July 2013 – Virginia Trail Guide

Linville Falls (NC)

July 28, 2013September 4, 20184 Comments

North Carolina Hikes

This wonderful little network of trails gives you the opportunity to view Linville Falls from every angle! You can choose short/easy routes or longer/harder routes depending what you’re in the mood to do. When all was said and done, we hiked a little over 3.5 miles and enjoyed several views of the falls.

View the full album of photo from this hike

Adam Enjoys a View of Linville Falls — Adam enjoys a bird’s eye view of Linville Falls. Below: The forest service information station; the trail network offers many options; beautiful blooming rhododendron.

Adam Says…

To finish our trip to North Carolina, we had to visit Linville Falls along the Blue Ridge Parkway. While overcast days are better days for photographing waterfalls, we had to take what we were given. The sun was high in the sky and it was quite hot on the hike, but we knew this wasn’t going to be too long of a hike.

We drove up the gravel Wiseman’s View Road and went first to the USFS Visitor’s Center. Two women were inside and gave us some information on how to tackle the falls. We were looking for a place to eat lunch before the hike and they recommended Famous Louise’s Rock House, especially for their pies. We took their advice and refueled for the hike. We ventured back up Wiseman’s View Road and parked in the large gravel lot at the to the left of the road. The trail starts from the eastern side of the lot and begins with a steep descent.

At about .2 miles of a descent, we reached a junction. We took a right here to make our way to the series of overlooks of the falls. In a short distance, we reached another smaller junction with the trail to the Upper Falls, but we decided to approach that on the way back. Since there are so many choices to make about the order in which you take in the views, I will not list all the distances; but you can tell from the downloaded map the distances to each. We opted first to take a left for the trail to Chimney View, which provided a viewpoint to see the upper and lower falls. From this point, we backtracked to the main trail and took a left. Shortly, we came on to the side trail on the right for the Gorge View. The views from here showed the canyon of the gorge but the views didn’t allow you to see the bottom of the canyon. Next was the end of the main trail, which ended at Erwins View. This view gave you the furthest view away from the falls, but it was still spectacular. We backtracked and made our way back to the Upper Falls viewpoint. From here, you could see the water plunge down the falls from a closer distance.

Upper Falls View — The upper falls view. Below: A view into the gorge; Adam hikes along.

From seeing people on the opposite side of the water and very close to the falls, we decided to take the trail down to the Linville Falls Visitor Center. The trail was wide, road-like and going slightly downhill. We eventually came to a bridge over the Linville River and the Visitor Center was on the opposite side. We grabbed a few cold waters from the center and talked to the rangers about the trails on the other side. We were fairly tired by this point, since we had done so much hiking during the week, but the temptation of the falls kept us pressing forward. From the front of the Visitor Center, the trail headed into the woods on the eastern side of the building. In a few feet, the trail branched and we took a right to head to the next overlook. This trail branched off after about .3 miles. We took a right at the junction, descending to reach the Plunge Basin overlook at .5 miles. This point gave you a vantage point to see the water shoot through the gorge and down below. We watched one man standing on the cliffside below, fishing from a precarious position. We then made our way back to our car by returning to the Visitor Center, back across the bridge, and taking a right to the trail junction that led us back to our vehicle.

We had a great time visiting Linville Falls and this is definitely a hike that most people could do with their families. A return trip in the peak of fall color with an overcast sky is something we will try to do. While many waterfalls allow you to get very close to them, the trails here mostly keep you at a distance. However, the view of the gorge with the waterfalls is breathtaking.

Christine Says…

Linville Falls was a perfect hike to end our trip through Tennessee and North Carolina – short and very easy! Ten hikes packed into eight days was pretty rigorous and I had the sore knees, bruises and sunburned arms to show for it! Truth be told, I was secretly pleased that the ninth day of our voyage was stormy and rainy, because it meant we’d go home a day early instead of biking the 33+ miles of the Virginia Creeper. Don’t get me wrong – I LOVE biking the Creeper, but I was exhausted from our whirlwind trip. Maybe we ought to relax more on vacations – like normal people! Nah…. probably not. 🙂

Linville Falls were a gift to the National Park Service from John D. Rockefeller. So many of our favorite parks would not have existed without his generosity. Acadia, Shenandoah, Yosemite, the Grand Tetons, and the Smokies were all established, in part, due to his financial support.

Plunge View — The plunge view of the falls. Below: The Linville River; Beautiful desserts from Storie Street Grille.

Adam did a thorough job describing all the different paths we took, so I don’t have a lot of details to add about the terrain. The only thing I would say is that you can walk to the bottom of the falls. It’s about about .8 miles of hiking (some steep). We opted to skip the view from the bottom on this trip, mainly because we were tired and could tell that the base of the falls was extremely crowded.

