Spruce Pine NC and the surrounding North Carolina High Country offer some of the best Hikes in Western NC. We have provided descriptions of the most popular
NC hiking areas in the High Country below.
Blue Ridge Parkway
 The
Blue Ridge Parkway runs directly through Spruce Pine NC and is home to many excellent hiking trails and outdoor attractions. From the Blue Ridge Parkway, try the .5 mile loop Dugger's Creek Trail at Milepost 316.5. Milepost 320 offers a .63 mile hike to a view of Humpback Mountain from Chestoa View Trail and Overlook. Beacon Heights Trail, located at Milepost 305, arguably offers the best overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway. The Tanawha Trail is a 13.5 mile trail that starts at Beacon Heights Parking Area off of the Parkway and ends at Price Lake. From Price Lake, you can continue hiking around Price Lake Loop Trail, a 2.4 mile loop trail.
Your possibilities of Blue Ridge Mountain Hiking
NC are endless!
Grandfather Mountain
Grandfather Mountain is located off milepost 305 in
Linville NC and has a wide variety of trails and day activities. Grandfather Mountain is the highest mountain in the High Country Blue Ridge Mountains and offers spectacular vistas on its
NC Hiking Trails and Mile High Swinging Bridge.
Overmountain Victory Trail
The Overmountain Victory Trail is a historic hiking trail that follows the route of the Kings Mountain Campaign, more commonly referred to as the Overmountain Men Campaign. The Overmountain Men were a militia group of 1,000 local farmers and Appalachian citizens who blazed south through the Blue Ridge Mountains from Virginia to South Carolina to defeat the British at the Battle of King’s Mountain during the Revolutionary War. On October 7, 1780, the Overmountain Men turned the tide of the Revolutionary War, forcing Lord Cornwallis to retreat. The Overmountain Victory Trail commemorates this historic march and follows the 330 mile route, passing directly through Spruce Pine! The men traveled directly through Gillespie Gap, now the site of the
North Carolina Mineral Museum in Spruce Pine NC. Hikers can access the Overmountain Victory Trail at the Mineral Museum.
 Lost Cove Wilderness Area
Lost Cove is full of natural wonder. Hikers will find rivers, waterfalls, beautiful vistas and dense forests in Lost Cove. Located in
Pisgah National Forest NC, Harper Creek Falls is a much loved and visited waterfall in Lost Cove. The North Harper Creek Trail/Little Lost Cove Cliffs Loop is 4.6 mile loop of moderate difficulty offering views of old homesites, waterfalls, and grand vistas from rock outcrops. To access this trail, take the Blue Ridge Pkwy north from Spruce Pine and turn right at Bugger Hollow Ave. Take an immediate left on NC-181 for 0.2 of a mile. Turn right at Pittmans Gap Rd for 0.7 of a mile. Pittmans Gap Rd turns slightly left and becomes Clarktown Rd/NC-1522. Take Clarktown for .4 of a mile and then turn left at Mortimer Rd/NC-1518/Old Jonas Ridge Rd, follow for .4 of a mile. Turn right at National Forest Rd for 2.4 miles and then turn right to stay on National Forest Road for .3 of a mile. You will see a trail head sign for North Harper Creek Trail on your left. You may access the western trailhead for Little Lost Cove Cliffs Trail by continuing on FR-464 one mile past FR-58. Another 4.25 miles down FR-64 provides access to South Harper Creek Falls, a 2.8 mile trail to a beautiful 200+ foot waterfall. When hiking in Lost Cove be sure to take a trail map of the area with you.
Linville Gorge Wilderness Area
The rugged and beautiful Linville Gorge Wilderness Area offers a plethora of trails
and opportunities for rock climbing and camping. Linville Gorge is eastern America’s deepest gorge and its hiking trails are some of the most intense in the region.
I hope that you will take a few moments to tour this site to discover all that we have to offer in the wonderful Spruce Pine, NC area. You'll be glad that you did!
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