Hickory, NC Road Trips

1 Hickory Museum of Art. Although American art was almost unrecognized outside of New York and Philadelphia in 1943, the North Carolina city of Hickory set out to establish a museum of American art. Located on Hickory, NC’s SALT Block (Sciences, Art, Literature Together), Hickory took the lead in the Southeast as being the first city to establish a museum of American art. Among the artists represented in the HMA collection are names such as Gilbert Stuart, Thomas Cole, Asher B. Durand, J. Fredrick Kensett, William Merritt Chase, Worthington Whittredge, F. Ballard Williams, Eanger Irving Couse, Elliot Daingerfield, Anna Hyatt Huntington, Hobart Nichols, Albert T. Bricher, Edward Potthast, and many others. Closed Mondays. Free admission.

1 Catawba Science Center, 243 Third Avenue NE, ☏ +1 828 322-8169. Tu–F 10AM–5PM, Sa 10AM–4PM, Su 1PM–4PM, closed M. Explore the Physical and Natural Sciences. Interesting traveling exhibits rotate throughout the year. It has a planetarium and aquaria with touch tanks where you can touch creatures such as live sharks and rays. Located on Hickory, NC’s SALT Block (Sciences, Art, Literature Together), in the Arts & Science Center of Catawba Valley, CSC also provides a variety of educational movies (in their digital planetarium and fun programming for school groups, children, families, adults, homeschoolers, preschoolers, scouts and other community groups. The Science Emporium gift shop stocks educational toys and gifts that enhance the museum experience. Adults $8; seniors, students, military, and youth (age 3–18) $6, children (under 3) free. 2 Hickory Motor Speedway. NASCAR short track. It is the oldest professional sporting venue in Catawba County, and the oldest continually operating motor speedway in the country with over 53 seasons. Three fully equipped concession stands, a souvenir stand, six large restroom areas, and three enclosed air-conditioned hospitality suites. Also contains a game room, and kids' fenced-in play area with a climbing gym & swings, and RV parking is available. Adults $10. 3 Hickory Crawdads Minor League Baseball. As American as, well, baseball! Always good fun, and the Crawdads usually win, too! Try the Crawdad Red Ale at the Crawdad Cafe. (Take I-40 to exit 123 North (Hwy 321 Lenoir/Airport).

1 McGuire's Pub, 46 3rd St NW. Daily food and beer specials. Excellent array of interesting sandwiches. Booths offer excellent privacy in a relaxed atmosphere. Best onion rings in town and the home fries are to die for. The Fitzgerald sandwich is especially good. Stay away if you're truly pressed for time. $6-12. 2 Cafe Gouda, 2960 N Center St (NC-127N in the Belle Hollow shopping center), ☏ +1 828 267-1300. Eclectic sandwiches with a more casual and sophisticated air. Sandwiches, mostly. Try the Gouda Delite. Open for breakfast. Lattes and coffee drinks available. $7-12. 3 Backstreets, 246 14th Ave NE, ☏ +1 828-328-6479. M–W 11AM–10PM, Th F 11AM–11PM, Sa 11:30AM–11PM, Su 11:30AM–10PM. On the backstreets of Hickory near Hickory High School and the Bank of Granite Building is Backstreets. A little pricey but has an excellent selection of beer and some great food options. Good lighting and a relaxed atmosphere. Daily specials. $9-15. 4 Olde Hickory Taproom, 222 Union Square, ☏ +1 828 322-1965, [email protected]. 11AM–2AM daily. The restaurant front for Olde Hickory Brewery offers seasonal ales and beers as well as the local favorites OHB is known for. The food and service here is "just" pretty good, but everyone keeps coming back for more. Must be the beer! Try the dessert special. A limited menu is offered late into the night. $8-18. 5 Amos Howard's, 2828 US Hwy 70 SW (west on Highway 70, just out of town), ☏ +1 828 323-8753. 11AM–10PM daily. Also owned by Olde Hickory Brewery. Food and service are on par with the Olde Hickory Taproom.

If you want to buy liquor by the bottle you must do it at state-run ABC (Alcoholic Beverage Commission) stores rather than at a traditional liquor store. Beer and wine are available for purchase at most markets, grocery stores and gas stations. The alcohol laws of North Carolina prohibit the sale of alcohol after 2AM Monday through Saturday, and from 2AM until noon on Sundays. Given Hickory's German heritage and heavy Lutheran influences, it's no surprise that beer is easy to find and fun to ingest among friends in Hickory: see McGuire's Pub, Backstreets, Olde Hickory Taproom, and Hickory Tavern above.

Hotels are mostly clustered in an area near the 1 Hickory Metro Convention Center (1960 13th Av Drive SE) and the malls. 1 Courtyard, 1946 13th Avenue Drive SE, ☏ +1 828-267-2100. 2 Hampton Inn, 1956 13th Avenue Drive SE, ☏ +1 828-624-2000. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. 3 Hilton Garden Inn, 1320 17th Street Drive SE, ☏ +1-828-327-1000. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. 4 Crowne Plaza, 1385 Lenoir Rhyne Blvd SE, ☏ +1 828-323-1000. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. 5 Holiday Inn Express, 2250 US Highway 70 SE, ☏ +1 828 3282081, [email protected]. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. 6 Baymont Inn & Suites, 1120 13th Avenue Dr SE, ☏ +1 828-270-7580. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. 7 Sleep Inn, 1179 13th Ave. Dr. SE, ☏ +1 520 257-3136. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. 8 Fairfield Inn & Suites, 1950 13th Avenue Drive SE, ☏ +1 828-431-3000.

1 Hickory Regional Airport (HKY IATA), Highway 321, at 3101 9th Avenue Drive NW. An airport for private aviation. It is not served by any commercial airline. (updated Apr 2019) The closest commercial service airports are Charlotte (CLT IATA) and Greensboro (GSO IATA). Hickory Hop offers shuttle service from Charlotte Airport. I-40 - Exit 125 or 126 will take you to the commercial district for shopping and most chain restaurants. US-321 - Intersects with I-40 at mile marker 123. US-70 - Runs nearly parallel with I-40 East-West through town. Most shopping, restaurants, and hotels are along the US-70 corridor. NC-127 - Divides the town roughly between East and West. Head north until 127 ends to find US-64. Greyhound buses offer direct service from several major North Carolina cities: Raleigh, Durham, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and Asheville; connections are available to numerous other destinations. The buses stop at the 2 Citgo gas station at 3361 Hwy 70 SE in Newton. This is quite a ways outside of town, so you'll need to either have someone pick you up, call a taxi or rideshare, or take a local bus into town. Hickory no longer has passenger rail service. The nearest Amtrak stations are in Charlotte and Salisbury.

Driving in Hickory is quite easy, although the remaining one-way streets and eclectic street naming conventions can be somewhat bewildering. If you get lost, just ask a local and say you're from out of town. They'll refrain from an age-old Hickory tradition of giving directions based on where things "used to be". The main thoroughfares in Hickory are Interstate 40, U.S. 70, and U.S. 321. Greenway bus service is available in and around Hickory. Buses run Monday–Friday early morning to late afternoon and Saturday with a more limited schedule. The fare is $1.25 per ride, with one free transfer. $3 for a one-day pass. Children under 5 are free.

Stay away from South Center Street. Everywhere else is relatively safe. Avoid the intersection of Highway 70 and Lenoir Rhyne Boulevard at rush hour. Emergencies: 911 Hickory Police. +1 828-328-5551 (Non-emergency).