rock itself.

This Widipedia entry describes the rock feature itself and includes a picture.

GPS coordinates are N36.117008, W81.660776. Here’s a Google map.

View Blowing Rock, North Carolina in a larger map

Sooner or later I’ll have to stop in on Blowing Rock. The storied Glen Burney Trail starts in the town of Blowing Rock, so it might be worth a visit.