North Carolina’s Highest Point

Last updated: February 26, 2024

When my parents invited me and Kris to accompany them on a Nantahala Gorge Excursion via the Great Smokey Mountain Railroad in North Carolina, I saw this as an opportunity to check off the state’s high point. When I saw it was only a two-hour drive from where we were staying, I immediately submitted a PTO request to go a day early so I could check North Carolina’s highest point off my list!

As the 16th highest point in the U.S., Mount Mitchell is 6,684 feet above sea level. It’s also the highest point east of the Mississippi and would be the highest I have ever hiked… this one was a big deal for me!

Mount Mitchel’s original name was Black Dome. It was previously believed that New Hampshire’s Mount Washington was the highest point east of the Rocky Mountains until Elisha Mitchell came around in 1835 and determined that Mount Mitchel was a few hundred feet higher. There were critics, so in 1857, Elisha returned to verify his findings and prove his measurements were accurate, but he fell to his death during the hike there. He’d never know it, but it was later confirmed that his findings were correct! Not only was the mountain named after him, but his body was transferred to the summit and laid permanently to rest there in 1858. There is a plaque at his grave that honors him and his work. I obviously didn’t know him, but I think he would love this due to his passion for the mountain.

Given Kris has had three surgeries this year, with two of them being major back surgeries and the most recent being in August (August was a tough month!), I knew I’d be hiking this one alone. This caused me to pause. I didn’t know if I could do this hike since it would be the highest one to date. So, while I love hiking alone, I was a bit nervous! I tried my best to research the condition of the trail and the overall difficulty of the hike. Because everyone’s health and hiking tolerance differ, there was mixed information from one end of the spectrum to the other. Some said it was easy; others said they couldn’t finish it because it was too challenging. I know I do not do well with elevation (i.e., I must stop every 5 seconds because I can’t breathe).

Additionally, I’d give myself a D- in navigation. Six miles is a long way when hiking. I wasn’t sure how well the trail would be marked, and getting lost also made me nervous. Given I have been hitting the gym pretty hard since July, and I have this insane belief that I can do anything in the world I put my mind to; I decided to go.

Kris and I worked all day on Thursday, threw our luggage in the RAV after we got off, and drove straight to our hotel. We got there around 11 pm, and I got up Friday morning ready to slam dunk the hike up Mount Mitchell to get to North Carolina’s highest point!

The two hour drive from the hotel to the trailhead was quite curvy but breathtakingly gorgeous with the fall foliage. We even saw a bear cub along the way!

The plan was for Kris to drop me off at the trailhead and then drive up to the summit and wait for me there. The summit is located within Mount Mitchell State Park, which is North Carolina’s first State Park, established in 1915. Since my parents had already planned to come that evening to check into the hotel, they decided to make the extra drive to also experience the high point. Considering we have gone to the highest points in Indiana, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi together, it would be a shame for them to miss out on North Carolina, especially since they were already going to be in the area!

At Mount Mitchell State Park, there’s a museum and a gift shop, as well as an observation tower at the summit which allows you to see hundreds of miles on a clear day. Kris was able to explore these places while he waited. He also brought a book to read to enjoy his time while waiting for me. I wouldn’t want him to just sit there for hours so I’m glad there were things for him to do! He is certainly a gem for doing this for me. 🩵

Interestingly enough, the current observation tower was built in 2009, and is the FIFTH one! It has certainly come a long way!

Now, on to the hike! To get to the trailhead, you’ll need to go to the Black Mountain Campground. I used this address in Apple Maps, and it took us straight there:

S. Toe River Road, Burnsville, NC, 28714

I estimated it would take me 5 hours to hike from the trailhead to the summit and told Kris if the 6-hour mark hit and there was no sign of me; he would need to send in a rescue crew.

When you start this hike, you’ll see the trailhead is clearly marked. I was relieved to discover this was one of the best-marked trails I’ve ever seen. There’s a blue diamond every 15 feet or so. It is impossible to get lost on this trail. If you’re worried about navigation, don’t be; just follow the blue diamonds.

This high point is my favorite to date. The hike was beautiful, challenging, and so peaceful. I only saw one other person who passed me halfway through. Climbing this 6-mile bad boy took me almost 5 hours. You either love or hate hiking alone, and I love it. Don’t get me wrong, I also love company but hiking alone is just a great way to de-stress and think through all the things that are constantly being interrupted by life. When was the last time you had five hours of complete uninterrupted time? No one spoke to you or was around you; there were no electronics going off, no screens in front of your face, just calm, peaceful stillness. Uninterrupted time has become a rare thing in today’s world, and I absolutely soaked in the beauty of God’s creation, talked to Him quite a bit, and just allowed myself to enjoy the therapy that only hiking can bring. It felt so good to do something nice for my body after running it ragged for weeks.

You’ll come across this extreme weather warning sign after walking a short way. I had my long-sleeved smart wool shirt for this very reason, but I didn’t bring hiking poles (I should try them at some point). I never did need my long sleeve and didn’t ever feel the need for hiking poles during this hike. The weather was legit perfect. That said, be prepared if you go and do what the sign says:

Shortly after this, you’ll come to the trailhead marker, and it’s uphill from here on out. You will see half-mile markers along the way, and let me tell you, these will quickly become celebratory. I was dancing around them towards the end as they tell you how far you’ve gone and how far you have left to go, as well as what elevation you’ve reached.

