Check out this great information on hiking trails along the Blue Ridge Parkway in NC from www.blueridgeparkway.org.
“BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY – HIKING
- Milepost 217.5 – Cumberland Knob Trail (ideal lazy-day walk)
Length: 0.5 Miles Skill Level: Easy
Gully Creek Trail (rewarding loop that meanders by stream)
Length: 2 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous - Milepost 218.6 – Fox Hunters Paradise Trail (view)
Length: 0.2 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 230.1 – Little Glade Millpons (easy loop stroll around pond)
Length: 0.4 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 238.5 – Cedar Ridge Trail (great for day hike; vistas and forests)
Length: 4.2 Miles Skill Level: Moderate
Bluff Mountain Trail (parallels Parkway to Milepost 244.7)
Length: 7.5 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 241 – Fodder Stack Trail (great variety of plants)
Length: 2.89 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous - Milepost 243.7 – Grassy Gap Fire Road (wide enough for side-by-side hiking)
Length: 6.5 Miles Skill Level: Moderate
Basin Creek Trail (access from back-country campground)
Length: 3.3 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 244.7 – Flat Rock Ridge Trail (forest path with vistas)
Length: 5.0 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 260.3 – Jumpingoff Rocks Trail (forest path to vista)
Length: 1.0 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 264.4 – The Lump Trail (to hilltop view)
Length: 0.3 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 271.9 – Cascades Trail (self-guiding loop to view of falls)
Length: 0.5 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 272.5 – Tompkins Knob Trail (to Jesse Brown Cabin)
Length: 0.6 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 294 – Rich Mountain Carriage, Horse, & Hiking Trail
Length: 3 Miles Skill Level: Moderate
Flat Top Mountain Carriage, Horse & Hiking Trail
Length: 3 Miles Skill Level: Moderate
Watkins Carriage, Horse & Hiking Trail
Length: 3.3 Miles Skill Level: Easy/Moderate
Black Bottom Carriage, Horse, & Hiking Trail
Length: 0.5 Miles Skill Level: Easy
Bass Lake Carriage, Horse & Hiking Trail
Length: 1.7 Miles Skill Level: Easy
Deer Park Carriage, Horse, & Hiking Trail
Length: 0.8 Miles Skill Level: Moderate
Maze Carriage Horse & Hiking Trail
Length: 2.3 Miles Skill Level: Moderate
Duncan Carriage, Horse, & Hiking Trail
Length: 2.5 Miles Skill Level: Moderate
Rock Creek Bridge Carriage, Horse, & Hiking Trail
Length: 1.0 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 294.1 – Figure 8 Trail (short, self-guiding loop nature trail)
Length: 0.7 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 294.6 – Trout Lake Hiking & Horse Trail (loop)
Length: 1.0 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 295.9 – Green Knob Trail (to Green Knob)
Length: 2.3 Miles Skill Level: Moderate/Strenuous - Milepost 296.5 – Boone Fork Trail (stream, forest, and meadows)
Length: 4.9 Miles Skill Level: Moderate/Strenuous - Milepost 297 – Price Lake Loop Trail (loop around Price Lake)
Length: 2.3 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 304.4 – Linn Cove Viaduct Access Trail
Length: 0.16 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 305.2 – Beacon Heights Trail (10 minutes to view)
Length: 0.22 Miles Skill Level: Moderate
Tanawha Trail (diverse biological and geological features)
Length: 13.5 Miles Skill Level: Easy/Moderate - Milepost 308.2 – Flat Rock Trail (self-guiding loop)
Length: 0.63 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 315.5 – Camp Creek Trail (leg stretcher throught laurel and rhododendron)
Length: 0.1 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 316.4 – Linville Falls Trail (view of upper Falls)
Length: 0.8 Miles Skill Level: Moderate
Linville Gorge Trail (view of lower Falls)
Length: 0.5 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous - Duggers Creek Trail (loop to view of Duggers Falls)