I enjoyed stopping in the visitors center and talking to the park ranger. He was a pretty serious hiker and we enjoyed trading trail tips. He suggested Crabtree Falls, NC for a future hike. I was also fascinated by the cross section of an enormous tree hanging in the center. It fell when the Linville Gorge flooded in September of 2004. The hurricane-related flooding was so severe, that it washed away half of the visitor’s center and left many gigantic, toppled trees in its wake. Water is such a powerful force!

Linville Falls has one of the highest water volumes of any waterfall in the Blue Ridge, so it’s not surprising that it floods so easily. The high volume of water also makes the gorge perilous for people. Swimming is not allowed in the river near the falls, but numerous fatalities have still occurred in the area.

After finishing our hiking for the day, we retreated back to our cabin at the Pineola so we could get showered and dressed for dinner. We decided to go fancy for our last evening in the area, and enjoyed a fabulous dinner at the Storie Street Grille in Blowing Rock, NC. In addition to lovely outdoor patio seating, hey had a great wine line, beautifully prepared entrees, and amazing desserts. Even though I’d already had pie a la mode earlier in the day, I could not pass up their dark chocolate – coconut bread pudding. Adam’s banana creme brulee was equally delicious. It was a fitting end to a fabulous trip!

Our next post will actually be a Virginia hike – shocking! But then we’ll be going back to some more out-of-state posts. We’re headed for the White Mountains of New Hampshire in a couple weeks, and are hoping to bring back at least a couple posts from that area. Stay tuned!

Trail Notes

Distance – 3.65 miles
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike)*
Elevation Change – 350 ft.
Difficulty – 1. The trail does have a little climbing up and down on the trail, but most people should be able to do it without too much trouble. We saw people of all ages and all levels of fitness on the trail, so it should be doable by anyone willing. The options for different viewpoints allow for people to choose what they can handle and decide when to stop.
Trail Conditions – 4.5. Most of the trail is either gravel or dirt and is well-worn.
Views – 4. Great views of the gorge and waterfalls.
Streams/Waterfalls – 5. There are many viewpoints to see the waterfalls. The only challenge will be to enjoy it with few others around.
Wildlife – 1. You may see squirrels and some birds flying around, but it would be unlikely to see much else.
Ease to Navigate – 4. There is a large branching of side trails here, but using the map should guide you along.
Solitude – 0. With such a close proximity to the Blue Ridge Parkway along with the ease of difficulty, this hike is crowded.

Directions to trailhead: From US 221, turn on to NC 183. In .7 miles, turn right on to Wisemans View Road at the large curve. The parking lot is a short distance on the left and the trail starts from the eastern side of the parking lot.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.

Hawksbill Mountain – Linville Gorge Area (NC)

July 21, 2013September 4, 20181 Comment

North Carolina Hikes

This 1.8-mile, moderately steep hike takes you to the summit of Hawksbill Mountain where you can enjoy stunning views of Linville Gorge.

View the full album of photos from this hike

Sand Myrtle and Views — The beautiful, myrtle-crowned summit of Hawksbill. The distinctly shaped mountains on the left side of the gorge are Table Rock and Short Off. Below: Trailhead sign; Adam climbs through thick laurels and rhododendrons; Blooming Catawba rhododendron.

Christine Says…

Shenandoah National Park has a Hawksbill Mountain. It’s a nice hike and has lovely views, but Hawksbill Mountain in North Carolina’s Pisgah National Forest is even more impressive! With a dramatic skyline of mountains with interesting profiles and a plunging view into Linville Gorge, this short hike offers scenery unparalleled by our Virginia Hawksbill. (sorry… I have to be honest!)

Adam and I woke up early on our last morning at the Pineola Inn. After a grueling day on Grandfather Mountain, we were in search of low-key hiking. My knee was hurting; every step I took on even the slightest downhill elicited stabbing pain under my kneecap. I thought to myself, ‘if only we could find a hike without much elevation change, I can gut this out!’ I referred to our hiking guide for the Blue Ridge Parkway and found a few short, easy hikes in the Linville Gorge area. The first was Hawksbill. The description was pretty vague, but it sounded easy and short – good enough to fit the bill for the day.

We had breakfast and made our way to the trailhead. The drive down Table Rock Road was dusty, bumpy and pitted with axle-rattling potholes. Fortunately, we were on the road only a short while. We parked near the trailhead and started up the Hawksbill Trail.

First Views — The views only get better from here! You have to scramble over boulders and through brush before the views really open up. Below: The steeper, rockier part of the trail; Blooming mountain laurel; The rocks at the summit had a wavy pattern in some places.

There’s really not a lot you can say about a .9 mile trail that pretty goes straight up a mountainside. There weren’t many noteworthy features on the route. It started off gentle, but became increasingly steep and rocky as we approached the summit. We saw mountain laurel and Catawba rhododendron blooming along the way. After a short while of walking, the trail leveled out on a rocky summit. At first, we didn’t see any views. But then we followed a series of worn footpaths through the brush and over boulders. On the other side, we found magnificent views that far exceeded any expectations we had for the hike. Linville Gorge is a precipitous plunge from the summit of Hawksbill. If you look deep into the canyon, you can see the river trailing through the forest. All the mountains around the gorge have unusual shapes. Instead of gentle rounded domes like most mountains, they have cliffs and plunges and missing chunks.

There were tons of places to sit and enjoy the views in every direction. When we visited, morning clouds were still swirling around the summits – making the vista even more dramatic. We saw a large group of cedar waxwings cross the summit, pausing to eat berries from the trees. Much of the summit was crowned with sand myrtle. And best of all, we had the entire place to ourselves! We stayed up there for about 45 minutes before climbing back down.

On the descent my knee nagged at me, but I still wanted to get one more little hike done after Hawksbill! Because, what would a visit to the Linville Gorge area be without a visit to the famous Linville Falls? We opted to stop for lunch at Famous Louise’s Rock House before visiting the falls. The restaurant sits simultaneously in three different counties (Burke, McDowell, and Avery), and is very well known for its pies. I enjoyed a slice of their five fruit pie with ice cream, then it was on to our final hike of the trip!

Gorge View — You can see the river making its way through the gorge. Below: A cedar waxwing; Another view of Table Rock and Short Off; The pattern in the rocks was beautiful!

Adam Says…

When we started off our hike from the parking lot up Hawksbill Mountain, there were lots of cars at the trailhead. After seeing some of the people preparing for the walk, we noticed they were bringing a supply of ropes and carabiners for rock climbing. As it turns out, Hawksbill is more popular for rock-climbing than hiking, featuring several moderate and difficult routes. We jumped on to the trail not knowing how many people we would see, but as it turns out we were the only ones hiking the trail on this gorgeous day.

Diving Board — We thought this rock formation looked like a diving board over the gorge. You can’t tell from the photo, but the drop beneath was pretty scary! Below: Pie!

The trail started off very gradual, which felt fine to our sore joints from hiking up Grandfather Mountain the previous day. At .6 miles, the trail took a sharp left up the mountain. I’m not sure, but this may be the point that the rock climbers veer off the main trail since we saw a faint trail leading out from this point. The trail then becomes more steep and there are some very large steps to take in places up rocks to keep climbing up the trail. At .8 miles, we reached the height of the trail. We headed to the left and within a short distance, we could see the views open up. We walked on a faint trail at the top until we reached a nice rock outcropping to take in the views of the gorge. Across from this viewpoint was Table Rock and Short Off. We talked about how we would like to come down here again and hike those two. As we were taking in the views, we saw several cedar waxwings chasing each other in the air.

We initially thought this viewpoint was what we came to see, but I wondered where the rock climbers were. So, while Christine took some more photos, I decided to scout back to the top of the trail we traveled and headed the opposite direction. I could tell this opened up to even grander views, so I backtracked and brought Christine back. We walked about .1 mile to this other viewpoint which had a large rocky cliff-face to take in the view. We climbed around on the rocks for a while taking in the views of the gorge and mountains. One rock that I stood on pictured above wobbled a bit when I stood on it, so be very careful on the edges!

We made our way back to the trail, again not encountering any other people. We were so glad that we had found this gem of a hike. This is another one of those hikes that has outstanding views with not a lot of effort. I would recommend it to anyone visiting the Linville Gorge area.

Trail Notes

Distance – 1.8 miles
(Check out the stats from MapMyHike)*
Elevation Change – About 700 ft.
Difficulty – 2. A little bit of the hike is steep and rocky, but it’s so short that most people should be able to tackle the route with ease.
Trail Conditions – 4. The trail is in nice condition.
Views – 5. Beautiful views of the gorge, Table Rock Mountain and Short Off Mountain
Streams/Waterfalls – 0. None.
Wildlife – 2. We saw a flock of cedar waxwings and a lizard.
Ease to Navigate – 4. The trail is a straight shot up the mountainside. There are a variety of footpaths around the summit, and lots of places to take in the view.
Solitude – 4. Oddly, we did not see a single other person after we left the parking lot. We had the summit all to ourselves for a full 45 minutes.

Directions to trailhead: From Banner Elk, NC (a good hub for this area). Follow NC 105 south for about eight miles, turn left on NC-181 S/US-221 S/Linville Falls Hwy for about three miles, turn left onto NC-181 S/Jonas Ridge Hwy for six miles, turn right onto Ginger Cake road and continue onto Table Rock Rd. The trailhead will be marked with NFS signage.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.