I honestly could not have chosen a better time to hike this trail. The temperature was perfect, allowing me to wear just a tank top and some thermal hiking pants. I was a little warm at times, and that motivated me to keep climbing higher so I could get to cooler weather. I had a 3L water bladder that I toted with me in a small backpack, which I highly recommend. By the time I reached the top, I had less than half a liter left.

The fall foliage was breathtaking the entire hike.

I was particularly impressed with this tree as it had the best looking natural gnome door I’ve ever seen.

The trail is pretty much inclined the whole way (I mean, you are hiking a mountain). I can attest that elevation is not my friend. When I started back to the gym in July, I was struggling to breathe so much on the treadmill that I started researching how to increase longevity and endurance. I learned all about heart rate, including my max heart rate. Since learning this, I’ve made sure to slow down if I start to exceed my max heart rate to ensure I maintain it. Monitoring my heart rate has drastically improved my longevity and endurance on the treadmill. I can go longer and have much better stamina. I tell you all that because #1, I think you’d find it interesting, and you may want to research it for yourself. #2; I decided to use this technique when hiking Mount Mitchell and found I was very comfortable the whole hike. This required stopping a couple of times each mile for 20-30 seconds to let my heart rate drop so I didn’t exceed my maximum heart rate (I use my Apple Watch to track). I was really surprised at how well this worked and allowed me to actually enjoy the hike instead of gasping for air the whole time.

I came across these unique man-made stairs carved into a log that I thought was interesting. It left me wondering: why not just cut a it and leave a gap to walk straight through? 🤷🏻‍♀️ Points to whoever took extra time to do this as it did add interest to the hike.

And here I am at the halfway marker. I cannot tell you how happy I was to make it here. It was at this point I started taking photos with all the half-mile markers because I was so excited to see them. It felt like such a feat when I would see one approaching.

These photos were pretty much posted in the order they were taken and really show the beauty of the day and the condition of the trail.

At about this time, you’ll start coming to some openings that give you a stop-worthy view. It’s nice to stop for a few minutes and enjoy God’s handiwork. I ate a granola bar while looking at the North Carolina beauty and then trekked onward.

As you can see, there are plenty of shrooms and roots along the way, making this a truly diverse hike…lots of changes in terrain and interesting flora to discover!

I came across some more openings that showcased North Carolina’s autumn beauty! Closing in on the mile point gave me a lot of motivation to finish this!

I saw these guys camping and figured they must plan to be there for a while, given it would have taken a lot of energy to haul their gear all this way. It would be fantastic to hang out for about five days and forget about the rest of the world for a while.

One more mile left! You can tell the difference in the terrain at this point and see that you are getting closer to civilization because there are more signs.

Once you start seeing these informational signs, you are super close! I stopped and read these because why not?

After these signs, there is one more. When you see the one pointing left to the summit, you are at the end of the hike! Go left, and you’ll have about five minutes of walking to get where the highpoint awaits!

My mom, dad, and Kris were waiting on me as I emerged from around the sign, and then my dad and Kris accompanied me to the top so we could check out the highpoint. They asked if the trail was hard, and I said, “Yes, it was hard, but not too hard for me!” I then proceeded to run ahead of them backward while facing them and challenging them to keep up with me the rest of the way. This was an effort to prove that I was as fit as I was in my 20s and show my husband and dad that I could hike a mountain and still outrun them backward. In reality, I was trying not to cry because of my screaming thighs (shhh… don’t tell them!).

For the first time, I used All Trails to track my hike and stats. I’ll be doing this from now on! I forgot to stop the tracking for about 10 minutes after I got to the top, but other than that, this is accurate!

My timing on finishing this hike could not have been better because the sunset was out of this world. I was so pleased with this payoff.

And now comes the exciting part… the highpoint!

Here we have Elisha Mitchell’s grave. He is said to have been buried “at the summit,” so this spot is likely the exact natural high point.

The views were phenomenal as we made our way up the observation tower.

When you reach the top, you’ll find the geological marker and the signs for each cardinal point telling you what you can see. I find it particularly interesting that you can clearly see Clingman’s Dome, Tennessee’s highest point from the South. It’s named after Thomas Clingman, who ironically was a student of Elisha Mitchell’s and was one of his biggest critics regarding the height of Mount Mitchell.

And here we are at the geological marker! I appreciate the design here showing the cardinal directions and the outline of North Carolina. They have even placed the geological marker where the highest point falls within the state. Very creative!

I don’t remember what started this, but my dad quickly reminded me we needed our feet picture. I checked, and we have a photo like this at every high point, so I guess it is an official tradition now. 🤷🏻‍♀️

As we left, I jumped out to quickly get a photo with the state park sign before it got too dark. This is the sign you’ll be looking for if you decide to drive up to the highest point instead of hiking it. As you can see, I had my smart wool long-sleeve top on because it was legit COLD. Also, I feel I cheated just a teensy bit since I didn’t hike down, but this is how it worked out with my husband’s current health situation. I’m not mad about it and have zero regrets. I would have regretted it if I hadn’t hiked it at all, but since I hiked up, it’s all good. While I would have preferred to hike it back down, this was an excellent compromise (and I would have missed the sunset!). 👍🏼

So there you have it: my sixth high point! I truly enjoy completing them. 🤩 Check out the other high points I’ve visited, and please share your highpointing experiences in the comments section at the very bottom of this page. I’d love to read about them!