Tanawha Trail

Location: Blue Ridge Parkway milepost 305.5, near Grandfather Mountain
Distance: 13.5 miles one-way
Highlights: Waterfalls, overlooks, laurel tunnels, wildlfower glades, Price Lake
Difficulty: Moderate to strenuous, with 6,920 feet of vertical rise
Directions: Travel along the Blue Ridge Parkway to milepost 305.5 to the Beacon Heights parking area and trailhead.
Information: Grandfather Mountain Backcountry Ranger’s Office, 828-733-2013

Hikers’ spirits soar along the Tanawha, a Cherokee word for “fabulous hawk or eagle.” The trail starts beneath the Linn Cove Viaduct, the oft-photogrpahed engineering marvel near Grandfather Mountain that completed the Blue Ridge Parkway in 1987. Numerous side trails allow for loop-hikes and shorter day hikes.

At first, the trail climbs steeply through boulder fields, creating tunnel-like passageways and rugged footing. After a half-mile, the trail levels out as hikers roll through birch and beech forests. At 2.7 miles, hikers reach Wilson Creek and a series of breathtaking waterfalls. Another two miles later at Rough Ridge, hikers are rewarded with a 200-foot boardwalk offering spectacular views of Table Rock, Hawksbill, and South Mountains.

Ferns and wildlfowers flow through the crevices of a natural rock garden at Raven Rocks. Three miles later, hikers pass through thick tunnels of rhododendron that empty into wildflower meadows and apple orchards. Eventually the trail joins Boone fork Trail, which leads to Price Lake, one of the most beautiful lakes in the Blue Ridge. Here the Tanawha Trail ends, 13.5 miles from the Beacon Heights trailhead.