Best Hiking Trails In North Carolina

#1. Mount Mitchell

Mt. Mitchell—the highest peak east of the Mississippi—is a crowning part of the Blue Ridge Parkway experience. The only motorized access to the mountain is from the Parkway, at Milepost 355.3, and the…
From the guidebook "Hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway"
Asheville, NC - Hiking - 12 miles  
  
#2. Uwharrie National Forest Trails

Uwharrie National Forest is an increasingly attractive “best kept secret” where state-designated Scenic Byways meander through the undulating remains of North America’s oldest mountain range. The stat…
From the guidebook "Hiking North Carolina"
Asheboro, NC - Hiking - 66.5 miles   
 
#3. Mount Pisgah Area Trails

Driving the Parkway from Asheville to Mt. Pisgah is a humbling experience —especially if you stopped by Biltmore House and Gardens on the way through town. George W. Vanderbilt’s fascinating palatial…
From the guidebook "Hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway"
Brevard, NC - Hiking - 6.4 miles 
   
#4. Gregory Bald Overnight Loop

This hike combines the best that the high and low country have to offer. First, you'll travel up the Twentymile Trail past Twentymile Cascades to the Upper Flats streamside camp. Then an arduous climb…
From the guidebook "Day & Overnight Hikes in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park"
Fontana Village, NC - Hiking - 15.7 miles  
  
#5. Appalachian Trail: Clingmans Dome to Spence Field

This hike is a long, difficult, beautiful hike, and by the end, you will have your own definition of a southern Appalachian knob. The trail follows an easy descent for about 3 miles; then a short roc…
From the guidebook "Exploring the Appalachian Trail: Hikes in the Southern Appalachians"
Cades Cove, NC - Hiking - 22.1 miles 
   
#6. Appalachian Trail in North Carolina

Each spring nearly 1,500 people hoist unbelievably heavy packs onto their backs and strain down a misty trail, intent on accomplishing the most difficult task of their lives: going the length of the A…
From the guidebook "Hiking North Carolina"
Bakersville, NC - Hiking - 318 miles  
  
#7. Craggy Gardens Trails

How can names like Craggy Gardens, Craggy Dome, and Craggy Pinnacle not inspire hikers? Visible from all over northwest North Carolina, these barren crests offer awesome views. As the Blue Ridge Parkw…
From the guidebook "Hiking North Carolina"
Asheville, NC - Hiking - 9.6 miles  
  
#8. Shining Rock Wilderness Trails

Shining Rock—like the Craggy Mountains and Mount Mitchell just north of Asheville—is where the Parkway delivers some of the southern Appalachians’ most stunning scenery. The horizon peels back on an a…
From the guidebook "Hiking North Carolina"
Waynesville, NC - Hiking - 68.5 miles  
  
#9. Shining Rock Wilderness

As you drive south out of Asheville and climb past Mt. Pisgah, the Shining Rock Wilderness can’t help but catch your attention. The horizon peels back on an almost Western scale, and meadow-covered m…
From the guidebook "Hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway"
Brevard, NC - Hiking - 8.8 miles 
   
#10. Linville Gorge Wilderness

A 12,002-acre tract of designated wilderness, Linville Gorge lies between Jonas Ridge to the east and Linville Mountain to the west. The Blue Ridge Parkway skirts the head of the gorge on the northwes…
From the guidebook "Hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway"
Crossnore, NC - Hiking - 14 miles  
  
#11. Appalachian Trail: Allen Gap to Devil Fork Gap

The northern half of this hike borders the Bald Mountain Ridge Scenic Area in the Cherokee National Forest, and the AT runs along a rugged, isolated crest. Outstanding views, masses of rhododendron a…
From the guidebook "Exploring the Appalachian Trail: Hikes in the Southern Appalachians"
Hot Springs, NC - Hiking - 20.2 miles   
 
#12. Appalachian Trail: Carvers Gap to Roan High Bluff & Rhododendron Gardens

Roan Mountain is a place of mystery, legend, wild beauty, and superlatives. The largest of the southern Appalachian grassy balds, it also boasts one of the most beautiful displays of Catawba rhododen…
From the guidebook "Exploring the Appalachian Trail: Hikes in the Southern Appalachians"
Bakersville, NC - Hiking - 5.6 miles    

