I randomly decided we needed a long weekend. Generally, I am not a spontaneous person. So this was really a stretch for me. Like I asked for the day off only a week in advance (gasp)!

It’s been a cold (er than normal) year here in SC. We both have been experiencing the winter blues since January. So I felt like since it was finally starting to warm up during the day, it was time to venture out!

I was looking for something budget-friendly (still working on paying those credit cards off) and not too far from home. We go on a “big” trip for our anniversary in September each year.

I did a random search on VRBO for the Asheville area in North Carolina. Using dates for the next weekend coming up (like a week and a half away, calm down I can’t make plans the same week) for under $100 a night. Which if you are familiar with Asheville obviously didn’t happen!

VRBO has this neat map search feature though, so I basically started moving the map around to nearby areas.

And just happened upon Black Mountain, NC.

We had visited Black Mountain once before, probably 8 years ago or so, for the day from our campsite near Chimney Rock. I honestly remembered very little about this trip. I know my cousin and her boyfriend were there. We tried to eat Mexican but ended up at a pizza place because we are directionally challenged.

Which if you realize how small the town of Black Mountain actually is (which I did this time as an adult) is very sad, but I digress.

I found these camping decks near Black Mountain for around $55 a night (not including fees) which was super budget-friendly!

My husband and I love the outdoors. We generally go camping once a year with a group of friends to Low Water Creek Campground. Which is usually fun, but not exactly my favorite. Since this campground is “backwoods” camping with absolutely no amenities.

However, the camping decks offered shelter from the rain/sun, electricity, your own private port-a-potty, and AMAZINGLY INSANE views!

I pondered it for a day or so before bringing it up to Ethan. We both enjoy the outdoors, but I really like to enjoy them during the day. And then sleep in a warm, clean bed at night after my wine. But I felt like we both really needed a getaway though and this was the perfect budget-friendly solution!

I sent him the link and asked him was it even something he wanted to consider.

He immediately said yes and so it was decided!

The next week the forecast called for continuous rain. I held out hope that the chance of rain would go down instead of up as the weekend approached. Unfortunately, it did not.

Fortunately, weather forecasters are generally WRONG! Friday it did rain in the morning, but we weren’t ready to start packing up until around lunch anyways. We had a break in the rain, packed the truck, and headed out!

We opted for backroads instead of the interstates, which was such a good decision. Not only was it beautiful, but I feel like you really get to see more of “real life” when you are not on the interstate. It was a nice drive with very little rain.

Doug (the host) had sent me directions via AirBNB. (It turns out he actually doesn’t use VRBO as a rental platform anymore, but one of the decks was still listed there. He was super responsive on both platforms though. I just had to book through Airbnb). He said that GPS does not like to actually take people to the camping decks, and I can see why.

The road was gravel, narrow, winding, and had steep drop-offs to one side! I myself do not enjoy this type of “risk-taking”, but lucky for me Ethan loves it! And enjoys pushing everything to the limits!

In all seriousness though, the host says all cars can drive the road and Ethan agreed that a regular car WOULD make it. However, I would not have felt comfortable driving my sedan up this road! We were in a four-wheel-drive truck, and I was still a little sketched out.

The ride was COMPLETELY worth it though once we made it to the deck!

The view is breathtaking! And I would like to add it was cloudy our entire stay. I’m sure that on a clear (especially a fall) day it would have been even more incredible.

There are four camping decks fairly close (within walking distance) of one another. Our deck was the newest one built. If you looked over our right side and back you could see another deck, but I never actually saw the people. So it wasn’t THAT close.

All four decks were full the weekend we were there. (I know this because of cars, not because I saw people.) We had no issues with it being private enough. It was MUCH more private than a “regular” campground.

The port-a-potty was super clean when we got there. It looked brand new and had just been cleaned out. Which made my clean freak heart happy!

The host supplied all sorts of camping equipment you may have forgotten, or just next time be lazy and not bring since it’s already there! They had Clorox wipes, bungee cords, drop cords, plenty of electrical outlets for anything you needed, and the best part, the Christmas lights!

The lights were strung around the actual camping deck as well as up the stairs to light the way to the port-a-potty.

They also already had a large table there and deck chairs, so you really only needed your tent! (And air mattress and fan and heater. Hey, I like comfortable camping!)

There was also a large tarp/ curtain thing that could be pulled across the front of the deck for more privacy. You were already blocked off from the back and right side with wood walls to protect from the elements, which was really perfect!

It only took a few minutes to unload everything, pop the tent up, and pop open a bottle of wine.

Actually the hardest part was opening the wine since I forgot a wine opener (oops)!

I brought a small electric griddle and kettle (for boiling water) since you cannot have campfires. Open flames would be unsafe on the decks.

Not having a fire was a little odd since this is something we always do camping. I did miss roasting marshmallows. But in the end we decided it was worth giving up the campfire for the awesomeness of the experience!

Friday night we stayed at the deck. We ate hot dogs (plus various other snacks all night!), drank good wine, and had good conversations. It did get a little chilly once the sun went down, but once we were in the tent it was perfect! We both slept great!

Saturday morning we had eggs and bacon on the griddle and instant coffee. Because coffee is life even when from a packet!

Then we used the All Trails app to look for a place to do a quick hike! And yes I was able to use my app because while service was spotty, I was still able to get texts (only to check in on our fur kids!) and use the internet!

The first trail was sort of a bust. It ended up being a fully paved trail with not that much in the way of views or nature. We ended up only walking down it about 10 minutes and then went back to the car to try again.

We then found the Graybeard Trail.

Honestly, the drive to it alone was pretty amazing! This was an in and out trail and it was 8ish miles I think completed? We didn’t do the whole trail (thanks to the wine the night before) but we did probably spend 2 hours here and it was beautiful. Both of us said we would come back to do the entire thing!

Then we headed to the little town of Black Mountain for lunch. Spending the afternoon here was wonderful! Once we had hit a few highlights, we headed back to the camping deck!

We ended up taking a late afternoon nap, which I am always down for a nap!

When we got up the weather had changed a little for the worse, but it ended up being pretty freaking neat! The fog and clouds slowly rose up the mountain from the valley the deck overlooked. This was so eerie and cool at the same time!

By the time it got dark, we could literally touch the fog and could barely see two feet in front of you. We had originally planned to go back to Black Mountain for dinner, but with the weather and our nap taking up a lot of the afternoon we decided to just stay. I’m so glad we did!

We had sandwiches for dinner and about the time we cracked open our beers the rain started.

The rain was nothing like I have ever experienced!

It literally felt like we were in a monsoon. The rain was pounding the tin roof like crazy!

Luckily we stayed mostly dry thanks to the roof, the two sides, and the large tarp that you could spread across the front (I wish I had a better picture of this!). It was a little harder to sleep though just from the noise of the sheer force of the rain! I honestly can’t really describe it in words!

All that said even with the weather, we both said we would for sure like to go back! Especially in the fall when the leaves are all changing and the chance for severe storms is less (usually here anyway).

It was a great weekend and we can’t wait until our next adventure!

I would love to hear if anyone has checked these out what their experiences were! Or if you’re thinking of camping on the decks and have any questions, feel free to reach out to me!