Length: 0.25 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 316.5 – Linville River Bridge Trail (leg stretcher to view of unusual bridge)
Length: 0.1 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 320.8 – Chestoa View Trail (30-minute loop to vista)
Length: 0.63 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 339.5 – Crabtree Falls Loop Trail (loop to view of Falls)
Length: 2.0 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous - Milepost 344.1 – Woods Mountain Trail (USFS)
Length: 2.0 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 350.4 – Lost Cove Ridge Trail (USFS)
Length: 0.6 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 351.9 – Deep Gap Trail (USFS)
Length: 0.2 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 355 – Bald Knob Ridge Trail (USFS)
Length: 0.1 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 355 – Big Butt Trail (trail continues on USFS lands)
Length: 0.2 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous - Milepost 361.2 – Glassmine Falls (view of Falls)
Length: 0.05 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 361.2 – Craggy Pinnacle Trail (to panoramic view)
Length: 0.73 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 364.2 – Craggy Gardens Trail (first portion is self-guiding nature trail)
Length: 0.84 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 374.4 – Rattlesnake Lodge Trail (woodland walk)
Length: 0.5 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 382 – Mountain-to-Sea Trail/MTS Trail (from Folk Art Center to Milepost 365, spring wildflowers and views, parallels parkway, many accesses)
Length: 7.5 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 393.7 – Shut-In Trail/MTS Trail (Bent Creek-Walnut Cove)
Length: 3.1 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous - Milepost 397.3 – Grassy Knob Trail (steep trail to USFS area)
Length: 0.9 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous
Shut-In Trail/MTS Trail (Sleepy Gap-Chestnut Cove)
Length: 0.7 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 398.3 – Shut-In Trail/MTS Trail (Chestnut Cove-Bent Creek Gap)
Length: 2.8 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous - Milepost 400.3 – Shut-In Trail/MTS Trail (Bent Creek Gap-Beaver Dam Gap)
Length: 1.9 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 401.7 – Shut-In Trail/MTS Trail (Beaver Dam Gap-Stoney Bald)
Length: 0.9 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 402.6 – Shut-In Trail/MTS Trail (Stoney Bald-Big Ridge)
Length: 1.2 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous - Milepost 403.6 – Shut-In Trail/MTS Trail (Big Ridge-Mills River Valley)
Length: 1.2 Miles Skill Level: Moderate/Strenuous - Milepost 404.5 – Shut-In Trail/MTS Trail (Mills River Valley-Elk Pasture Gap)
Length: 1.2 Miles Skill Level: Moderate/Strenuous - Milepost 405.5 – Shut-In Trail/MTS Trail (Elk Pasture Gap-Mt. Pisgah)
Length: 1.7 Miles Skill Level: Strenuous - Milepost 407.6 – Mt. Pisgah Trail (summit view)
Length: 1.26 Miles Skill Level: Moderate/Strenuous
Buck Springs Trail (Pisgah Lodge to view) - Milepost 408.5 – Frying Pan Mountain Trail
Length: 1.65 Miles Skill Level: Moderate/Strenuous - Milepost 417 – East Fork Trail (USFS, access to Shining Rock Trail System)
Length: 0.1 Miles Skill Level: Easy/Moderate - Milepost 418.8 – Graveyard Fields Loop Trail (loop by a stream)
Length: 2.29 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 419.4 – John Rock Trail (leg stretcher to view)
Length: 0.1 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 422.4 – Devil’s Courthouse Trail (panoramic summit view)
Length: 0.42 Miles Skill Level: Moderate/Strenuous - Milepost 427.6 – Bear Pen Gap Trail (access to Mountains-to-Sea Trail)
Length: 0.22 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 431 – Richland Balsam Trail (self-guiding loop through spruce-fir forest)
Length: 1.47 Miles Skill Level: Moderate - Milepost 433.8 – Toy Taylor Overlook Trail (paved trail to overlook)
Length: 0.1 Miles Skill Level: Easy - Milepost 451.2 – Waterrock Knob Trail (summit view)
Length: 1.18 Miles Skill Level: Moderate/Strenuous”