We love Moody Cove. And if you’ve visited us at Navitat, you can no doubt understand why. If you haven’t yet zipped through our corner of the world, here are just a few words to describe our home: Quiet. Secluded. Calming. Invigorating. Alive. We could go on… but you get the idea. It’s pretty amazing.
CEO Ken Stamps and Environmental Programming Leader Sarah Marcinko along with Navitat Canopy Guides Brittany, John, Kat, Bob and Mike.
Choosing Moody Cove as our home was no happy accident; the Navitat team spent months of time and energy surveying more than 300 properties in the Asheville area before finding this land and finally saying, “Yes. This is the place.” And in the 16 months since we first opened, Moody Cove has become a special place not only to those of us who work here, but also to all of our zipping friends who have taken to the trees.
We’re committed to protecting this special place. In fact, we aim to leave Moody Cove even better than we found it. To that end, we work to control invasive exotic plants on site and restore the land with native trees, shrubs, and perennials. Navitat’s full stewardship plan includes our commitment to minimally invasive building practices, on-going conservation efforts, and environmental education at all levels.
Some of the Navitat Asheville crew plants 525 native grasses and perennials near the Welcome Center
While lots of businesses invest in landscaping to bring elements of natural beauty to their location, at Navitat our goal is merely to mimic the natural environment with any planting we do. To capture the essence of the surrounding plant communities, we are working to integrate native landscaping designs into our natural resources plan for the site. Around the Welcome Center, guests will now see more than 500 newly planted native grasses and perennials including black-eyed Susan, goldenrod and little bluestem grass.
Last spring, we planted approximately 400 native tree saplings in areas surrounding the Welcome Center and on slopes alongside the road leading to the start of the tour. In addition to bringing new life to the forest, the trees were planted to bring stability to steep slopes helping to reduce erosion. Whenever possible, we look for ways to lessen our impact on the land and, in fact, leave it better than we found it… after all, we owe it to this special place. We are so fortunate to call Moody Cove home. Now ya’ll come see us, ya’ hear?!
***Many thanks to our Environmental Programming Leader, Sarah Marcinko, for her continued hard work in the areas of conservation, education, stewardship, and land management on behalf of Navitat. Now out on maternity leave with their new bundle of joy, we’ll sure miss Sarah while she is away. Welcome to the world, baby girl! We can’t wait until you’re old enough to zip…
You’ll often hear those of us at Navitat rave about what an amazing home we have. Moody Cove is a 242-acre slice of solitude and beauty that we love sharing with folks. It really is special.
We’ve intentionally built our business, from the canopy tour to our Welcome Center, in the least invasive way possible so that we can preserve the natural beauty we find here. We’re serious about minimizing our impact on the land and, in fact, Navitat is busy finding ways to be good stewards to the home we’re so fortuante to have. We want to someday leave this place (hopefully many years from now!) better than we found it.
One of our main goals at Navitat is to create a place where people can learn about our natural environment in a new and totally different way. A second goal is to create a place where respect for the land translates into deep care for the plants and animals that call this place home. To that end, our Environmental Programming Leader, Sarah Marcinko, is leading the way for Navitat in terms of environmental education and land management.
From plans to erradicate harmful invasive plant species in Moody Cove to treating the Eastern Hemlocks currently affected by the hemlock woolly adelgid, Navitat is investing in our home in ways that will positively affect the environment for years to
Navitat recently invited folks from the local hospitality industry to visit us and experience our tour for the first time. It was so fun to see local Bed and Breakfast owners, hotel managers, and their staff get together for an adventure in the trees. We’ve gotten a lot of great feedback from these folks. Here, just a few of the highlights:
“You guys have done a wonderful job setting up the course. Lots of thought and nice touches. The guides were also first rate (as well as the rest of the staff) and I could see that the rest of my group was also having a great time.”
“I just wanted to thank you for an amazing and exhilarating experience for all of us. Who would have thought that a lady who is normally running around in heels would love it…I was STOKED! I want to commend your staff for their professionalism. We all had a sense of the safety-first factor they were constantly aware of and using. I felt safe and in good hands at all times. We will not hesitate to recommend Navitat to all our guests, family and friends.”
