Policies for COVID-19
Posted on: Tuesday, March 8, 2022 - 4:22pm |
Ecology
PARKING
If you arrive and a parking lot is full, that area is closed to further traffic. Waiting in line is not permitted. Parking on road shoulders is prohibited. To avoid crowds, please plan your visit on a weekday. If the road to the summit is closed to uphill traffic, you may park at the visitor center or visit another park access area. March-November, on weekends and holidays, you may only drive the road to the summit until that area reaches capacity. Learn more information about parking areas and alternate locations nearby that you can visit when the park is full »
SHUTTLE
March-November, on weekends and holidays, a shuttle service is scheduled to be on-site to transport visitors to the summit lot and back. Shuttle tickets are sold by the vendor in front of the visitor center at the shuttle stop. Limited tickets are available. https://ncparks.gov/pilot-mountain-state-park/home#notices
Contact the park
336-444-5100
pilot.mountain@ncparks.gov
Addresses
Mountain section
and visitor center
1792 Pilot Knob Park Road
Pinnacle, NC 27043
GPS: 36.3412, -80.4629
Pilot Creek access
382 Boyd Nelson Road
Pinnacle, NC 27043
GPS: 36.3587, -80.4933
Pinnacle Hotel Road/
Culler Road parking
134 Culler Road
Pinnacle, NC 27043
GPS: 36.3280, -80.4631
Hauser Road parking
622 Hauser Road
Pinnacle, NC 27043
GPS: 36.2675, -80.4958
Bean Shoals access*
103 Yadkin River Park Trail
Pinnacle, NC 27043
GPS: 36.2647, -80.4878
*Entering this access requires crossing three shallow streams. Visitors may become stranded after rain.
Ivy Bluff access
4240 Shoals Road
East Bend, NC 27018
GPS: 36.2537, -80.5087
Shoals fishing area
and paddle access
4454 Shoals Road
East Bend, NC 27018
GPS: 36.2574, -80.5171
Hours
►
- December to February:
8:00am to 6:00pm
- March 1 to March 14:
8:00am to 8:00pm
- March 15 to April:
7:00am to 8:00pm
- May to September:
7:00am to 9:00pm
- October:
7:00am to 8:00pm
- November:
7:00am to 6:00pm
- Closed Christmas Day
►
- November to February:
8:30am to 5:00pm
- March to April:
8:30am to 7:00pm
- May to September:
8:30am to 8:00pm
- October:
8:30am to 7:00pm
- Closed Christmas Day
►
- March to April:
7:00am to 9:00pm
- May to September:
7:00am to 10:00pm
- October:
7:00am to 9:00pm
- November:
7:00am to 8:00pm
- Closed Christmas Day
- Gates are locked promptly at closing. There is no gate entry before or after hours, except in the case of a medical or law enforcement emergency. No vehicles other than those registered to campers may be left in the park overnight.
►
- October to February:
Open daily:
8:00am to 4:00pm
- March to September:
Open daily:
9:00am to 5:00pm
- Closed Christmas Day
Natural resources
Get plant and animal checklists at the park office.
The vegetation in the park is similar to that found in mountain habitats such as those in the Blue Ridge Mountains. More than 70 families of vascular plants grow on and around Pilot Mountain. In late spring, the Big Pinnacle is ringed with the bright pink blooms of Catawba rhododendron. Also abundant is mountain laurel, distinguished by its leathery evergreen leaves and showy clusters of white flowers. Typical trees include the chestnut oak, table mountain pine and pitch pine. Wild blueberry, huckleberry and grape can be spotted along the trails.
Listen as American toads, chorus frogs and spring peepers call from nearby pools. Numerous songbirds including the eastern bluebird, Carolina wren, brown thrasher and various warblers supply the woods with music. Watch for ravens soaring above Big Pinnacle. The raven and the pileated woodpecker are two of the rarer birds of Pilot Mountain. Other wildlife in the park includes red and gray fox, white-tailed deer, woodchuck, opossum, gray squirrel, raccoon, and several species of reptiles and amphibians.
Park Maps and Brochures:
