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I was unsure how I was going to set out for the 30+ miles this past weekend between Elon and Saxapahaw, as I saw no town conveniently located in the middle. At best, I could hope for somewhere safe to pull off of NC Hwy 54 and sleep somewhere hidden, outdoors over the subfreezing Saturday night. Friday night at dinner, however, Elon hosts Tony & Megan began talking up Saxapahaw. They had a plethora of great things to say about tiny Saxapahaw’s culture and its progressive cultural movement: great people, culture, food, etcetera– a community which revolves around the central, one-stop General Store. Saxapahaw is invisible on the map until you zoom in, and even that it’s not on Hwy 54, it would only add 2 miles to reroute through Saxapahaw for a night.
“Saxapahaw General Store is on Facebook,” Megan pointed out, so I simply decided to write to the Store on Facebook, telling them my story and that I’d be seeking any assistance they could offer in finding me a place to stay Saturday night.
Jeff Barney, owner of the Store, wrote me back within the hour, warmly inviting me into Saxapahaw, assuring me that they could find me somewhere to stay “within the village.”
After 17 happy-yet-arduous miles Saturday, I arrived to the Store an hour after dark, and the entire crew warmly welcomed me in, serving me one of the most delicious, appetizing and filling meals of all my miles on the road. It’s of no surprise to me that the magical hub of the tiny, close-knit, unincorporated “village” was profiled last year in the New York Times, and six months earlier, in the Washington Post.

New York Times Link

Washington Post Link