“We’re deeply impressed with the safety and quality of the experience, and especially thought the guides were knowledgeable, professional and calm (that’s a nice quality when your own heart is pumping a zillion beats a minute!).”
One of the most amazing parts of the entire tour is a series of three big trees on the west ridge line of the Navitat property. They’re named Craggy View, Owl’s Nest and Hemlock Rest, and each features a fantastic platform offering views of the mountains and Blue Ridge Parkway. Craggy View, an 85-foot tall Northern Red Oak, is one of the staff favorites. In fact, Dylan Burt, Navitat’s General Manager, says, “If I had to choose one tree on the course to spend all day in, Craggy View would be the one. It’s incredible.”
All three trees were originally scouted out by John, very early on in the survey process. They stood out from many of the others, partly because of their spectacular size, and partly because of their location, perched high on the ridge. At first glance, it looks like any of them would be the ideal spot for an incredible tree-house! Instead, we took advantage of these giants and incorporated them into our outdoor adventure by making them the site of the tour’s first sky bridge. As visitors approach the first sky bridge, located between Owl’s Nest and Hemlock Rest, they have a perfect opportunity to slow down and really take in the fantastic views while they appreciate the tranquil feeling being in the middle of the woods provides.
This particular sky bridge is 35 feet off the ground, and is the smaller of the two sky bridges on the tour. It’s a perfect introduction to sky bridges, perched between the 100-foot tall Chestnut Oak we call Owl’s Nest and the 85-foot tall Chestnut Oak with an Eastern Hemlock tree growing right alongside that we know as Hemlock Rest. With all of the trees on this ridge line, what is notable is the perception of height experienced. From here, guests can look out over much of the canopy tour course AND (from Craggy View) see all the way to the Blue Ridge Parkway. From Hemlock Rest, you look out over Kate, 130-feet tall and located down in the valley. It’s a pretty impressive perspective!
As we head into Fall, all area authorities have announced that this year, it’s shaping up to be an amazing, colorful fall season. The weather and other conditions have come together just right to ensure a brightly colored haven of crisp autumn leaves, and since this is Navitat’s first fall, the excitement in the air is palpable. Most people consider leaf season to run from October through the second week of November, although it can run longer or shorter. To all the zipline enthusiasts looking forward to taking advantage of the leaf season tours, that means it’s time to make your plans!
With the recent national exposure and positive reviews we’ve been receiving, Navitat has definitely seen an increase in reservations. While we still have room for many more new visitors, certain days and times have filled up, so it is best to plan upcoming fall visits soon. After all, once the leaves drop, there won’t be another leaf season for 12 months – and there will never be another “first” leaf season at Navitat.
If leaf season does seem like it may pass you by, however, there are still lots of great reasons to experience the Navitat adventure during November, our final month of the 2010 season. Some people plan to time their visit for just after leaf season, when all the leaves have dropped to the ground to crinkle underfoot. With the empty treetops, visitors will have a sensation of being even higher up than normal, and a chance to experience a unique view of the forest and surrounding areas.
Whether your goal is to view the colorful leaf season, experience the biggest thrills, or simply to check out a treetop adventure for the first time, this fall is great time to do it! We’re looking forward to seeing you at Navitat!
In the outdoor adventure industry, canopy tour is still a very loosely defined term that can be used to describe all sorts of courses. At Navitat, we consider ourselves a true canopy tour because guests aren’t just ziplining high above the ground, they’re doing it in a way that is truly canopy based. We haven’t just built towers and platforms in a parking lot, and erected telephone poles to hold our cables. In fact, that couldn’t be further from the Navitat experience. Instead, Navitat’s guests are treated to a well thought out course that’s seamlessly intertwined in its remote wilderness setting. Comparatively speaking, we’re unique in that we’re an excursion into an area of untouched wilderness. Your zipline views won’t include office buildings; instead, they’ll include the lush flora and fauna that Western North Carolina is known for.
