History
Park Maps and Brochures:
GPS DIRECTIONS - Are not reliable in this area. Use CAUTION.
Park staff recommend using the following directions.
Gorges State Park is located in Sapphire, NC in Transylvania County. The park is approximately 45 miles southwest of Asheville. Follow Hwy 64west out of Brevard until you reach Sapphire, turn left on Hwy 281south, the park entrance is .7 miles on your left. The Visitor Center is located .5 miles inside the park on Grassy Ridge Road.
From Asheville, reach the park from I-26, taking exit 40 onto NC 280 and traveling west toward Brevard. Turn west on US 64 and travel toward Sapphire. To reach the Frozen Creek Access (east side of the park), turn left onto Frozen Creek Road, which is approximately two miles past NC 178. The east entrance is three miles on the right. To reach the Grassy Ridge Access (west side of the park), turn south on NC 281 in Sapphire; the western park entrance is .7 miles on the left.
From Atlanta, GA, reach the park from I-85, taking South Carolina exit 1 onto SC 11 and traveling north toward Walhalla, SC. Turn north on SC 130, which becomes NC 281 at the North Carolina state line. Continue north on NC 281. The Grassy Ridge Access (west side of the park) is approximately seven miles north of the state line on the right. To reach the Frozen Creek Access (east side of the park), turn east on NC 64 in Sapphire. Travel toward Brevard approximately eight miles and turn right on Frozen Creek Road. The east entrance is three miles on the right.
From Charlotte, reach the park by traveling west on NC 74 to I-26. Turn west on I-26, traveling toward Hendersonville. Take exit 49B to NC 64 and travel west through Brevard toward Sapphire. To reach the Frozen Creek Access (east side of the park), turn left onto Frozen Creek Road, which is approximately two miles past NC 178. The east entrance is three miles on the right. To reach the Grassy Ridge Access (west side of the park), turn south on NC 281 in Sapphire; the western park entrance is .7 miles on the left.
From Greenville, SC, reach the park by traveling on US 276 north to SC 11. Take SC 11 south toward Walhalla, SC, and turn north on SC 130, which becomes NC 281 at the North Carolina state line. Continue north on NC 281. The Grassy Ridge Access (west side of the park) is approximately seven miles north of the state line on the right. To reach the Frozen Creek Access (east side of the park), turn east on NC 64 in Sapphire. Travel toward Brevard approximately eight miles and turn right on Frozen Creek Road. The east entrance is three miles on the right.
Posted on: Thursday, April 13, 2017 - 5:02pmGorges State Park has suffered significant wind damage from recent storm Irma; please use extreme caution as trees and debris are on all trails in the park. Trail clean up will be in process over the next few weeks.
Although you might feel removed from civilization while walking deep into the Gorges wilderness, evidence of past human interference with the environment surrounds you.
One of the most damaging interferences to the Gorges environment occurred in 1916 when the dam containing Lake Toxaway - the largest private lake in the state - broke. Record amounts of water gushed southward down the river, destroying the communities in its path, scouring the gorges and leaving piles of debris 15 to 20 feet high. These debris piles still remain.
After the flood, local citizens eventually sold large land tracts in the Gorges to Singer Sewing Machine Company, which logged most of the land. Then, in the 1940s and 1950s, Singer sold the land to Duke Energy Corporation. The corporation purchased the land for its steep topography and high rainfall, which offered opportunities for development of hydropower projects. Crescent Land and Timber Corporation, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, managed the land, closing some roads and limiting human access to protect the environment.
Conservation studies began in the area in the late 1970s, and in 1982 nearly 275 acres of land that is currently in the park was placed on the NC Registry of Natural Heritage Areas because of the numerous rare species. In the late 1990s, Duke Energy determined that it no longer needed large portions of the Gorges for future hydropower and offered the land for sale to natural resources agencies in North and South Carolina. The NC Division of Parks and Recreation stepped up to create, with the support of local citizens and the General Assembly, a very exciting state park.
Gorges State Park
General Park Hours
7am to Midnight
Picnic Areas
8am to Dusk
Visitor Center
Monday - Friday
9am to 4:00pm
Saturday - Sunday
9am to 5pm
Business Office Hours
Monday - Friday
8am to 4:30pm
Saturday - Sunday
Closed