Mount Pisgah Hike

Sunday morning, we had a nice breakfast at the hotel and then checked out.  We drove back up to the Blue Ridge Parkway and stopped at the trailhead for Mount Pisgah.  The trail was only 1.5 miles to the top and moderate with a few steep sections, mainly near the end.

There were some showy gentians flowering along the trail.

Soon we made it to the top where a small wooden overlook to take a break.

It was cloudy right when we arrived, but they quickly burned off.  We spent about 20 minutes up here enjoying the view.

Back down at the parking area, there was a great view of the mountain once the clouds had cleared.

We got some pictures and then took off.

Driving back towards Asheville, we made a couple stops along the way.  First we stopped at View Stony Bald with a distant view of Mount Pisgah.

Then we stopped at Bad Fork Valley Overlook.

The fall color along the parkway was really beautiful here.

Then we drove the rest of the way to Asheville and started making our way home.  In Old Fort, we stopped at Hillman for beer and lunch.

Mount Pisgah MST Hike

Sunday, we took Alex out to the mountains for another week of adventure.  Leaving early, we made it to the Blue Ridge Parkway near Asheville around 9 and drove to the Mills River Valley Overlook.

Alex was going to do hike 5 for #mst40hikes along the Shut-In Trail to Pisgah Inn.

The Mountains-to-Sea Trail piggybacks on Shut-In Trail towards Mount Pisgah.

In about a mile, the trail crossed the parkway at NC-151 and then began a steep ascent.  For more than a mile, it was mostly a climb to Little Pisgah Mountain and then led to the trailhead for Mount Pisgah and the southern end of Shut-In Trail.

There was a nice view of the mountain from here.  

We went up and down another hill and came to Buck Springs Gap Overlook.  

Right past here was the ruins of Buck Spring Lodge, George Vanderbilt's hunting lodge on Mount Pisgah.  The Shut-In Trail was constructed as a path from Biltmore up to the lodge.  Not much remains of the lodge, but there were very nice views from here.

The springhouse is the only remaining structure.

We went as far as the Pisgah Inn and turned back.

I got a view from the other side of the road at Mills River Valley Overlook before we took off.

From here, we drove to Franklin and checked in with Appalachian Zen at Gooder Grove.  Then we headed to Currahee Brewing and got dinner from the food truck.  The everything burger was excellent and Alex got to meet some local dogs.  After dinner, we went back to the hostel for showers and then a good night's sleep after a very long day.