Grandfather Mountain State Park » Trails Information
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Bears are active in the back country; afternoon thunderstorms can be expected
... details ±Bears have been seen on all of the Grandfather Mountain State Park trails, including Black Rock Trail. Bears have visited both Cliffside and Alpine Meadows campsites with campers on site. Do not approach a bear and never feed wildlife. Dogs must be leashed at all times. Campers must hang their food and should never bring food into the tent: keep a clean campsite and don't leave food scraps behind when you leave. If you do see a bear, rangers would appreciate notification.Afternoon thunderstorms are common: lightning is a serious threat. If a storm approaches, head down the mountian and get out of exposed areas. Seek shelter in clumps of vegetation of uniform height. Avoid high ground, exposed sites and metalic objects. Hypothermia is possible even in August if caught in a thunderstorm.
Updated: 2010-08-25 10:08:42
Beginning Monday August 30, 2010, overhead tree removal crews will be working to clear and cut trees damaged during last December's ice storm. Use extreme caution when hiking to keep from being hurt by any of the work taking place and listen to officials if they ask you to wait while they make the trail safe for your crossing.
Trek across a scenic landscape that is home to 70 rare and endangered species and 16 distinct
natural communities. The mountain is an International Biosphere Reserve. There's no more
appropriate place to obey the maxim:Take only photos; leave only footprints.
Hikers should be aware of theirÊtiming and hiking ability when hiking the trails at Grandfather
Mountain. NC State RangersÊand Grandfather MountainÊattraction staffÊwill notÊprovide rides
from any of the trail heads to or from another location. It is the hikers personalÊresponsibility
to make appropriateÊaccommodations to get from one place to the other.
Crest Trails
Grandfather Trail
(2.4 miles, strenuous, blue blaze)
The Grandfather Trail runs the length of the summit ridge from the Grandfather Mountain
attraction to Calloway Peak. If offers astonishing variety, running in and out of wind-dwarfed
spruce and fir, across or around rock walls and pinnacles and into open spaces with mountain
views in every direction. It was along this trail two centuries ago that explorer/botanist
Andre Michaux broke into song thinking he had arrived at the high point of North America.
The pace is often slow. There are chutes where progress is hand-over-hand and extra steep
sections where hikers use in-place cables and ladders. An alternative to taking the ladders
up MacRae Peak is to opt for the more sheltered Underwood Trail. Not recommended for children
or inexperienced hikers.
Grandfather Extension Trail
(0.6 mile, moderate, red blaze)
This trail extends the Grandfather Trail down to the attraction's trails parking area and
can be used to fashion a loop hike in that area. Ends below a grand view of MacRae Peak.
Underwood Trail
(0.5 mile, strenuous, yellow blaze)
Splitting off the Grandfather Trail near the half-mile marker, the Underwood Trail bypasses
ladder climbs on MacRae Peak, rejoining the Grandfather Trail at MacRae Gap, about a mile out.
The trail makes a steep, very rocky loop under the crest line around Raven Rock Cliffs by way
of one ladder.
Black Rock Trail
(mile, moderate, yellow blaze)
From the Grandfather Mountain attraction, the Black Rock Trail slopes out gradually to a
wide-angle view of the swinging bridge, MacRae and Attic Window peaks as well as Beacon Heights
and Grandmother Mountain to the southwest. This self-guided nature trail rambles through northern
hardwood and spruce forests.
West Side Trails
Profile Trail
(3.1 miles, strenuous, no blaze)
Beginning as a scenic, rolling pathway through seasonal wildflowers, this trail crosses the
Watauga River and travels under a hardwood canopy for much of its length. Upper sections, beginning
around Foscoe View, get steeper. There are frequent rest stops with stone benches and turnouts.
Shanty Spring, at 2.7 miles, marks a transition into a strenuous pathway of tumble-down rock
that joins the Grandfather Trail after a climb of 0.3 miles. It makes the transition out of the
hardwoods and into the Canadian fir zone of the crest area. The upper section is steep and rocky
and calls for careful footwork.
East Side Trails
Daniel Boone Scout Trail
(3.0 miles, moderate, white blaze)
Ascending about 2,000 feet over three miles, this hike begins at the Blue Ridge Parkway's
Tanawha Trail and climbs to Calloway Peak, at 5,964 feet, the highest point in the Blue
Ridge Range. About halfway up, at Flat Rock View, hikers reach the junction of Cragway Trail.
The upper half of the Daniel Boone Scout Trail is rough going but spiced with exquisite
views, including one of Price Park and one of the Linn Cove Viaduct. Near Calloway Peak,
in-place ladders and cables help hikers through steep sections.
Nuwati Trail
(1.2 miles, easy, blue blaze)
This trail follows the track of an old logging road. It's an easy but rocky hike, ending
at Storyteller's Rock and a spectacular view of the Boone area. There are stream crossings,
a solitary stand of big-tooth aspens and reminders of logging days gone by.
Cragway Trail
(mile, strenuous, orange blaze)
A steep, strenuous hike with grand vistas. Boulders and crags offer elevated views of the
Boone Fork area. This trail links Nuwati and Daniel Boone Scout trails, making a nice loop
hike passing through rhododendron and blueberry thickets.
Note: Access to East Side Trails from the Blue Ridge Parkway
From the Blue Ridge Parkway area, there are two points of access. Most hikers use the Boone
Fork Parking Area at mile 299.9 on the Blue Ridge Parkway. The second is the Parkway's Asutsi
Trail, which beings across from Serenity Farm on US 221 (the only winter access when the
Parkway is closed). From either of these points, hikers can follow the Parkway's Tanawha
Trail south to reach Grandfather's Nuwati or Daniel Boone Scout Trail trailheads. (Note: no
camping is allowed on trails of the National Park Service on the Blue Ridge Parkway).