Mt Mitchell — Attraction in Old Fort

MT. MITCHELL STATE PARK, NORTH CAROLINA: I suppose I shouldn't be so impressed by Mt. Mitchell, but I am. The first time I saw it, I was a teenager, so maybe that has something to do with it. After school was out my family decided to drive across the United States to visit relatives in North Carolina in a big family get together. Of course, we crossed many boundaries and state lines. I stood across the Great Divide one foot on each side and thought I was all that and a bag of chips. And here, in this place, Mt. Mitchel, this momentous mountain, the highest east of the Mississippi, it is hard not to feel similarly. One can look out and see for miles (if it isn't too cloudy--not too bad today). The one thing I do have a problem with, though, is all the people. I shouldn't blame them, though. We all want this experience, I guess. I am glad, too, that there are restrooms up here. I have been in some national parks where no restrooms were to be found and more than one person was unhappy. In Sequoia Nat'l. Park, (on the weekend) where a porta-potty had been provided for a road crew working on road construction, and gone for the weekend, I heard one man yelling at the top of his lungs. Why are there no public facilities here? My poor wife must use the restroom. With that he went to his trunk, pulled out a crowbar and broke the lock off the porta-potty. His wife urgently ran to the facilities. Hastily followed by a half dozen other people. No one called to report him or wrote his name down--I know, I watched. I did hear some people say that they didn't blame him, who knows, maybe they admired him in some ways as a kind of anti-hero. I always wondered what the work crew thought when they got back to work on Monday morning. Yes, the fact that working facilities are here are a really big help, considering the amount of people. What do they say, "Nature calls?" Well, it seems it calls in many ways, nature called to me--it called me to this mountain. This great big, beautiful, gigantic mountain. I wonder if God makes these big things, just so people will notice. Some people don't notice little things. It takes something big. OK people. You want something big. How about this?--POW, how about MT. Mitchell? You don't think I can do big? Well, I can. So, there. Take it. Like it. MT. Mitchell. And, I really do like it. Thank you. I am grateful with all my heart. I am truly grateful for ALL THINGS both...

I hiked 5.6 miles to the top of this once and for a guy such as myself it was brutally difficult. (Although the skinny friends I went with also said it was really hard. I guess I'll never know if they're telling the truth or exaggerating their discomfort to make me feel like I fit in) Uphill I trudged through a jungle of lush green vegetation, stone walls, moss covered boulders and clear running waters. It was a life changing experience, and not only because I had eaten mushrooms. Right before you get to the top, there's a little walkway where you get to mingle in with all the wimps who drive up to the parking lot (city folk) and see the top of the mountain free of pain. I used the restroom and it was very smelly. I held my breath, gritted my teeth and took care of business, quick like. I got out and some fat guy, smoking a cigarette hanging out next to the bathroom was like "Hey man. I see you're wearing a backpack. Did you hike up?" and I was like "Yeah man. 5.6 miles." and he said, literally while breathing out smoke, "Hell, that's not that hard." And I was like "ok." Anyway, I finally walked up the little walkway that leads to the observation deck. I cried when I reached the summit and looked out at the Appalachians, in all of their misty, humble glory. I cried. I had walked up this mountain. I had looked UP at clouds all day, and then, suddenly I was looking AT them, eye to eye. Then some dude next to me, looking at an adjacent mountain (Big Butt) pointed it out to me and insisted that it was higher up than we were. I looked out at it and knew that it wasn't because the mountain we were standing upon was named after a man who died proving that this mountain was the tallest mountain east of the Mississippi river, including Big Butt. I told him that he was wrong and he called me crazy. He called ME crazy. God, I hate people. Anyways, this place is the best, I...

Great 360 degree views from the summit with a pretty easy and walkable path to the top from the parking lot. If you are a seasoned hiker you might enjoy parking further down at the restaurant parking lot and taking the 2 mile trail up to the top instead. Updated facilities that are kept clean, with restrooms at the trailhead for the summit path, along with a snack bar and a gift shop. Be sure to check before you head up for their hours because they aren't always open depending on the season. The gift shop was not taking cash when I was there, but I'm not sure if that is a permanent thing or if they were just between bank runs being all the way out in the middle of nowhere.

It can get really crowded on the weekends or holidays and if you try to go up during the Fall when the leaves have changed just expect to spend several hours just getting up to the overlook. The Blueridge Parkway gets really backed up during the Fall due to the scenic views and people slowing down for photos because in all honesty there aren't a lot of places to pull off. Traffic can also be a problem at random since the speed limit is 25-40 mph and you might get stuck behind granny going 15 mph up the hill, a slow cyclist occupying the lane, or an 18-wheeler that shouldn't be on the road, and there is nowhere to safely pass due to them using mowing equipment or cyclists on the parkway. My experience, and why I've deducted one star, has always been that people go 10-15 mph below the speed limit so if you aren't patient, you may want to skip this one. Certainly something to check off the list and do at least once, just be patient, stop to go to the bathroom before you get on the Parkway, and take plenty of...