Used to love this place, now you can't even tell it was there bc of #hurricanehelene almost a year ago. Pray for this community.

My family and I visited in the first week of June. The gardens were in full bloom. Absolutely gorgeous! My wife and I were very surprised to see how many different species of flowers and plants there were. I was honestly expecting the gardens to be smaller and it being a quick visit but we were actually there roughly 30 min ands would have stayed longer if we didn't have to go to the restroom. We absolutely loved and adored the rainbow bridge dedicated to our lost furry friends. We actually lost a beloved doggie family member last year and the bridge brought back some great memories! Thank you so much to the kind souls for sharing the gardens with everyone! Donations highly encouraged!

This place is awesome! It is all maintained by volunteers and what a phenomenal job they have done! The weather was perfect as we strolled around the gardens. The gardens just celebrated their 10-year anniversary. What an amazing place with fantastic views of chimney Rock! So if you and your family are in the area please make this a must do while you're there it's kid-friendly and pet friendly as they have water bowls for your fur babies all through the gardens! Update: with heavy heart I have been told this beautiful garden is now gone. Completely washed away by hurricane Helene. My thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected 🙏🙏💔💔

This spot is absolutely beautiful! The pictures don't do it any justice. There were so many different kinds of flowers and every one of them were so pretty!! The Rainbow Bridge for the pets was so sweet and brought a tear to my eyes. We loved everything about this area.

We visited to add our beloved dog’s collar to the rainbow bridge. It was an emotional experience but I’m so grateful this place exists for mourning pet parents. The surrounding gardens were stunning and therapeutic to walk through. It’s such a whimsical location with many “Easter eggs” to look out for. We loved spotting all the painted “book” rocks, such a unique and lovely attraction. Hope to be back one day soon.

I had the best day exploring the Lake Lure area in beautiful NC! First we went hiking at Chimney Rock State Park, if you've never been there you have to go, I was blown away by the beauty! Then afterwards we took a short ride down the road to see The Flowering Bridge. It's an old bridge that was brilliantly converted into a walking garden. It's free but there are donation boxes to help with the upkeep. There are so many pretty areas to see, there's a rainbow bridge for all the doggies that went to heaven and their collars are attached to the bridge🥺 so sweet, there's Peter Rabbits garden, a pretty gazebo with a glass chandelier, gorgeous flowers everywhere and it all overlooks the lake. It's a small bridge, easily walkable and it leads into town where there are shops and restaurants plus beautiful Lake Lure is close by. It's so well done, I really enjoyed it. Definitely worth seeing if you're in the area!

This was a really fun place to stop and enjoy the sights and smells of the beautiful plants and flowers. The garden is cleverly laid out with themes for different areas and all of the plants are labeled so you know what you're looking at. This will be even better when the shop is open and you can buy the brick books... What a great idea for the garden!

Remarkable efforts have been made after Hurricane Helene devastated the area. Come by and visit there is still so much to see and do

It’s a beautiful place. I would not pay again to go to the lake unless we stay there from open till closing. Family of five with one 4 year old and we paid 44$ (thought it was cheaper based on comments, guess not) kids enjoyed it. Went on a Sunday, glad we did since Monday and Tuesday (the days we stayed there) seemed like they closed.

It was an awesome experience for my family and I. We live 2 hours away and got up early arrived right when it opened. My son who is 3 loved swimming in the lake and playing in splash pad. We also went canoeing you have to pay additional money but its worth it for $20 for an hour. There is a picnic area to eat and stay shaded from the hot sun. I loved there were water slides for big kids and water ballon area. After the beach there are shops that surround the area that you can grab a bite to eat and grab souvenirs. Overall was very happy with our experience and definitely will be coming back!

View of the Lake Lure Beach. The beach is now a pasture full of weeds. No time line is available for reclaiming the area lake access. The marina, not pictured, to the left of the pictures is still heavily damaged. The lake remains at the lowest point in its history at about 963 Mean Sea Level. It is also a federal work site; so, only authorized personnel are allowed in the lake bed area.

This place i really thought was just so cute, and just awesome for kiddos! The beach was a decent size. They have water slides for ages 4+, and a splash pad by the beach also. Disappointed they close really early, at like 6 for the beach and 5:30 for the slides and splash pad. My 1 year old loved the splash pad. Our other kids enjoyed the slides and beach area. I think the staff could maybe be a bit more friendlier at times. They have a Japanese restaurant right beside it which was really yummy! Good sushi there.

This was my first time and I’m glad I got to experience it with all of the local activities and attractions to go with. It is a lake made into a sand bar that makes it have a beach appeal. A lot of family friendly locations all around a 25 min commute. Check out the parks and trails nearby and the waterfall are magical. Will be going back soon.

