Mt. Pisgah Gave Me Some Helpful Reminders

Mt. Pisgah was the first hike I went on the first time I came to Asheville to train for the job that initially brought me here. I was down here for two weeks, had one free weekend, and wanted to check out the Blue Ridge Parkway. Finding it took me about two hours because my GPS was extra wonky. While I was very impressed by the views from the parkway itself, I remember being less than impressed with the views on the top, which are mainly dominated—especially on an overcast day like that—by the radio tower on the top. I also remember thinking the hike was too short for an experienced hiker like me. 

So, I largely discounted Mt. Pisgah for the first three years I lived here, but then last fall,  I summitting it for my second time and was more impressed than the first time I went. I’d been looking for a quick hike that was less than an hour’s drive I could do after work whilst soaking in some fall foliage, and on a clear fall day, despite the radio tower, the top afforded some beautiful sunset views. 

Here are some sunset pics from last year:

I’m still somewhat discounting Mt. Pisgah. It was one of our very first very summery feeling days a couple of weeks ago. I finished work early, spent the afternoon on my patio courting the skin cancer gods, and then decided Mt. Pisgah would do for a relatively easy sunset hike. I say I discounted Mt. Pisgah because though it’s a little less than 3 miles roundtrip and though I remembered it being an “easy” hike, it’s a fucking workout. Aside from the first quarter of a mile, the hike is one relentless climb to the top. It’s not long, but it is steep. My calves were burning, and how heavy I was breathing was embarrassing. 

And then! And then, aside from being reminded that I need to up my cardio workouts after not a sedentary winter per se, but just a less cardio-centric winter, I was reminded of something else: the importance of always having bug spray in your hiking backpack, especially in the spring. I got to the top of Mt. Pisgah around 7:00, which would’ve given me an hour of hanging out before the sun truly started to set, but I was so beset by flies that I put my tail between my legs and hightailed it to the bottom after 15 minutes.