The weather was turning, so we left Canton a day earlier hoping to outrun Hurricane Zeta. Yes, a hurricane in late October and in upstate North Carolina. Will the craziness of 2020 never end! Off we went to where the rainbow ends…Mount Airy, NC home to Andy Griffith.
Home Sweet Home
Our home for the next few days was the Mount Airy Veterans Memorial Park. Basically, an open field with full hook ups. It was quiet and the price was right @ $35 a night. And there were no trees to blow over on us from now Tropical Storm Zeta! LOL
Traveled 190 miles. 3 1/2 hours.
1st Things 1st
One of the issues we discovered as full time travelers is voting! We had our absentee ballots sent to a friend who expressed mailed them to us in Canton. We almost missed the delivery due to the impending weather and our hurried departure. Literally, 10 minutes before we left the UPS truck pulled up. So, we exercised our civic duty and mailed our ballots the next day in Mayberry! (It was legal!! I checked!!)
The Dicken Sightseeing Tour Rides Again
Mount Airy is the home of Andy Griffith and the little town of Mayberry is modeled after his memories of growing up here. So, exploring this quintessential town was like stepping back in time and into Mayberry! I grew up with Andy, Opie and Aunt Bea, so this was a must Go, See, Do on my Bucket List of places to visit. I was not disappointed!
Our tour started with a flyby of Andy’s childhood home. The sign out front let’s you know it is a private home and to be respectful! Down the street is the elementary school where Andy performed on stage. We toured both the playhouse and the adjacent museum where we learned all things Andy.
Fun Fact – Andy’s first performance was when he was 8 years old. His buddy was supposed to join him on stage but chickened out leaving a young Andy to ‘ad lib’. He fell in love with the laughter of the audience and a star was born!
Some must see/hear Andy performances (all pre-Mayberry days)…His monologue “What is Was Was Football” is hee-larious. “A Face in the Crowd” came highly recommended by our tour guide as a dark thriller that is very relevant to today. It is on my list of movies to watch! As well as “No Time for Sergeants” with Don Knotts.
Downtown Mount Airy
My tour guide treated me to breakfast at Barney’s Cafe. This Southern girl was in taste bud heaven with her plate of grits! 🙂 Fully nourished we walked the streets snapping pics and enjoying the down home vibe.
Fun Fact – Floyd’s Barbershop was the city barber shop where a young Andy got his haircut. Opened in 1929, the barber, Russel, continued to cut hair until his retirement and now his son continues the trade. They renamed it Floyd’s after the success of The Andy Griffith Show.
Another Fun Fact – Snappy Lunch was mentioned in several episodes as a go to lunch spot for Andy and Barney. We had a burger lunch there. “When in Rome…” LOL
And of course being a tourist-y area, Opie’s Candy Shop and a mock up of the courthouse are huge draws!
The Sheriff is in! 
Ottis is Not!
Other famous Mount Airians…
Chang and Eng, born in Siam in the 1811, were known as the original “Siamese Twins.” After spending much of their lives on exhibition tours, they settled in Mount Airy, North Carolina. Their descendants still have reunions on the family property.
Fun Fact: Chang and Eng married sisters and raised a total of 21 children. They maintained separate households on separate farms, taking turns in spending a week at each house.
Then, there’s Donna Fargo. One of my favorite childhood memories is singing her song, “I’m the Happiest Girl in the Whole USA” and thinking that song is me! 🙂 Still am the Happiest Girl in the whole USA!
Mayberry Spirits
What a perfect Halloween treat! Finding a distillery tour and spirits!
This one of a kind distillery uses sorghum to make their spirits. The sorghum gives it a slight sweetness which leads to some mighty fine spirits! We each left with a bottle. John chose a toasted oak whiskey (of course!) and I have a vanilla flavored spirit that mixes well with hot apple cider for a decadent toddie! The Mayberritas weren’t bad either! Happy Halloween Y’all!
Until next time…
There were several day trips we wanted to do from Mount Airy – Grandfather Mountain, Hanging Rock, and the nearby Pilot Mountain. With weather delays and an existing reservation to be on the beach tomorrow 🙂 we will save those for another year!
Fun Fact: The town of Mount Pilot in the Andy Griffith Show is named after Pilot Mountain. I can say I saw it! 🙂
Thanks for a great time Mount Airy and Andy!