There is no water in this area at this time. Highly damaged from Helene

Brought my son here on our last day of our trip to Lake Lure. We both thoroughly enjoyed the visit. I grew up playing with similar trains and was so happy to see my son enjoy them. He did not want to leave. Ms. Peggy was great. There is a playroom that he enjoyed and had fun pushing all the buttons. Thank you so much for doing this!

A very cute interactive toy train museum. 100% of the entrance fee goes to support pancreatic cancer research. This place is for kids and adults. The proprietor, Peggy Keyes, opened the museum to honor her late husband, Larry, who passed away from the disease in 2007.

Remarkable museum! It was the collection of one man who passed due to pancreatic cancer. His amazing widow opened this museum to both honor him and to raise funds for research on pancreatic cancer—ALL funds are given for that cause! Our grandchildren had to be pried from the train playroom, but then loved the many active displays and beautiful trains. There are also train cars for sale, as well as a variety of “town” items and old LPs. It’s worth the $5 admission just to see the miniature Mel’s Diner with cars and roller skating car hops!

This place was so fun! We don't love crowds, so it was a nice quiet stop for our afternoon with our 2 year old. Our son loved all the buttons he could press along the track to make things light up and move. We will definitely be going back!

Awesome place, very nice lady honoring her husband's love for trains and raising money and awareness for pancreatic cancer.

Wow…do NOT RECOMMEND!!! Avoid this place if you can, not worth your time. Took my family there with 4 kids thinking this would be a fun experience. Only allowed to pay with cash and check, which we knew, but upon handing her $60 for a $45 total we were told she did not have change, how do you say cash only but you don’t have change…very rude about it as well and not nice about us trying to pay for our time there, which I guess was a donation but a required donation in the exact change. Rude to our children and us about pushing buttons that we were not supposed to push. Younger children are told they should go in the *children playroom* and not the main room. Only two total tracks were working in the single room that has trains. I think it is time to close this one because it should not be recommended to go there. Avoid if you are vacationing in lake lure….

We were visiting from Wisconsin with my 3 and 1 year old nephews, Ms. Peggy graciously opened for us so the boys could enjoy the amazing trains! Trains are a timeless toy for all to enjoy and I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND a stop at this tribute to everyone's childhood! Thanks again Ms. Peggy!

The other day my husband and I went in. There was a younger woman at the desk and there was an older lady trying to ask her some questions. The woman behind the desk was on her laptop and did not look up at this lady one time. She was incredibly rude answering her questions. We could here it in her voice. She almost seemed annoyed. She didn't give her full attention to this poor woman just wanting to find out some info about the lake. It really made me mad because the whole point is to be there to help tourists. I went in again with my son about 20mins later so he could use the restroom and again, she did not even look up or acknowledge us walking in. If I were in charge of hiring/firing, she would no longer be there. We go to Chimney Rock at least three times a month and everyone else there has always been so friendly and kind. The restrooms are always clean! But that just left a really bitter taste in my mouth.

You patronize this flea town usa as a good part of are community. On 1 occasion I witnessed an individual opening medicine and replacing with other products and yet another time seen a teenager slouched on the restroom floor drinking cough medicine acquired from this store..this is a health crisis on steroids. Not to mention literally hundreds of drugs in bins 4feet off the ground open to anyone who can reach that high .the owner said they were having numerous problems here to include the drugs being tampered with or used at the store or outright stolen by the cart full and sold in the nearby community..wow welcome too n.Carolina

We got a great overview of the history of the area and information of all there is to do in the area. Very well done displays and photos.

Lady at desk is rude and if she is representative of the people here we would never come back must be related to someone important in Virginia we fire people who act this way as we appreciate the tourist dollars

The kids had a good time on the playground and it was nice and relaxing to get out an enjoy the beautiful views and atmosphere

Clean restrooms and helpful staff.

Beautiful town and amazing scenery! Really impressed with that Shannon Baldwin fella.

One word beautiful. This park is situated perfectly between multiple mountain peaks with views of the Lake Lure Inn, Chimney Rock and the stunning rock faces of the the Lake Lure Valley. We lucky enough to visit during the time right as the sun slipped behind the mountains. Nicely maintained and great greenery, gardens and shrubs. While we were visiting there was a light breeze about 75 degrees was just an all around nice place to be right in the heart of Lake Lure.

I just love Morse Gardens! The walking trail is both paved and gravel and skirts the perimeter of the lake near the marina. It is immaculately kept, always clean, and offers great views of Lake Lure, Chimney Rock, and more. I lucky enough to live locally and bring clients here often for sessions. It's just lovely all year round.