#13. Appalachian Trail: Carvers Gap to US 19E

Wide-open spaces, miles of waving grass, alpine wildflowers … Is this the southern Appalachians? Botanist Asa Gray observed in the 1880s that he could ride his horse for 14 miles on Roan Mountain and…
From the guidebook "Exploring the Appalachian Trail: Hikes in the Southern Appalachians"
Roan Mountain, TN - Hiking - 13.4 miles  
   
#14. Appalachian Trail: Davenport Gap to Max Patch

Because of distance and several long ups and downs, the rating on this hike is "strenuous," but in general the grade is good with no difficult or rough spots. The trail passes through peaceful second…
From the guidebook "Exploring the Appalachian Trail: Hikes in the Southern Appalachians"
Waterville, NC - Hiking - 16 miles  
 
#15. Foothills Trail: Bad Creek Access to Rocky Bottom

This is one long and spectacular section of trail. It is hard to find 30 miles of trail in the East without crossing a major road, but the Foothills Trail delivers. It occasionally passes by normally…
From the guidebook "Long Trails of the Southeast"
Salem, SC - Hiking - 30.3 miles    
 
#16. Graveyard Fields Loop Trail

A loop that reaches two waterfalls and explores a high, alpine-like valley. A second circuit involves a new portion of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. Hikes on the well-maintained but heavily traveled Gra…
From the guidebook "Hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway"
Brevard, NC - Hiking - 9.5 miles   

#17. Grandfather Mountain

Grandfather Mountain is a rocky, spectacular summit known to tourists for great views from its privately owned road and Mile-High Swinging Bridge. The peak is one of the region’s premier natural areas…
From the guidebook "Hiking the Blue Ridge Parkway"
Linville, NC - Hiking - 4.8 miles  
 
#18. Charlotte Trails

The Mecklenburg County Parks and Recreation Department boasts a diverse system of trails, with 35 miles of trails in five nature preserves and another 22 miles in eight urban greenways. This award-win…
From the guidebook "Hiking North Carolina"
Charlotte, NC - Hiking - 28 miles    ..

Fall Colors Good Predicted By WCU Foliage Forecaster

Visitors to Western North Carolina’s mountains can look forward to a good display of color this autumn, although some areas will enjoy brighter hues than others, predicts Kathy Mathews, Western Carolina University’s fearless fall foliage forecaster.

The intensity of the color show will vary depending on where leaf-peepers are looking because of fluctuations in the amount of rainfall received across the region this spring and summer, said Mathews. An associate professor of biology at WCU who specializes in plant systematics, she bases her annual prediction in part on weather conditions, including rainfall, during the spring and summer growing season.

“This should be a pretty good year for fall color, but colors will be spotty,” Mathews said. “Many areas of Western North Carolina have experienced a lot of rainfall throughout the year, while Asheville and points north have been drier. The drier areas should have the best fall color, while the wetter areas will be less vibrant.”

Mathews believes that the formation of higher levels of yellow, orange and red pigments in the leaves correlates with dry weather throughout the year. The drier the climate, the more brilliant the fall leaves tend to be, she said.

“This has been an unusually rainy spring and summer for much of Western North Carolina, which, if it continues through September and October, could mean less color, especially in the red range,” she said. “However, if evening temperatures continue to drop steadily through the next two months, it will hasten the loss of green from the leaves to reveal more yellow and orange pigments.”

In addition, a trend of warm, wet weather could equate to a longer fall color season. Mathews predicts that areas that have seen drought conditions, including the U.S. Midwest, may experience bright fall color, but only for a brief period before trees drop their leaves.

As is the case with predicting the weather, there are no guarantees when it comes to forecasting the intensity of the fall color season. Cloud cover and ample rainfall in the weeks ahead could mute the color show, Mathews said.

Cooler temperatures and fewer hours of daylight in the autumn contribute to the decomposition of chlorophyll, the chemical that gives leaves their green color in spring and summer. As chlorophyll breaks down, yellow and orange pigments – always present in the leaves, but masked by the green of chlorophyll – are revealed, and new red pigments are produced.

Depending upon the timing of the first frost, the peak of fall color should arrive during the second week of October in the higher elevations, and during the third week of October in the mid-elevations, Mathews said. Because freezing temperatures quickly degrade chlorophyll, leaves predictably peak in color a few days after a frost, she said.

The color change should begin at the higher mountain elevations in late September and continue through mid-November in the lower levels of WNC.
Regardless of when the peak is and how intense the hues are, visitors can always find good fall color somewhere in the WNC mountains, Mathews said.

