Blue Ridge Parkway: Mount Pisgah Trail (Blog Hike #605)

Trail: Mount Pisgah Trail

Hike Location: Blue Ridge Parkway, Mount Pisgah

Geographic Location: southwest of Asheville, NC (35.41864, -82.74792)

Length: 2.8 miles

Difficulty: 8/10 (Moderate/Difficult)

Date Hiked: August 2016

Overview: A rocky out-and-back, fairly flat at first but steep near the end, to the summit of Mount Pisgah.

Parkway Information: https://www.nps.gov/blri/index.htm

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=731365
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: From Asheville, drive the Blue Ridge Parkway south to the signed Mount Pisgah parking area access road on the left.  This road is reached at Parkway mile marker 407.6.  Turn left onto the access road, and drive it uphill to the blacktop parking lot at its end.

The hike: As you leave Asheville and start the Blue Ridge Parkway’s southern-most segment toward Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the first major recreation area you reach is the Mount Pisgah Campground and Visitor Center.  At almost 5000 feet in elevation, the Mount Pisgah base area is regionally famous for cool summer temperatures and fantastic views.  The area offers a 140-site campground, the rustic 51-room Pisgah Inn, a restaurant, a picnic area, and a gift shop.

5721 foot Mount Pisgah gets its name from the mountain in Deuteronomy from which Moses first looked on the land God promised to Israel.  The observation deck at the mountain’s summit is only accessible by hiking the rocky 1.4 mile one-way Mount Pisgah Trail described here, which gains 715 feet of elevation.  Despite the trail’s difficulty, the outstanding view and the trailhead’s location along the Parkway make this hike rather popular in the summer.  Try to plan a weekday or shoulder-season visit to minimize the crowds.

Trailhead: Mount Pisgah Trail

The trail starts at an information board at the rear of the parking lot.  Almost immediately the trail to the base area campground and picnic area exits left.  Continue straight to head for the summit of Mount Pisgah.  At just over 0.1 miles, you pass a large rock outcrop on the right that kids (and some adults) will enjoy climbing.

Large rock outcrop

The rocky trail makes a sweeping curve to the right as it climbs gradually.  At 0.6 miles, you reach the crest of Pisgah Ridge in a high saddle between Mount Pisgah to the west and Little Pisgah Mountain to the east.  The trail curves west here, and soon the grade intensifies.  Some rock steps aid the hiker, but overall for the rest of the trail the terrain is rugged and the going slow.

Climbing on rocky trail

Near 1 mile into the hike, you have to climb up a short rock outcrop that will probably require you to use your hands as well as your feet.  More stone steps bring you to a switchback and your first good view at 1.1 miles.  This vista points south toward the Mount Pisgah base area and lower hills beyond.

View south from Mount Pisgah

View west from Mount Pisgah

A pair of switchbacks raises the trail higher, and soon you enter a mountain laurel tunnel.  When you see the WLOS TV and radio tower through the trees ahead, you have almost made it to the summit.  A few more twists and turns bring you to the summit’s wooden observation platform, which was built in 1979 by the Youth Conservation Corps.  Although the TV tower blocks the view to the north, the view in the other three directions is excellent.  Cold Mountain and Black Balsam Knob dominate the view to the west, while Black Mountain stands to the south.  The only trail to this summit is the one you hiked up, so after taking in the view you have to retrace your steps 1.4 miles downhill to the parking area to complete the hike.

Blacklick Woods Metro Park: Buttonbush, Maple, and Beech Trails (Blog Hike #604)

Trails: Buttonbush, Maple, and Beech Trails

Hike Location: Blacklick Woods Metro Park

Geographic Location: south side of Reynoldsburg, OH (39.93343, -82.80601)

Length: 2.2 miles

Difficulty: 1/10 (Easy)

Date Hiked: August 2016

Overview: A trio of nearly flat loops through older growth forest.

Park Information: http://www.metroparks.net/parks-and-trails/blacklick-woods/

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=940170
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: From Columbus, take I-70 east to Brice Road (exit 110B).  Exit and go north on Brice Rd.  Drive Brice Rd. north 0.7 miles to Livingston Avenue and turn right on Livingston Ave.  Drive Livingston Ave. east 1.1 miles to the park entrance on the right.  Turn right to enter the park.  Drive the main park road to its very end at the large blacktop parking lot for the Nature Center.  From the east, take I-70 to SR 256 (exit 112), go north on SR 256 for 0.9 miles to Livingston Ave., turn left on Livingston Ave., and turn left to enter the park.