Grandfather Mountain – Calloway Peak (NC)

July 9, 2013September 4, 20182 Comments

North Carolina Hikes

This five-mile hike is demanding, thrilling and beautiful! It has everything from ladders and cables to amazing views of the Watauga Valley and the Blue Ridge Parkway. If you’re a fit hiker looking for something a little different – Grandfather Mountain definitely fits the bill!

View the Full Photo Album From This Hike

Attic Window Peak View — Sand Myrtle crowns Attic Window Peak on Grandfather Mountain, making the view all the more lovely. You can see the ‘Sugar Cube’ sitting on the mountain top off in the distance. Below: Hiker parking on Grandfather Mountain; A view looking back on the Mile High Swinging Bridge; Native pink azaleas.

Adam Says…

We have a love-hate relationship with Grandfather Mountain. I definitely enjoy the hike more than Christine, but both times we have hiked it, things haven’t gone as great as planned. The views on Grandfather Mountain are amazing, but some of the physical and mental challenges definitely take their toll.

The last time we hiked up Grandfather Mountain, we only made it a little past Attic Window peak. Christine wasn’t feeling well that day, so we decided we make a second attempt on this trip and make it to the highest peak, Calloway Peak.

We were some of the first people on the trail that day. The lady at the entrance gate (it costs $18 per adult) gave us a parking sign to put in our car window. This is used in case someone goes missing on the mountain and they need to perform a rescue. We were told they wanted us back at our car by an hour before closing. We parked in the lower Trails Parking area and were the first car in the parking lot. We quickly set off on to the Bridge Trail, which winds through a series of switchbacks, crossing underneath the Mile High Swinging Bridge, before reaching the upper parking lot at .4 miles. We made a quick trip into the gift shop and then took a quick trip across the Mile High Swinging Bridge. The wind was quite calm this time on the trail; last time, the bridge was singing and the wind was so strong, Christine could barely walk across the parking lot. I have a big fear of heights when it comes to man-made things (roller coasters, ziplines, ladders, etc.), so the swinging bridge is always a gut-check for me. The fact that the wind was calm made it easier for me. We walked on to the rocks on the other side and enjoyed some spectacular morning views to the west.

Crossing back across the bridge, we made our way down the stairs and across the parking lot to the large wooden sign to begin our real hike on the Grandfather Trail. We climbed up a few stairs and started our hike on the blue-blazed trail. The first part of the trail isn’t too tough. You reach an open area called The Patio at .6 miles and at .7 miles you reach the junction with the Grandfather Extension Trail. Continue past this trail and at .8 miles, you will pass the scenic Grandfather Gap area. Just ahead is a junction where the Underwood Trail branches off at .9 miles. We continued on the Grandfather Trail and here is where it can be challenging. Your first introduction to the difficulty of the hike is when you come across some cables that are helpful to grab onto to help yourself climb up or down the trail. When it is wet, the rocks can be steep and slippery, so it is helpful and often necessary to grab onto these.

Cables — Adam uses cables to assist him across a steep, slick rock. Below: Adam enjoys the views; Christine hiking along the easy part of the Grandfather Trail; Climbing one of the first ladders en route to MacRae Peak.

In a short distance as you are making way toward MacRae Peak, you have to navigate a series of ladders. The first one starts off as you squeeze along a rock that will have you hunched over and you climb up a tall ladder that is at an angle along a large rock face. This climb wasn’t as scary, but it is just a taste of what is to come. If you’re feeling uncomfortable climbing this ladder, I would recommend turning around. After climbing this first ladder, you will come upon more series of ladders. Some of these go directly up the cliff side and you are looking at huge drop-offs on the side. The first time I was definitely scared going up, but I felt more comfortable on this climb. The ladders are bolted into the rock and the ladders are placed at just enough angle that I didn’t feel I was going to plummet to my death. Once you navigate up through the ladders and climb up where it begins to level off, you are rewarded with more amazing views around you. We continued further and reached the sign to MacRae Peak at 1.3 miles. The sign rests at the bottom of another ladder. Climbing up to the top of the ladder, you then need to grab a cable to help pull yourself up to the summit boulder of MacRae Peak. The 360-degree views at this point are stunning on a clear day.

We took a short break at the top and then made our way back down the ladder to continue our hike. The trail begins to climb down and at 1.4 miles, you see another junction with the Underwood Trail. Continue the Grandfather Trail downhill with some big steps and cables. The trail then begins to climb again up to the Attic Window. You navigate through an area called The Chute, which has you climbing up a short but very steep area of small boulders to make your way to the top. As you crest the top at 1.6 miles, you can wind around to a rock outcropping known as Attic Window Peak, which serves as a great viewpoint. We had spotted someone sitting at the top of Attic Window Peak from MacRae peak. He was still there when we arrived and I noticed he was taking in the views while reading The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. He was asking if any of the other views were worth the trip, since he came up via the Profile Trail. He was interested in seeing the Mile High Swinging Bridge, but when we saw him later on the trail, we learned that he decided to just go back the way he came.