“We have more than 100 tree species in the Southern Appalachians, which means not only many different colors of leaves in the fall, but also a lengthy fall color season. Some trees change and drop leaves very early, such as tulip poplar and yellow buckeye, while others linger and change later, such as oaks and hickories.”
The U.S. Northeast and Midwest have fewer tree species with good fall color, mainly sugar maples, leading to a short burst of brilliant colors, she said. “The same is true in the Western states, with color mainly coming from quaking aspens,” she said. “In Europe, again, there are many fewer tree species, meaning shorter, less diverse fall color than in the Southern Appalachians.”
From the Great Smokies to the Blue Ridge, the WNC mountains offer ample opportunity for leaf-looking this fall, Mathews said.

“Look for some of the best colors on Grandfather Mountain, the Graveyard Fields area of the Blue Ridge Parkway, and the Nantahala National Forest along U.S. Highway 64 between Macon and Clay counties,” she said. “These and other ridgetop areas show colors in all hues of red, orange and yellow. The forested areas will have a lot of yellow tulip poplars, red maple, and orange and red oak. Graveyard Fields also has a lot of shrubs that turn red.”

5 Different Types of Forest In The GSMNP

Five forest types dominate the Great Smoky Mountains. Together these forests sport more than 130 species of trees, and 4,000 other plant species. They represent all the major forest types along eastern North America. As elevation increases within the park, temperature decreases and precipitation increases. Each 1,000 feet of elevation gained is the equivalent of moving 250 miles north. The additional precipitation classifies small sections of the Park as a rainforest. All five types can be seen at once from Campbell Overlook, two miles south of the Sugarlands Visitor Center on Newfound Gap Road (US 441).

The spruce-fir forest caps the Park's highest elevations. Most areas above 4,500 feet support some elements of this forest. It is best developed above 5,500 feet. In terms of climate the spruce-fir forest relates to areas such as Maine, and Quebec, Canada. The main components of the spruce-fir forest are red spruce and Frasier fir. Other important species include yellow birch, mountain-ash, hobblebush, and blackberries. The balsam woolly adelgid killed 95% of the Frasier firs over the past decade. Accidentally introduced from Europe, this tragedy threatens the fate of the entire forest type. The Park sprays to control the insect, but this is a labor consuming process that needs to saturate each tree. Environmental pressures, including acidic deposition and ozone present further threats.

A northern hardwood forest dominates the middle to upper elevations from 3,500- 5,000 feet. It mixes with many species from other forest types, but is characterized by sugar maple, American beech, and yellow birch. These forests resemble those throughout much of New England, New York, Pennsylvania, and southern Ontario. The northern hardwood forest, specifically sugar maples, produces the most brilliant fall color.

Drier ridges in and around the Park hold a pine-oak forest. Despite plentiful amounts of rain, these excessively drained slopes dry out often, and fire is a regular part of these forest communities. In late 1996, the Park began controlled burning to prevent unintentional fires from threatening lives and property. This also insures natural regeneration of species requiring fire for propagation. Major species include red, scarlet, black and chestnut oaks, along with table mountain, pitch, and white pines. Some areas also have hickories.

A hemlock forest often grows along streambanks. Water temperatures remain cold year- round, and this cools and dampens the air. Hemlocks survive better in these conditions than any other species. Hemlocks dominate streamsides throughout the Appalachians. An insect, the hemlock woolly adelgid is moving south and west. It threatens every hemlock in the eastern united States.

The cove hardwood forest lines the valleys throughout the Park. It is the Smokies most diverse ecosystem. Important species include, tulip poplar, American basswood, red maple, sweet gum, yellow buckeye, black birch, and dogwood. This lush, diverse forest enjoys warm temperatures, a long growing season, and plentiful rainfall.

Other Trees

Sixty years ago, the most common Park tree was American Chestnut. About 30% of the Park was chestnut forest. Due to a disease, chestnut blight, every adult chestnut in the eastern United States died. Loss of the chestnut heavily impacted animals depending on the nuts for winter fat. Scientists continue to work search for hybrid chestnut species that can resist this disease.

Black walnuts are common near homesites. Often planted in yards, walnut wood was valuable, and the nuts made good food.

Black cherry is another valuable wood and food source. The cherries are a favorite of bears when they ripen in August. Cherry trees are often damaged by climbing bears.

Tennessee's state tree, tulip poplar, is abundant in the Park. Builders favor it for cabins. It grows long and straight, striving for the sun without pause.