The hike: Established in 1948, 643 acre Blacklick Woods Metro Park is the oldest metro park in greater Columbus.  The park came into being when Walter Tucker, Metro Parks’ first director, responded to a real estate ad in the newspaper.  The land’s long history as parkland ensures that the park’s beech/maple upland forest and burr oak swamp forest are among the best forests in central Ohio.

            The park features many amenities including two golf courses (a regulation course and an executive course), two large picnic areas, and the Beech-Maple Lodge, which is available for rental.  The park also contains trailheads for two paved bike trails: the Blacklick Creek Greenway Trail, which goes south to nearby Pickerington Ponds Metro Park, and the Blacklick-Huber Park Connector Trail, which runs near the golf courses.  A 4.1 mile gravel Multipurpose Trail also winds through the park.  For hikers, the park offers three nature trails that form adjoining loops, and this hike goes around all three loops to explore all of the nature trails this park has to offer.

            From the parking lot, start by hiking the asphalt trail that leads to the Nature Center.  You will want to stop in the Nature Center either before or after your hike: it contains some interesting reptile exhibits and a large wildlife viewing window that overlooks a bird feeding area.  On my visit on a hot summer afternoon, I sat at the wildlife viewing window in the Nature Center’s air conditioning for about 20 minutes and saw raccoons, squirrels, gold finches, house finches, mourning doves, cardinals, chickadees, hummingbirds, downy woodpeckers, and a blue heron among other wildlife.

Start of Buttonbush Trail

            Upon reaching the Nature Center on the asphalt path, angle sharply left to pick up the signed Buttonbush Trail.  Traffic noise from nearby I-70 fades as you hike further north away from the interstate.  The Buttonbush Trail alternates between gravel and wooden boardwalk as it passes through a swamp forest, the lowest elevation on this hike.  The swamp forest is dominated by burr oak trees, and interpretive signs describe common plants in the forest.

            At 0.1 miles, the Buttonbush Trail splits to form its loop.  This hike continues straight on the gravel trail and uses the boardwalk going left as a return route, thus hiking the loop counterclockwise.  Soon you find yourself back on boardwalk as the trail reaches the corner of a sunny wet sedge meadow.  Some dragonflies buzzed around the meadow on the hot sunny afternoon of my hike.

Sedge meadow

            0.2 miles into the hike, the spur trail to the Maple and Beech Loops exits right.  If you wanted to hike only the 0.5 mile Buttonbush Trail, you could continue straight here as this hike will eventually.  To see all of the park’s nature trails, turn right on the spur trail, which is named the Walter Tucker Trail after Metro Parks’ first director.  At 0.3 miles, you reach the spur trail’s other end at the Maple Trail’s loop.  Turn right to begin a counterclockwise trip around the Maple Loop.

            The east arm of the Maple Trail heads north along the eastern boundary of the park’s natural area.  Although the land at Blacklick Woods is very flat, the 20 feet of elevation change between the wetland and this area allows maple and beech trees to dominate the forest here.  The flat terrain and wide firmly-packed gravel trails make all of the park’s trails passable by people in wheelchairs with some assistance.

Hiking the Maple Trail

            At 0.65 miles, you reach a junction with the Beech Loop, the northernmost of the three nature trail loops.  Keeping with the counterclockwise theme of this hike, turn right to hike the Beech Loop counterclockwise.  Some small concrete culverts carry the trail over ditches in this part of the park.

            After curving left, the trail crosses the blacktop trail that connects Beech-Maple Lodge with its parking lot.  After crossing the paved lodge access road, the trail surface turns to asphalt before coming out at a developed area of the park with picnic tables and other structures scattered about.  The trail map calls this area the Ash Grove Picnic Area, and a parking lot here provides an alternative point from which you could start this hike.

Old trading post

            Before reaching the parking lot, the asphalt trail curves left to pass an old trading post and ranger station.  Built in the 1950’s, the old trading post is one of the oldest structures in Metro Parks.  Now heading east, ignore a paved trail that exits right to reach more picnic areas.  The Beech Trail turns back to gravel as it reenters the forest at a point that contains an information board, trash can, and sign warning against pets and bicycles.

            At 1.2 miles, you reach the west arm of the Maple Trail.  Turn right here to leave the Beech Trail and begin your return journey on the Maple Trail.  The Maple Trail heads south through more nice maple/beech forest.  Where a spur trail to the picnic areas exits right at 1.4 miles, continue straight on the Maple Trail.

Boardwalk on Buttonbush Trail

            Just past 1.5 miles, you close the Maple Loop.  Turn right on the Walter Tucker spur trail, then turn right again to continue the Buttonbush Trail.  More boardwalks take you around the Buttonbush Trail’s loop, which is closed at 1.9 miles.  Turn right to head back to the Nature Center and parking lot, where your car awaits.