Mast General Store; Valle Crucis, North Carolina

Located in a picturesque holler in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains surrounded by barns of drying tobacco leaves, the Mast General Store is a real old-fashion shopping experience that will entertain all who step through its 1883 doors. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Mast has something for everyone, including such Appalachia goods as Moonshine Jam, Corn-Cob Pipes, Washboards, Red Union Suit Long Underwear, Hickory Rocking Chairs, and old-fashioned Nostalgic Wooden Toys. If your not interested in any of the Appalachian essentials of life, the Mast General Store advertises over 500 different varieties of candies, everything from old-time favorites as Wax Bottles, Wax Lips and Fangs to Pecan Divinity.

The Mast General Store opened it's doors for business in 1883 carrying such everyday essentials from "cradles to caskets". W. W. Mast's sales advertising was simply and quaintly stated as "Quality Goods for the Living, Coffins and Caskets for the Dead". Although I did not find the casket parlor, I did find a large selection of cast iron goods, jams and jellies of every flavor imagined, stone ground meal, as well as an excellent selection of outfitter clothing and footwear. If for no other reason, visit Mast to buy a glass bottle of Coke, sit at the checker's table next to the old oversized pot-bellied stove, and treasure for a while the good old days.

But visiting Mast is not the only reason to venture west of Boone, North Carolina, the scenery will beckon you even deeper back into the holler for some spectacular Appalachian scenery. I visited Mast on November 10th, and the fall colors varied from yellows, oranges, to deep hues of maple reds. I would encourage everyone to put the Mast General Store in northwestern North Carolina on your list of places to see. I promise you'll be amazed and entertained as you walk back into a general store from the late 1800's.

Charles Kuralt described the Mast General Store as "All general stores are satisfying to visit, but one of them, the Mast Store, is a destination". I too am glad to have taken the "road less traveled" and the unforgettable two hours I spent walking the wooden floors of the Mast General Store.

Until my next travel adventure, Guymon says "goodbye y'all" from the Mast General Store, Valle Crucis, North Carolina.