Roan Mountain State Park, TN - Sept 2025
Day 1
There were multiple routes to the park, all within 10 minutes of a 2 hour drive. We decided to take the small roads for some new scenery and a couple small towns. Our choice made for a memorable trip. As we left I-26 onto NC-19 east, the roads were in great shape with a 4 lane highway that was virtually empty. In Burnsville we headed north on NC-197 north past a sign that promised a steep and winding road. Just outside of Redhill we turned onto NC-226. We were a little suspicious because the Garmin told us to turn right while the phone said to turn left. The phone showed a 10 minute earlier arrival to we chose that route. It soon turned into a very steep, winding, single lane gravel road (photo 1)
The campground was severely impacted by Hurricane Helene and many of the hiking trails were still closed primarily due to a washed out bridge just past the lower campground. When we checked in, the hosts were very nice and the campground was well maintained. The site was paved, fairly level with water and power (photo 2-3). The neighbors were friendly with several stopping to talk for a while. The Doe River runs through the campground, we walked Mack to the water to look for potential fishing spots for tomorrow morning (photo 4). We saw several 5-6" trout and a large number of smaller 2-3" trout. While there a young park ranger drove by. I stopped her to ask where I should fish in the morning. She told me of several places nearby including one that a friend of hers caught a 18" rainbow a few weeks ago. I'm looking forward to getting out there tomorrow morning.
We ended the day with a little time in front of a small fire, a couple games of cribbage and some good Mexican food we picked up from Puerto Escondido (photo 6), 10 minutes up the road in the little town of Roan Mountain.
Day 2
I left camp around 6am to hit some of the fishing spots the ranger told me about yesterday. It was a beautiful morning but unfortunately I was only seeing small fish that wouldn’t be worth cooking. Jan hiked the Raven Rock trail with Mack. It's 2.6 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 515' and is fairly steep in places. She was climbing through the clouds to get to the top, soaking both her and the dog. The first picture is a view of Roan Valley, where we're camping, from the summit of Raven Rock. The second is Mack at the top.
In the afternoon we packed a lunch and headed toward Carvers Gap to hike a couple of the balds that sit on the border between TN and NC. Unfortunately when we got there (5512’ elevation), we were in the clouds and it was starting to rain. We quickly checked out the Appalachian Trail, then headed back down the hill to find a picnic spot for lunch. As soon as we dropped below the clouds we came across one pull-out with a view of a little valley to the SE of Roan Mountain. It looks like the fall colors are just starting to come out here. With the continued rain we thought we’d check-out the little town of Road Mountain after lunch at a covered picnic area along the Doe River. Unfortunately this little town is closed Monday-Wednesday according to the locals. Back at camp it's time for dinner, grilled rib-eye steaks and home-grown corn with salad. Time to relax by the fire.
Day 3
We're heading home today by way of Grandfather Mountain and Fonta Flora Brewery in Nebo, NC. We got out of the campground by 8:30 for the drive to Grandfather Mountain which opens at 9am. We planned to stop at Waterfalls Park in Newland, NC. We got to Newland and found the waterfalls a small trickle of water compared to the picture we saw on-line. We talked briefly to a local that said the Helene Floods changed the course of the river and ruined the falls. We headed on toward Grandfather Mountain. We got to the entrance and someone came out and told us we couldn’t proceed with the trailer. We’d have to go back down the road to a large gravel lot and disconnect the trailer before paying $25 each for the privilege of driving up the mountain. That was a discounted price because the swinging bridge was closed for the filming of some show. We thought that was all pretty ridiculous, so we headed back down the mountain, stopping at the site where they hold the Scottish Games every year. We were able to let Mack off the leash for a while and even ran into a local and her two dogs. All three dogs had a great time running and playing. We were almost an hour ahead of schedule for arrival at Fonta Flora Brewery in Nebo at noon. We had lunch in Fonta Flora’s generous parking lot while we waited for them to open. As expected the beer selection was fantastic, with many great styles and interesting twists on the classics.
Jan drove most of the way home since I had a couple of beers. She did great through the narrow winding roads between Nebo and Marion, then through the lane closure on I-40 and an accident in the fast lane. Overall it was a great 3 day trip, but as always, it's good to be home.
