BEDH_Blue_Ridge

Parkway mileposts: 418.8 and 420.2

Distance: 2.0-mile loop with a 1.4-mile option; 0.8 mile out and back to Black Balsam Knob

Difficulty: Easy to moderately challenging (with easy backpacking for beginners)

Elevation gain: 300 feet for the 2.0-mile loop (700 feet for the 3.4-mile loop); 300 feet for Balsam Knob

Maps: USGS Shining Rock; Pisgah National Forest’s Shining Rock–Middle Prong Wilderness map covers area best

Finding the trailhead: The trail begins at Graveyard Fields Overlook, Milepost 418.8 on the Blue Ridge Parkway, 30 miles south of US 25 in Asheville. The trail is about 7 miles south of the US 276 junction and about 4.5 miles north of the NC 215 junction.

The Hikes

As you drive south out of Asheville and climb past Mount Pisgah, the Shining Rock Wilderness can’t help but catch your attention. The horizon peels back on an almost Western scale, and meadow-covered mountaintops march off to meet summits cloaked in evergreens and accented by milk-white crags of quartz—the area’s namesake “shining rocks.” The Graveyard Fields Trail explores a scenic valley just below these summits.

Hikes on the well-maintained but heavily traveled Graveyard Fields Loop can range from a short out-and-back hike to a full-length streamside loop, with or without scenic waterfalls. Though this lofty area—the trailhead is at 5,100 feet and the high point 5,400 feet—never gets very warm, the pool below Lower or Second Falls is a great summer spot to cool off.

One caution: Probably the most daunting part of the entire hike is the steep descent from the Blue Ridge Parkway to the stream valley. It’s short, only a few tenths of a mile, but it is steep on the way back up if you return the same way. (The return described here climbs much more gradually.) Otherwise the Graveyard Fields Loop is a relatively easy way to explore a lofty area near the Shining Rock Wilderness, one of the state’s most scenic areas.

The logged open fields here were named following a devastating fire in 1925. The thousands of stumps remaining reminded some people of grave markers. The entire watershed was consumed by wildfires in the 1920s and again in the 1940s; the little valley burned again in the late 1990s. The earliest massive fires gave the Shining Rock area its above–tree line appearance; the results of the 25,000- and 50,000-acre conflagrations can still be seen in the largely treeless landscape. Few places in North Carolina afford better views.

This gentle stream valley makes the perfect place for a day hike, picnic, or backpacking trip, especially for beginners or those who want scenic camping without arduous walking. The area is very popular in summer and fall, though, so campers in this fragile area should observe scrupulous camping practices. Although accessible campsites may be filled during the busy seasons, it is easy to find out-of-the-way sites for zero-impact camping. Best advice for campers—go during the week.

Graveyard Fields Loop

Leaving the right side of the Parkway overlook, the trail descends the steep paved path to wood steps and a boardwalk bridge across Yellowstone Prong. Go right at the junction beyond, signed to LOWER FALLS, and cross a small bridge. Descend another elaborate sloping wooden boardwalk with steps to the base of the cataract with a deep pool beneath it (called Second Falls on the topo map).

Retrace your steps to the junction, at about 0.5 mile, and continue past the split-rail fence with the GRAVEYARD FIELDS/UPPER FALLS sign. This is a place of plentiful side trails, so watch closely as you emerge into the open meadows on a worn path along more fence. Views reach up to the balds above, along the skyline of the Art Loeb Trail and Shining Rock Wilderness. All around, evergreens mingle with deciduous trees and blueberry bushes. Beyond a boardwalk, bear right. (A side trail left dead-ends at a campsite by the stream, where you could mistake fishing trails for the path upriver.) Soon meet the Graveyard Ridge Connector branching right at an unsigned junction. Stay left and you’ll cross a short boardwalk over a drainage that confirms your choice. Good campsites become visible as you arrive at the loop’s final signed junction, at the 1.0-mile mark. The return part of the loop heads left over the bridge.

The right-hand trail goes 0.7 mile to Upper Falls, a much less visited, more precipitous cascade with impressive views down the valley. This section of trail, a side trip of about 1.4 miles, is steeper and rockier than the rest of the route and would up the elevation gain of the hike to a not-insignificant 700 feet. If you take this option, retrace your steps downstream from Upper Falls and take a right turn across Yellowstone Prong at about 2.7 miles.

The return route gradually ascends through boggy areas with a high-altitude feel. You’ll cross bog logs and a sloping boardwalk on the way and be back at the parking lot in about 0.5 mile (this time climbing a short flight of wood steps to the left side of the overlook). Including Upper Falls, the entire hike is about 3.4 miles and moderately challenging. Without the Upper Falls, the 2.0-mile loop is rated moderately easy.

Key Points

0.5Arrive back at bridge after side trip to lower waterfall.

1.0Return leg of loop goes left; side trail to Upper Falls goes right.

2.0Arrive back at parking area (about 3.4 miles with side trail to Upper Falls).

Black Balsam Knob

If you can’t resist the lure of the summits, take the Parkway south to Milepost 420.2 and go right on FSR 816. Park below Black Balsam Knob on the right 0.8 mile from the Parkway. Take the Art Loeb Trail and quickly ascend in 0.4 mile to the open vistas and waving grasses of Black Balsam Knob (6,214 feet). This view is among the best along the Parkway. North, the Mount Mitchell range bulks beyond Asheville, with the High Country resort area and Grandfather Mountain beyond that. The Smokies rise dramatically to the west. This is a short, steeper hike (take your time!) to a 360-degree panorama worthy of bringing your binoculars and a camera.