Negotiating the Rocks — Christine climbs the rocks. Below: Adam on a set of multiple ladders, Coming off the top of the ladder onto exposed cliffside; A well-earned view!

From Attic Window Peak, the trail goes downhill again, but then passes through a level area as you walk along a ridgeline with some great northwestern views (and a view of the steep Profile Trail). At 1.9 miles, you reach another overnight camping area known as Alpine Meadow. The trail descends again down another gap, before making the way up to Calloway Peak. At this point, the clouds were rolling in and sticking to the mountain, so our visibility was going away fast. We climbed up the Calloway Gap area and reached the junction with the Profile Trail at 2.3 miles. We pressed on, passing by the Cliffside Campsite at 2.4 miles. The trail continued to climb up some switchbacks. A sign came up at 2.7 miles which pointed the way to the Watauga View. Knowing there wasn’t much a view as we hiked in the fog, we made our way to the Calloway Peak. The trail at this point climbed up a couple of more technical ladders. We reached a rock that was the Calloway Peak at 2.8 miles. There was no sign designating this as the peak, but from ground markings, we could tell this is where the white-blazed trail of the Daniel Boone Scout Trail met the blue-blazed Grandfather Trail. I’m sure there is a view from the rocks here, but we could barely see 10 feet in front of our face. Disappointed, we made our way back down the ladders and took the side trail to the Watauga View. The view was barely there, but we stayed long enough to eat our packed lunch before making our way back. The views on the way back were getting swallowed by the clouds settling on the mountain, so we lost a lot of the views on the way back.

At 3.7 miles, we reached the junction with the yellow-blazed Underwood Trail. We decided to take that trail back to avoid some of the ladders. This trail is incredibly rocky and my knees were in so much pain after a short distance on this trail. I think if we do this trail again, I would rather take the ladders than this hellish, downhill knee-destroyer. Every step, I felt shooting pain in one of my knees and I wondered if I would need to be rescued (at least there was a sign in our car). We navigated down one large ladder and finally reached the junction with the Grandfather Trail again at 4.2 miles. I turned around to flip the bird to the trail for my personal enjoyment and reached the Grandfather Extension Trail junction at 4.4 miles. We took this red-blazed trail, which goes gradually downhill through a series of switchbacks until we reached the parking lot for our car at 5.0 miles. It was a tiring day, but if you are up for an adventurous hike, this is one you should definitely try.

Christine Says…

Oh… Grandfather Mountain – what can I say about this place.

On one hand, it’s a beautiful, rugged and exciting place to hike. On the other hand, things always seem to go wrong when I hike there – I’m sick, my technology fails, I injure myself. Maybe this mountain is trying to tell me something?

Adam on MacRae Peak — Adam enjoys the view from MacRae Peak. Below; Christine on MacRae Peak; Climbing the rocky trail.

The first time we hiked Grandfather, I developed a 101 degree fever, and ended up having to turn around near Attic Window Peak (the original goal had been to make it to Calloway Peak). I was just too dizzy and fatigued to hike anymore.

I was really excited to revisit the mountain and finish the hike we tried to do last fall. The morning started off with a great breakfast at the River Dog Café. We paid our entry fee to the park and headed up the mountain. The hiker parking lot was completely empty, skies were sunny and the wind was fairly gentle. It was pretty much the opposite of our last trip up the mountain.

We hiked up to the Mile-High Swinging Bridge. This time, we took the time to climb around the rocky outcropping on the far side of the bridge. Back in the fall, the wind had been so strong that we didn’t dare go out on the rocks!

We started up the Grandfather Trail, which departs from the upper parking area. We had the trail mostly to ourselves this time. We really didn’t see anyone else at all until the latter part of the hike. I enjoyed seeing the wild pink azaleas in bloom. Grandfather Gap was especially colorful with blossoms.

We negotiated the cables and ladders before coming to MacRae Peak. We scaled the ladder to the top and enjoyed the view from the big rock. One side of the mountain was clear, but the other was covered with low clouds and fog. The breeze pushed the clouds against the side of the mountain. They would hang along the ridge for a few minutes and then roll over and dissipate on the clearer side of the mountain. It was fun to watch the low clouds moving so quickly.

From MacRae, we descended steeply through a slick and rocky gap. The descent was short and ended at an immense rock jumble called ‘The Subway’. Ladders and blazes lead you through openings between giant boulders. On the other side, you soon face ‘The Chute’. The chute is a narrow, steep rock scramble that you must negotiate to reach Attic Window Peak.