The town has spent a lot of time and care over the past few years adding landscaping, clearing, paving sidewalks and other nice touches to improve the park. It's just beautiful there and so peaceful. Great place for a stroll along the lake, a picnic, or to drop a line in the water. Lots of benches to sit and enjoy the birds, the lake and even It's well known turtles.

One of the best places to take a walk with you special person in life! Located around part of Lake lure. You can safely walk your dogs, fish and have a picnic by the water. Paths are paved with shady trees and I felt very safe walking with my husband and our 2 dogs.

It was pretty chilly that morning, but it was beautiful and a nice walk. It was great to see some geese up close and a pretty little bird. The do have boat tours here, which we were planning on doing but it was a bit too cold.

Flat open spaces for walking, running, or picnic and athletics. Plenty of parking a Cash Point and visitor center are close by. Boat tours, boat rentals, and plenty of free parking. Enjoy the New Pickleball courts.

Lake Lure is drained down to mud flats! My dog and I were able to walk all around on the silty, sandy lake bottom. Park itself is a great place to stroll. Lots of open grassy space.

A beautiful 3.5 mile trail. I went on a Wednesday and saw @ 10 others on the trail

Nice little 3.5 mile loop trail, moderate difficulty, a little too heavily trafficked on a Saturday for me to bike but I’ll def be back

Well designed and preserved trail. With marks every 200 yards

Beautiful out and back trail! 1.9 miles, 328 feet of elevation gain, showing off the 400 foot tall falls (one of the tallest in the state!). There’s a fee of $17 per person to enter the park to help maintain and support the park. Very few people today which was lovely!

Very nice waterfall. This is about 1.5 miles an easy trek/hike from base elevator of the chimney rock park. The entry to the chimney rock is $17 per Adults and $8 per kids 5-12 years. Kids below 5 years gets free entry to the chimney rock. I would say it is an amazing place to visit. Your trekking would be worth visiting this.

The hike was definitely worth it once we got the the falls and got close up. There was a heat advisory that day so I considered it medically necessary for us to cool off! Fascinating work of nature!

The park was super busy but This was a great hike we started with the four seasons trail from the lower lot and hiked up. Both trails were a lot of fun. Even our puppy had a blast.

Dramatic, beautiful falls, just an easy, pleasant hike from the Chimney Rock parking area—well worth your time. The hike to Hickorynut Falls from the main Chimney Rock State Park parking area starts with your choice of either with a sloping walk down around back down along a roadway path or a stair climb (great stairway structure) from the park’s base area—recommend the stair climb. The walk is a nice 20-minute or so stroll from the bottom of the stairs through a lush forest—the hike is fairly easy on a sloping, sometimes rocky trail. The falls are dramatic, colorful, and picturesque, with multiple viewing areas including an area where the trail meets the falls, a platform just beneath the falls, and a platform to the left of the falls that’s just a short stair climb—be sure to check out the views from all areas for great pictures. There is a gate to the falls trail that we believe closes the falls after dark; at the gate there is also a connection between the falls trail and the Four Seasons Trail which runs from the park’s Great Woodland Adventure kid’s area. The trail was very well maintained and included trash/recycling cans. Overall, I would definitely recommend the hike to Hickorynut Falls if you’re visiting Chimney Rock State Park—highly recommended!

A nice milky thin waterfall. A little to moderate hike to reach this falls. Not very steep if you are going to do only this falls , if you had done chimney rock , exclamation point or top of the falls hike, considerable to do this trail. You can take the trail by parking at the lot on chimney rock information center. A moderate number of uneven rocks near the falls if you are planning to touch the water. No swimming or wading are allowed, but you will be able to touch the water or can drench you. But the deck is built about 20 feet from the falls to have a look and photography. Modestly slippery rock if you are thinking to touch the waterfalls. Trail has lot of shades , resting benches , picnic tables with trash area. No restrooms available on the trail but on the head of the trail when you are taking the wooden steps from parking lot. Drinking water vending machine , water fountain are there in this restroom area. Load up your snack , water or liquid for Hyderating you. Not very hardest trail but easy to moderate for a family , only at some places. Gravel path , Staffs or emergency staffs can reach the falls by ATV if there is anything emergency on waterfall area. Good for anyone and recommend to all.

Great hike! A moderate (for a 61 year old) ;) app 1.5 miles round trip but worth the falls.

This is the best gem mining experience in the Lake Lure area. My kid's a sucker for it - and it's harmless fun so I've been to them all. This is a great location overlooking the river and we had some of the best fossils in our bucket. This will be the only location for gem mining I visit in the Lake Lure area from now on. The downtown Chimney Rock sites pale in comparison.

I love this gem mine I took my niece up there once and she had a ball she found all types of gems so she had a very lucky day that's why I rate this gem mine at 5 stars