Every season, I say I’m going to hike more. And though I don’t do badly on the hiking front, I end up perenially disappointing myself with how much time I spend outdoors, especially because I feel so good after a hike (I was doing some reflecting about the year prior—as one does at this time of year—and realized the week I probably liked the most and was the happiest was the week I spent with my brother out in Utah where we hiked a minimum of two miles every day).
So I’m going to try the tactic of preemptively publicly shaming myself and creating a bucket list of hikes I’d like to do this winter season (so, now through March) that I will publish on this blog and hopefully check off as I do them (the initial thought was to create a blog for each of these hikes and link it from this post, but I don’t know how feasible that is—these blogs are usually more if I have something to say vs. straight up recaps, but…we’ll see?). I’ll revisit this at the beginning of April to see how bad or good I did.
Because I genuinely never learn, don’t like to set myself up for success, and have truly never met a SMART goal I can’t make dumb, I’ve decided to include 15 hikes on this list. There are 13 weeks between January 1st and April 1st, so I’ve got to get out at least once a week, not do any repeats, and I’m not counting like…Lunch Rocks or Bearwallow Mountain. Let’s set ourselves up for self-flagellation come spring!
My 2024 Winter Hiking Bucketlist
Long Triple Falls Hike
I’ve always wanted to combine Dupont Forest’s Triple Falls and Bridal Veil Falls for a long—but easy—hike, and a sunny winter day seems like the perfect time to do so (especially because attempting this hike in the summer months is just asking to be completely swarmed with people).
Schoolhouse Falls
I did the hike to Schoolhouse Falls the first summer I went to Asheville, and I haven’t returned. While I don’t necessarily think going here in the winter would be any different than in the summer (the time I went, it wasn’t disgustingly crowded), the waterfall at least gives you something to look at since there is no foliage, and it’s an excellent cold plunge contender.
Sunrise at Roan Highlands
Doing a winter sunrise hike in the Roan Highlands was one of the highlights of last year, and it must be replicated in 2024.
Sunset at Roan Highlands
The hike to Grassy Bald across the Roan Highlands is one of my favorite WNC hikes, and at this point, I’ve done it at sunrise at least 5 times. I’m dying to do it at sunset, and I think winter is the perfect time as I could see an incredible sunset and still be home at a reasonable hour (at about an hour and a half; this is one of the further hikes from Asheville).
Sam’s Knob Loop
I initially found this loop during the winter as a way to get some of the high-elevation hikes in while the Parkway is closed, but end up doing it plenty in the summer. This is one that doesn’t necessarily have to be put onto this bucket list, as I know it will happen (this is my most hiked WNC hike), but I’d like to be comprehensive.
Bonus: Graveyard Fields
I hiked from NC 215 up Sam’s Knob and then down to Graveyard Fields when the parkway was closed once with my cousins on an extraordinarily warm day (we then walked back on the closed parkway). I’d love to do it again, but only if the weather permits, hence the “bonus” status.
Mouse Falls Long Hike
Mouse Falls is the waterfall a half mile past Midnight Hole. Per the trailhead at the parking lot, you could actually hike five miles up and make this a full ten-mile hike, which I’d like to explore (bonus: another winter cold plunge contender).
Mt. Cammerer
Mt. Cammerer ends with an awesome fire tower. I did this hike once a couple of years back in the fall, but it’s on a bunch of “best winter hikes” lists, so I figured why not add it?
Winter Hiking in Gatlinburg
One of my favorite hiking experiences down here was when my brother, cousin and I climbed Mt. LeConte in the winter and got to experience the top covered in light snow. I’ve actively been looking at Airbnb and cheap hotels for one Friday in Gatlinburg this January. I aim to do Charlie’s Bunion on a Friday afternoon, stay the night, and then do a winter summit of LeConte the next day. I said I would do this the past two winters, so this is the one out of all of these I 100% want to make happen.
Wildcat Rock & Turgua Brewing
Wildcat Rock is a hike pretty close to me that, for some reason, I didn’t hit at all this summer (maybe I was too haunted from the time I lost my sunglasses on this hike and had to re-hike two miles back uphill to get them?). It almost doesn’t warrant a spot on this list since it’s so close (like Bearwallow and Lunch Rock), but the thought of doing Wildcat Rock on a Friday afternoon and then stopping at Turgua to read/write for the evening sounds like the kind of peak winter coziness I want to experience more of in 2024.
Mountain to Sea Trail Towards Craggy Pinnacle
Ostensibly, you could get to Craggy Pinnacle when the parkway is closed via the Mountains-to-Sea Trail if you start at the Rattlesnake Lodge trailhead, but Mapquest says that’s ten miles one way, which might be biting off more than I could chew. Still, it seems like maybe it could at least be something cool to try on a nice Saturday, and I get as far as I get.
Courthouse Falls
I’ve never been to Courthouse Falls, and it seems like a solid winter hike (it has a waterfall to take away from the fact that there isn’t any foliage, it’s down near Brevard, which is generally warmer than Asheville, etc).
Mt. Mitchell Balsam Trail
If I skip one of these, I probably won’t feel bad cutting this one. Upon doing some research for this list, I discovered that Mt Mitchell State Park is technically open all year, as long as there isn’t any snow, so I thought it might be fun to try it out.
Elk Pasture Gap to Frying Pan Tower
I want to do more “on the parkway” hikes while the parkway is closed. If you park at the access area off 276 (Elk Meadow Pasture), walking to the Fryingpan Mountain Lookout Tower is only 3.1 miles one way. It would be a 6-mile hike roundtrip, but that’s pretty doable to me, especially on a sunny day when temperatures get warmer (aka March?).
Alternative
Park at the access point off 151 and walk up the parkway to Mt. Pisgah, though honestly, I think that’s a much steeper ascent.
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