The length and depth of the Navitat course also set us apart from other canopy tours. It takes a solid half day to complete our tour, during which time you’ll travel over 5,700 feet of cable. Our platforms are built into existing trees, and you often can’t see from one platform to the next, which means you’re not exactly sure where you’re headed as you zip off over the trees. That aura of possibility and mystery adds to the excitement of the tour, and is one of the things we love about our course. Because it was designed using the natural corridors of the forest, you can truly experience the vast area of Moody Cove the way it was meant to be seen.
Below, Abby Burt tells you more about canopy tours vs. zip lines, and some Navitat specifics!
There are some obvious things that people love about the Navitat experience. The speed, the views, the awesome adrenaline rush, the trees. We, of course, love that Navitat delivers all of these “big” things to our guests, but we also find a great deal of joy in the small surprises guests may not expect.
The “little” things of Moody Cove are awe-inspiring, too. Southern Appalachia is one of the most biologically diverse regions in the world. As such, the variety of plant, animal, and insect life is incredible.
We find that the little things in our forest home (insects, birds, tiny plants) are often the most complex and exciting discoveries. And typically, the most over-looked.
While it’s always great to see a bear or deer while on tour, or maybe watch a Barred Owl perch in a tree nearby, we hope that folks also keep eyes open for the tiniest forest dwellers that call our mountain cove home. Pretty awesome, indeed.
One of our favorite finds, the Hickory Horned Devil
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Though the Navitat owners and crew have decades of experience among them, none of them have yet had the opportunity to experience the incredible fall leaves of Moody Cove from a canopy tour. With Navitat only open since the Spring, they’re waiting for the Fall as anxiously as any of their guests! Spring offered views fertile with blossoming leaves and budding trees and Summer’s lush and vibrant symphony of green was inspiring to behold. But, Fall, with its promise of riotous color and crackling crisp leaves, is sure to be something amazing. One staff member describes how eagerly they’re all anticipating zipping through the trees this Fall: “It’ll be like a corridor of color, the explosion of color and life that Fall brings!”
Navitat is also looking forward to welcoming local visitors to experience the canopy tour this Fall. Viewing your own area in such a new way is amazing, and gives people a whole new perspective. Lots of our repeat visitors are from the local area, and have the opportunity to come back frequently to see how the tour changes in different seasons. The Navitat staff is looking forward to experiencing Fall with them for the first time!
Asheville is a fun, unique area known for its beauty during the changing of seasons. Navitat, with a focus on the natural habitat of our surroundings, is constantly changing on a daily basis. Any of our guides can tell that, despite doing the tour more than once daily, each and every tour is different. Navitat’s canopy tour is always a dynamic and interesting experience, ripe with opportunities to take in new details. During a season change, such as Summer to Fall, those changes and details are just more noticeable to most people. We’ve found that many dedicated nature lovers want to experience the Navitat adventure during each season we’re open, and so are looking forward to visiting with previous guests as they return to Navitat to explore Fall with us. No matter what your previous canopy tour experience, you can be sure that the Fall tour at Navitat will be dramatically different!
Both Navitat and the surrounding town of Asheville are known for their eye-catching beauty during the fall season. The leaves, an explosion of color against the crisp blue sky, provide an intricately detailed view that even the most skilled painter can’t capture completely. At Navitat, we’re able to provide our guests with a whole new perspective. Looking at the colorful fall leaves really is a different experience when you’re viewing them from in the trees, rather than from just down below! With Navitat’s canopy tour, you’ll have the chance to both soar through the leaves on our ziplines, as well as view them from treetop platforms, expansive sky bridges, and a few trails on the ground. Every view will show you different aspects of the colorful season, as our skilled guides share some of the intriguing nature facts they love to impart to interested guests.
Exploring nature during the Fall allows our guests to physically see the changes the ecosystem goes through, and hopefully the Navitat experience during the Fall season will help them to appreciate it in a brand new way. After all, seeing things from the opposite point of view (in and above the trees, rather than from the ground) can’t help but make you wonder what else you’ve been missing. Be sure to visit Navitat this Fall and during each season to come to experience the incredible beauty of Moody Cove as it changes and grows.
