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We've compiled the best of the best in The North Carolina Mountains - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
The Blowing Rock itself is a jagged boulder atop a cliff that overlooks the Johns River Gorge about 3,000 feet below. If you throw your hat over the sheer precipice, it may blow back to you, should the wind gods be playful. The story goes that a Cherokee man and a Chickasaw maiden fell in love. Torn between his tribe and his love, he jumped from the cliff, but she prayed to the Great Spirit, and he was blown safely back to her. The compact grounds at this worthwhile attraction include an observation tower, several overlooks, and the fascinating Blowing Rock Museum, which tells the century-old history of this area as a tourist destination and includes a display of locally mined gemstones.
About 15 miles from Waynesville in the Shining Rock Wilderness Area of the Pisgah National Forest, this 6,030-foot rise had long stood in relative anonymity. But with the success of Charles Frazier's bestselling novel Cold Mountain, people want to see the region that Inman and Ada, the book's Civil War–era protagonists, called home. For a view of the splendid mass, stop at any of a number of overlooks off the Blue Ridge Parkway. Try the Cold Mountain Overlook, just past mile marker 411.9, or the Wagon Road Gap parking area, at mile marker 412.2. You can climb the mountain, but be prepared—the 10-mile hike to the summit is strenuous as you ascend nearly 3,000 feet in elevation.
At an elevation of 6,000 feet, Craggy Gardens has some of the Blue Ridge Parkway's most colorful displays of rhododendrons, usually blooming in June. You can also hike trails and picnic here. Craggy Pinnacle trail offers stunning 360-degree views.
A half-mile hike winds through evergreens and rhododendrons to overlooks with views of cascades tumbling into Linville Gorge. There's a visitor center, a campground, and a picnic area.
Some of the most challenging hikes and climbs in the South are in Linville Gorge, often called "the Grand Canyon of the East." The gorge is part of a 12,000-acre federal wilderness area in the Pisgah National Forest, and there are about 39 miles of trails here. Free backcountry camping permits are available from the Grandfather Mountain ranger's office in Nebo, which also has maps of the gorge and its trails.
The 5,721-foot Mt. Pisgah is one of the most easily recognized peaks around Asheville due to the television tower installed here in the 1950s. It has walking trails, a picnic area, and an amphitheater where nature programs are offered most evenings from June through October. There is an inn, a restaurant, and a small grocery a short distance away. Nearby Graveyard Fields is popular for blueberry picking in midsummer.
In this 1,500-acre public park, you can tackle a grueling climb to the top of the namesake Pinnacle or take a short walk on the state's only certified Nature Forest Therapy Trail. Brochures at the parking area include a map and guided prompts to help you clear your mind as you experience the forest.
This fish hatchery operated by the state's Department of Wildlife Resources produces more than 400,000 brown, rainbow, and native brook trout each year for release in local streams. You can see the fish up close in more than 50 large tanks called raceways. There's also a visitor center with information about the life cycle of trout and an educational nature trail. The Davidson River, which runs by the hatchery, is popular for fly-fishing.
You don't have to walk the 1.2-mile round-trip trail to the summit of Waterrock Knob for a view—the vistas from the visitor center are also wonderful—but a trip to the top for sunrise or sunset can be stunning. Heading northeast from Cherokee on the Parkway, this is the first trail and notable summit.
Near Highlands and Cashiers, Whiteside Mountain is one of the highest continuous cliffs in the East. The sheer cliffs of white granite rise up to 750 feet, overlooking the Chattooga River in the Nantahala National Forest. A 2-mile loop (moderate) takes you to the top of the cliffs, including a long section following the striking ridgeline. The cliffs are also popular with rock climbers. Peregrine falcons nest here, and the cliffs are closed to climbers during falcon mating season.
