We have your best Fall Hikes for 2018. Hike through western North Carolina’s autumn beauty on our favorite trails to stunning views and the best fall leaf color. With Spruce Pine, Little Switzerland and Bakersville as your base camps, you can explore and experience the very best of outdoor recreation and famous hiking trails within just minutes.
With the help of AshevilleTrails.com and Romantic Asheville we have compiled a bucket list of Fall hikes near us. Of course Roan Mountain, NC is at the top of the list.
ROAN HIGHLANDS
Roan Mountain on the Appalachian Trail
4.7 MILES
Hike the longest continuous stretch of grassy bald mountains in the Appalachians, following the Appalachian Trail through golden fall grasslands on Round Bald, Jane Bald and Grassy Ridge Bald in the Roan Highlands. Views from this bald mountain trio are nearly continuous, exceptional 360-degree panoramas. It’s one of our favorite western North Carolina hikes in any season – but somehow even more magical in autumn’s golden hues.
GRANDFATHER MOUNTAIN
Grandfather Mountain Profile Trail
6.2 MILES
Scale the rocky, lofty summit of Calloway Peak, the highest point on Grandfather Mountain’s imposing ridgeline. Views from the Grandfather summit are vast and sweeping, stretching over nearby Rough Ridge and Beacon Heights to mile after mile of western NC mountain beauty.
LINVILLE FALLS
Blue Ridge Parkway near MP 316
2.2 MILES, ROUND TRIP
Cascading through a series of dramatic falls, the Linville River churns and tumbles through Linville Gorge just off the Blue Ridge Parkway. Hike to high-elevation views of the stunning cascades and grab views deep into the gorge. The trail to Linville Falls scores outstanding vistas of the falls from multiple overlooks, and hikes through rolling forest filled with fragrant hemlocks, pines, rhododendrons, and ferns. (And while it’s technically just over two miles, it’s fully worth the hike!)
MT. MITCHELL
Deep Gap Trail to Mt. Craig
2 miles ROUND TRIP
RomanticAsheville brings us this favorite Mt. Mitchell hike. Mount Craig (altitude 6,647 ft.) is the second highest peak in the eastern United States, only 37 feet lower than neighboring Mount Mitchell, the highest peak. Mt. Craig is part of the Mt. Mitchell State Park, surrounded by the Pisgah National Forest. Located on the crest of the Black Mountains, the peak has a lot of exposed rock and is home to some very rare and endangered species of plants and animals that exist nowhere but the lofty elevations of the Black Mountains. (Romantic Asheville)
TRAIL INFO AND PHOTOS via Romantic Asheville
For more Fall Adventures, check out our Fall Adventures page where you will find lots of cool events for you and your friends! From apple butter making to crafts markets and a great Potters Market known all over the Southeast. Come spend a beautiful Fall Weekend with us !
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