From Attic Window Peak, the hike offers some more moderate ridge walking with spectacular views all along the way. The rocky spine was covered with blooming sand myrtle, so it was especially pretty on this visit. In fact, when famed naturalist John Muir visited this mountain, he described this ridge as “the face of all Heaven come to earth.” Luckily, John Muir got to visit this area before some idiot approved the Sugar Mountain construction project. I swear, ‘The Sugar Cube‘ (the main building’s nickname) has to be one of the worst eyesores in Appalachian nature. I guess its construction did inspire a change in legislation, so mistakes like that are less likely to happen again.

From the crest of the mountain, the trail descends again before beginning the final ascent toward Calloway Peak. The uphill hike passes through rich, mossy evergreen forest. On the way to Calloway, don’t miss taking a few minutes to walk out to the Watauga View. It’s a lovely rocky outcropping that looks into the Watuaga Valley. It was also the last place we had a view on our hike! On the way to Calloway, a massive cloud bank moved in and parked atop the mountain. It was like it was stuck and couldn’t quite make it over the peak. Watauga View was also the place I noticed that my smart phone had crashed at some point and wouldn’t restart (sorry – no MapMyHike stats). Normally, this would be a small annoyance, but just the night before my MacBook Pro self-destructed. Such technology angst!

The Watauga View was partially obscured by clouds. Below: Hiking toward Calloway Peak; Foggy Calloway Peak

We finished the climb to Calloway (which required a couple more ladders), spotted the elevation benchmark and wondered what the view would have been like on a clear day. Had we continued hiking, we would have continued on the Daniel Boone Trail and soon reached the Hi-Balsam backcountry shelter. But the peak was our turnaround point.

We made our way back along the ridge before eventually reaching the junction of the Underwood Trail. I remembered the Underwood Trail as very rocky and difficult. And it certainly was! I think at this point of the hike, the exhaustion of six straight days of hiking kind of kicked in. We really struggled, physically and mentally, with the tough terrain on this stretch of the hike. I guess I was fatigued and not being careful, because my foot slipped and I felt a twinge in my knee. I shook it off and kept going, but after that I felt a nagging, sharp pain under my knee cap. It came and went, so I did my best to ignore it. (I continued to ignore it on our last two hikes of the trip the next day, and ended up at the orthopedist and off the trail for a month after our trip.)

When the Underwood Trail ended near Grandfather Gap, I was thrilled to be back on easier footing. The rest of the hike went by quickly and easily. After we got back to our car, we spent some time walking around the Nature Center. We saw bears, eagles and mountain lions and enjoyed eating giant cookies and icy soda.

Like I said at the beginning, I both love and hate this trail. It offers so much in terms of scenery and physical challenge, but it’s a tough hike and I always seem to pay some kind of price for hiking there. Maybe I’ll hike it again someday… maybe.

The Dreaded Underwood Trail. Below: Grandfather Gap; Almost back to the hiker parking area.

Trail Notes

Distance – 5.0 miles.
Elevation Change – 2084 ft
Difficulty – 5. Having to use cables and climb ladders should tell you something. While this route was only five miles, you will go very slowly during most of the hike due to the steepness of the terrain.
Trail Conditions – 4. The trail is well-maintained, but that doesn’t make it easy. There are lots of rocky parts to navigate, especially on The Chute up Attic Window and the footing on the Underwood Trail is grueling.
Views – 5. The best views are from the Mile High Swinging Bridge, MacRae Peak, and Attic Window Peak. The clouds were covering the area at Calloway Peak for us, but I could tell the views from the Watauga View would have been spectacular also.
Streams/Waterfalls – 0. None.
Wildlife – 1. We didn’t really see anything beyond birds.
Ease to Navigate – 4. All junctions are labeled and the trail is fairly easy to follow. We have seen people get turned around at certain points (including us previously).
Solitude – 1.5. I would expect to see people along the trail and lingering especially at the viewpoints. Starting out early in the day should help with the solitude.

Directions to trailhead: The entrance to Grandfather Mountain is located on US 221, two miles north of Linville, North Carolina, and one mile south of the Blue Ridge Parkway at milepost 305. Signs for the entrance are well-marked and an entrance station is right off the road with large gates. Travel up the road by car until you reach the parking lot designated for hiking trails. The trailhead for the Bridge Trail is on the left side of the parking lot as you are driving up. Coordinates for the hiker parking area are 36.096145, -81.831802.

Roan Mountain (TN)

July 2, 2013September 4, 20182 Comments

Tennessee Hikes

This might be one of the most beautiful view hikes we’ve done in the Appalachians! The moderate 5.1-mile climb along a smooth, easy trail takes you over three lofty balds that will make you feel on top of the world!

View the full album of photos from this hike

Roan Views — The views on the Roan Mountain hike are amazing! There are open views of the mountains in every direction. Not many mountains in the area are as tall as Roan, so you’ll feel on top of the world this entire hike. If you look closely at this photo, you can see the Appalachian Trail meandering across ridgeline off in the distance. Below: Carvers Gap is on the Tennesse-North Carolina state line; Adam passes through one of the only tree-covered parts of the hike.

