We live in some of the most beautiful parts of North Carolina. The mountains hold a host of outdoor adventures right here in our backyard. (I've documented a few of them here on this page.) One might think we live wild and free on a daily basis. Yep. Not true. But now that Tegan is older and less whiny about hiking, we are trying to enjoy a few more trails in our area.
Last month we enjoyed hiking the 2 mile trail known as Huckleberry Knob. Fun fact: the top of this bald mountain is the highest point in Graham county and the fourth largest mountain in North Carolina! Nothing compared to Shaun's Colorado Rockies, but quite beautiful in it's own rite!
Starting out from the parking area off the Cherohala Skyway (at mile marker 8), we hiked up a former forest service road until we reached a large open field which led to a very inspirational "the hills are alive" moment on top of the grassy summit! #thesweetlifeofmaple
Although this hike isn't very hard or long, I got to feel how out of shape I am! #workinprogress More hikes are definitely in our future!
Coming near the top of the mountain is a cross. As the story goes, in 1899, two young lumberjacks enjoyed a little too much whiskey and ended up freezing to death, being found by a hunter 9 months later. Several jugs of whiskey were supposedly found near their bodies. Appalachian history is littered with jugs of things, right?!
There's a fire ring near the top. We happened to go on a somewhat rainy, overcast day, but there were still some views to behold! Several years ago we hiked this at night with our summer staff and they lit a big fire! The fog and the fire and the night sky all made for quite a wonderful experience!
We didn't bring wood this time because it was a somewhat rainy and overcast day and we didn't want to stay up there that long. Tegan did bring his fire starting tool along. Just in case. We got stranded. Aaaand needed to survive. Pyro Daddy was all for giving it a go! Just in case. He needed to know how. You know, to survive. If we got stranded. Ever held a ball of fire before?
Although the day we hiked wasn't the clearest, the 360* views from the top were still quite beautiful and still helped you feel as small as one ought to feel on top of a mountain. (This picture is from an overlook off the Cherohala Skyway near Huckleberry Knob.)
If you're ever in our area, you should give this hike a go. Pack a picnic lunch and enjoy the beauty of the outdoors! Nobody ever regretted having a splendid day outside!
