Kings Mountain State Park: Lake Crawford and Historic Farm Trails (Blog Hike #1067)

Trails: Lake Crawford and Historic Farm Trails
Hike Location: Kings Mountain State Park
Geographic Location: south of Kings Mountain, NC (35.14913, -81.34491)
Length: 2.4 miles
Difficulty: 4/10 (Easy/Moderate)
Date Hiked: March 2025
Overview: A double out-and-back along Lake Crawford and to an 1800s living history farm.
Park Information: https://southcarolinaparks.com/kings-mountain
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=982090
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: (coming February 27, 2026)

Directions to the trailhead: Near the North Carolina/South Carolina state line, take I-85 to SR 216 (North Carolina exit 2).  Exit and go south on SR 216.  Drive SR 216 6.8 miles to the signed state park entrance on the left, passing back into South Carolina and passing Kings Mountain National Military Park along the way.  Turn left to enter the state park, pay the entrance fee, and drive the main park road 0.8 miles to the large parking area near the trailhead and the old Civilian Conservation Corps bath house.  Park here.

The hike: Often overlooked in favor of its bigger cousin Kings Mountain National Military Park immediately to its west, 6885-acre Kings Mountain State Park is the 5th largest state park in South Carolina.  The park came to be in 1934 when the federal government donated 6141 acres to the State of South Carolina, and many of the park's amenities, roads, and trails were built by the depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).  The land has more relief than you might expect for metro Charlotte, and while there is no Revolutionary War history in the state park, the CCC structures and living history farm still give this park a strong historical feel.

            The park also features some nice amenities that include a 115-site developed campground, 2 small lakes, 30 miles of bridle trails, and a living history farm.  The entire Kings Mountain area is a major destination for hikers, and long-distance trails link this park with both the national military park to the west and North Carolina's Crowders Mountain State Park to the north.  This hike features 2 of the park's shorter trails, and it leads to 2 of the park's main attractions: Lake Crawford and the living history farm.

Main trailhead

            The main hiking trailhead is located at the southeast corner of the parking lot; a large information kiosk stands here.  The trail heads down some wooden steps with Lake Crawford visible below you.  The old CCC-built bath house sits to the left.  With some structural damage and broken windows, this bath house has seen its better days, and the park is currently trying to raise money to restore it.

Lake Crawford dam

            The trail descends below lake level and crosses Lake Crawford's outflow stream on a wooden footbridge.  Looking to the left, you will see the CCC-built stone dam that forms Lake Crawford.  Water spilling down the stone blocks creates a pleasant if man-made waterfall.

Turtles in Lake Crawford

            As you begin to climb the other side of the ravine, the trail forks.  We will go both ways eventually, but first turn left to begin the Lake Crawford Trail, which is marked with purple plastic diamonds.  True to its name, the Lake Crawford Trail follows a lakeside course with minor undulations.  I did some nice wildlife viewing on Lake Crawford that included many turtles and some Canada geese, and the lakeside scenery is pleasant.

"Overlook" at end of Lake Crawford Trail

            0.5 miles into the hike, you climb a low bluff to reach a bench overlooking the stream above Lake Crawford.  Trees mostly obstruct any view, and this overlook is very underwhelming.  Perhaps disappointingly, the Lake Crawford Trail ends here, and no other trails come to this overlook.  Thus, your only option is to retrace your steps on the Lake Crawford Trail to the trail fork near the dam.  Turn left at this fork to begin the other trail, the Historic Farm Trail.

Hiking the Historic Farm Trail

            Marked with yellow plastic diamonds, the Historic Farm Trail climbs away from Lake Crawford on a moderate grade.  The mature forest features a nice mix of pine, beech, and maple trees.  At 1.2 miles, you cross SR 216 and re-enter the forest on the other side.

Living history farm

Horses at living history farm

            Just past 1.4 miles, you reach the parking area for the park's living history farm, which is designed to reconstruct farm life in 1800s South Carolina.  The farm features several buildings including a farmhouse, barn, and blacksmith shop, and it also features live animals including horses.  After doing a short loop to tour the farm, retrace your steps to the Lake Crawford parking lot to complete your hike.

Roan Mountain State Park: Moonshiners Run Trail (Blog Hike #1066)

Trail: Moonshiners Run Trail
Hike Location: Roan Mountain State Park
Geographic Location: south of Roan Mountain, TN (36.16661, -82.09411)
Length: 2 miles
Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy/Moderate)
Date Hiked: March 2025
Overview: An out-and-back along the Doe River.
Park Information: https://tnstateparks.com/parks/roan-mountain
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=981643
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: (coming June 19, 2026)

Directions to the trailhead: From the town of Roan Mountain, drive SR 143 south 4 miles to the entrance for Roan Mountain State Park's cabin area on the left.  Turn left to enter the cabin area, then turn left again to reach the overflow parking lot for the cabin area.  Park in the overflow lot.

The hike: For my general comments on Roan Mountain State Park, see the previous hike.  While the previous hike led to an old ridgetop iron mine, this hike explores the rhododendron-filled riverside corridor along the Doe River.  The riverside area is nice any time of year, but it is especially nice in June when the rhododendron blooms, thus immersing you in a sea of pink flowers.

Cabin area trailhead

            From the overflow parking lot, walk a few feet back out to the cabin area access road and then look uphill to the right for the start of the Turkey Trot and Moonshiners Run Trails.  A wooden sign marks this trailhead.  The single-track dirt trail treads around a small ravine before it forks.  As indicated by a sign, the Turkey Trot Trail, which was closed due to storm damage from the remnants of Hurricane Helene on my visit, exits right.  Thus, you want to angle left to stay on the Moonshiners Run Trail.

Doe River

            Marked with yellow shield-shaped plastic markers, the Moonshiners Run Trail descends gradually to reach the bank of the Doe River for the first time.  The forest is dominated by sycamore, beech, and maple trees with some birch, and the riverside areas have a dense thicket of rhododendron in the understory.  Some debris from recent flash flooding needs to be negotiated, but overall the going is pretty easy.  Only traffic noise from SR 143 across the river detracts from the setting.

Approaching old concrete block foundation

            Near 0.4 miles, you pass an old concrete block foundation of unknown origin.  Next the trail undulates somewhat as it goes toward and away from the river, but the fact that you are heading downstream guarantees more down than up.  The rhododendron in this part of the hike is especially thick, and I wished I was hiking here in June when it blooms.

Rhododendron thicket

Destroyed footbridge

            1 mile into the hike, you reach the lower end of the Moonshiners Run Trail where it intersects the Forest Road Trail.  The Forest Road Trail was closed on my visit, and the reason why was obvious: the trail's wooden footbridge over the Doe River had been destroyed by the remnants of Hurricane Helene.  Normally you can continue straight to form a loop with the Turkey Trot Trail or turn left to head for the Visitor Center and the Peg Leg Mine Trail, but my only option due to the trail closures was to turn around and retrace my steps on the Moonshiners Run Trail.  1 mile of heading back upstream returned me to the park's cabin area to complete the hike.