Christine Says…

After five exciting, action-packed days in the Smokies, it was time to move on to the third stop on our Southern Appalachians tour. We took our time leaving Gatlinburg. We bought more donuts from The Donut Friar (yay!) and did some laundry at the hotel (boo!). It’s no fun doing laundry on vacation – but five days of hiking creates quite a large heap of dirty clothes. After checking out, we meandered through Pigeon Forge. That town is loaded with crazy tourist attractions. I saw the Titanic, King Kong, an upside down building and even fed grapes and Milkbones to a trio of black bears (yes… it was safe and legal). [See a few amusing photos of Pigeon Forge] We even stopped at Wal-Mart to pick up extra memory cards for the camera. This turned out to be one of the wisest decisions on the trip – more about that later!

By 11:00 we were cruising along, headed in the direction of Roan Mountain. I’d long heard tales about the mountain’s famous balds and stellar views, and was so excited to finally have a chance to see for myself.

We finally got to Roan Mountain around 1:30 in the afternoon. Our hike started off at Carvers Gap, straddling the North Carolina/Tennessee line at 5,512 feet. Even from the parking lot, I could tell that this was going to be a special hike. First of all, we had amazing weather! Lower elevations were hot and sunny (mid-90’s back home in Virginia!), but Roan Mountain was sitting in the low 70’s with a pleasant breeze, brilliant blue skies, and puffy clouds. It was truly perfect hiking weather. Second of all, the view from Carvers Gap was lovely – hinting at the amazing vistas yet to come.

I put on a hat and lots of sunscreen, packed snacks and filled my CamelBak. As it turns out, I missed a large spot on my shoulder with the sunscreen, and ended up with an incredibly stupid-looking sunburn for the remainder of the trip.

Awesome Roan Views — Christine takes in spectacular mountain views. Below: A photo similar to this, but including colorful Catawba rhododendrons was recently featured in Backpacker Magazine; Funny portrayal of an AT Thru-Hiker on the sign.

The hike climbs uphill from the parking lot, following the Appalachian Trail, before quickly entering a thick stand of evergreens. This small patch of forest is one of the only spots on the hike that does not have a 360 degree panoramic view. Once you clear these trees, the remainder of the hike is a spectacular, mile-high stroll along one of the most beautiful view trails I’ve ever seen. Photos don’t come close to capturing how breathtaking views are along this stretch of trail. If I’ve ever been any place that inspired me to have a Julie Andrew’s moment (you know… the opening scenes of the Sound of Music where she’s twirling around singing ‘The Hills are Alive’) – this was the place. Of course, I didn’t actually do that, because truth be told, I don’t like musicals. But, I kind of understand the urge to burst into song when I see someplace this beautiful!

The first bald you come to is Round Bald at 5,826 feet. The views were wonderful, and I loved seeing the Appalachian Trail winding like a ribbon across the balds in the distance. From Round Bald, we descended into a small gap before climbing right back up to the summit of Jane Bald at 5,807 feet.

On Jane Bald I recognized a spot that had recently been featured in a photograph in Backpacker magazine. I took my own, less exciting version of the shot. Why less exciting, you ask? Well, in addition to being famous for balds and view, Roan Mountain is also famous for its dramatic Catawba Rhododendron bloom. The mountain is home to the world’s largest natural rhododendron garden. Roan Mountain State Park even holds a festival every June to celebrate the peak color. Many of the most memorable photos of Roan Mountain include the famous rhododendrons, including the one I had spotted in the magazine. Our hike took place a couple weeks before the bloom began, so while we missed the color, we benefited from lower traffic on the trail. I’ve heard Roan Mountain is crawling with crowds at bloom time!

After enjoying the views from Jane Bald, we descended again to a split in the trail. To the left, the Appalachian Trail continues, to the right a park trail continues to the third, and highest/largest of the three balds – Grassy Ridge Bald. There was a funny, hand-drawn illustration of a thru-hiker on the trail junction sign. I wonder if it was drawn by a thru-hiker or someone who was simply familiar with standard thru-hiker smells.

The climb to Grassy Ridge Bald (6,189 feet) is the only significant ascent on the hike. An elevation gain of about 500 feet leads you a large grassy bald dotted with rocks. Adam did some hunting for geocaches, while I found the perfect rock perch for eating cookies. I still had a pack of Oreos that had been part of my LeConte bagged lunch. They were a nice treat to enjoy in such a beautiful place!

We spent a lot of time on Grassy Ridge enjoying the views and chatting with a local teacher we met at the summit. He shared tales of running whitewater in the Smokies and hiking Half Dome in Yosemite. He also told us a bit about how the balds are maintained. Apparently, Roan Mountain uses a combination of mower and goat grazing to keep the balds cleared. I was hoping we’d spot the goats, but we never did.

As late afternoon approached, we slowly made our way back down the trail. The light was so beautiful on the mountains! I still can’t believe how many ridges and layers of mountains we could see from the trail. We recognized Mt. Mitchell by its height and Grandfather Mountain by its shape.

The walk back to the car went by way too fast for my liking! As soon as we were back I told Adam, ‘I want to hike it again!’ And, I’m certain we will – Roan Mountain was far too perfect to visit just once.

Enjoying Grassy Ridge — Grassy ridge offered plenty of rocks to sit on while enjoying the views. Below: Adam checks out the Peake Memorial; Walking along wide, open trail!

After leaving Roan Mountain, we had a fairly short drive to our lodgings in Pineola, NC. We decided to stay in the same log cabin at the Pineola Inn that we rented when we visited the Linville area last fall. It’s such a nice, cozy place to stay in that area.

We grabbed some dinner at Nick’s in Banner Elk and then settled in for the evening. Right after I downloaded my photos from the day, the screen of my laptop went black. As it turned out, the hard drive on my MacBook Pro chose the middle of vacation to call it quits. Thank goodness I had picked up that extra memory card before starting the Roan Mountain hike! If I hadn’t, I would have erased memory cards from earlier hikes and ended up losing files for good. I am so glad that didn’t happen!

Adam Says…

This has been one of my favorite hikes of recent memory. And that is saying a lot just coming from the Smokies. As I was waiting for Christine to get started, I was looking up the hillside and knew we were in for an amazing trip.

We crossed the road and went through the fence opening to start our hike. The hike climbs along the Appalachian Trail through an open area and then ducks quickly into a small grove of woods. Once you emerge out of the dense trees, the hiking is on open ground. It was just a few minutes along this trail that I proclaimed to Christine that this may be the best views I’ve ever had on a hike. It took her a little longer to admit the same thing, but soon she agreed. The views were all around us and in every direction you could see miles of layered mountain ridges. Since this hike straddles the border between North Carolina and Tennessee, I could see both states wanting to claim this hike for their own. About .5 miles along the hike, you arrive at the summit of the first bald, Round Bald. The views were great from here, but we knew we were just getting started.

Hiking Back — The hike back was so pretty… nothing like late afternoon light on mountains! Below: Taking in some final views; Dense rhododendron.

We continued along the trail, which descended through a clear path and ascended again when we reached Jane Bald at 1.3 miles. The views continued to be amazing from near the summit of Jane Bald. The trail then continues to climb as you are making your way to Grassy Ridge. At 1.9 miles, you reach a junction – the left continues the Appalachian Trail, but take the right branch to reach the summit of the Grassy Ridge Bald. The trail cuts through a thick area of rhododendron before emerging to the larger bald area at 2.5 miles. At the summit of this bald, you’ll see a large rock that has a bronze plaque dedicated to Cornelius Rex Peake, who was a high-country farmer of this area. What a nice tribute at such a scenic spot.

This is a place that you will want to spend some time. The breathtaking views are in every direction and you will want to explore around the balds to take in views from a slightly different angle. Christine’s dad likes to sit and take in views for longer than we do. We know we would literally need to drag him away from here if he visited or he would stay up here for days. Head back the way that you came to reach your car in 5.1 miles.

If you enjoy geocaching, there are two that you can find on the trail – Zelda’s Double Blaze Treasure and Roan’s Revenge. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to claim either one after hunting a while, but hopefully they are being maintained.

We headed back down because of the time of day and wanted to make it to check into the Pineola Inn. If you have a chance to visit this area, this is a great place to stay. I know we are already getting excited about the next time we will come back here. This is a place that you’ll want to visit more than once.

Trail Notes

Distance –5.1 miles
(Check out the stats from MapMyHike)*
Elevation Change – About 1150 ft.
Difficulty – 2. The climbing on this hike was relatively gradual and gentle.
Trail Conditions – 4. Very nice – well traveled and smooth.
Views – 5+. Maybe the best views Virginia Trail Guide has ever seen
Streams/Waterfalls – 0. None.
Wildlife – 1. We didn’t really see anything beyond birds.
Ease to Navigate – 4. Good signage at the one trail junction. Each bald is marked.
Solitude – 2. We saw a fair number of people, but I gather this was a lighter than usual crowd for Roan Mountain.

Directions to trailhead: From Roan Mountain, TN (located on US-19E), head south on TN-143. Go for 12.6 miles until you reach the top of the mountain and the parking lot for Carver’s Gap. You should see a “Welcome to North Carolina” sign nearby. Park in the lot on the right side of the road. Cross the road and go through the fence opening to start your hike heading north on the Appalachian Trail.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.