Judaculla Rock
Cullowhee, North Carolina
An old linen postcard of a guy in farmer overalls and a weird-looking rock was one of the bizarre images that first got us excited about roadside wonders. Who was that blurry old man?, we asked. Where was that rock?
The old man was farmer Milas Parker and the rock was Judaculla Rock -- and back then it was an obscure, nearly-forgotten oddity that proved impossible for us to find, tucked into a back hollow of the Appalachian foothills.
Today, however, local boosters tout the rock's cultural and archeological significance, and it's easy to get to. There's a historical marker out by State Route 107, and helpful green highway signs point the way along twisty back roads to get visitors to the rock. In 2011 the descendants of Milas Parker donated over 100 acres of land to create a park around the Rock, and it now has its own walking trail and elevated viewing platform.
For all its newfound credibility, it's still a weird-looking rock, covered with 1,548 petroglyphs according to one of its many surrounding interpretive signs. Another sign speculates that it may have been a boundary marker for Cherokee hunting grounds; a third explains that Judaculla was a "legendary giant and master of animals;" a fourth points to a spot on the rock with Judaculla's handprint, which looks more like a floppy octopus you'd find in the toy section of a pet store.
To our satisfaction, two of the signs include reproductions of the old Milas Parker linen postcard, suggesting that its tantalizing allure has not lessened even for modern-day, culturally circumspect tourists.