Day hiking in and around Charlotte, North Carolina

May 7, 1:49 AMCarolinas Travel ExaminerPaul McDaniel

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Appalachian Trail View (Paul McDaniel)

Many fantastic day hikes and day hiking opportunities abound in and around Charlotte, North Carolina. The urban area provides abundant places for hiking. Additionally, because of Charlotte's relative proximity to the spectacular Blue Ridge and a section of the Appalachian Mountains, many day hike opportunities are available within a couple of hours’ drive. This article will introduce you to some of the best day hiking opportunities easily accessible in and around metro Charlotte. 

For starters, Charlotte has an extensive bicycle, pedestrian, and greenway system. The greenways offer excellent opportunities for very local day hikes in and around the urban and suburban area. 

Urban hikers will find many opportunities to walk and hike the streets of center city Charlotte and the surrounding neighborhoods and communities. As the second largest banking center in the United States after New York City, post-industrial center city Charlotte ("Uptown Charlotte") has been revitalized. Many people live in and around the central city and it is a thriving, bustling place throughout the day and into the night. Urban day hikers will specifically want to explore the central business district centered on Trade and Tryon Streets and the surround blocks, as well as the four surrounding wards (particularly to see examples of gentrification at work, such as in First Ward and Fourth Ward). The Levine Museum of the New South in fact offers guided walking tours of these areas. 

Several state parks in both North Carolina and South Carolina, a national park site, and national forests are close by to the Charlotte metropolitan area. Each of these parks contain many hiking trails, some leading through forests and along streams to waterfalls, others leading to some spectacular views of the surrounding Piedmont and Blue Ridge and Appalachian Mountains to the west. These specific state parks include:

• Crowders Mountain State Park (very nice views of surrounding piedmont and Charlotte from the summit)
• Kings Mountain National Military Park
• Morrow Mountain State Park (near Uwharrie National Forest)
• South Mountain State Park (nice hiking through forests, along streams, and to a huge waterfall)
• Hanging Rock State Park
• Stone Mountain State Park
• Pilot Mountain State Park
• Chimney Rock State Park
• North Carolina State Parks
• South Carolina State Parks
• National Forests in North Carolina
• Uwharrie National Forest
• Francis Marion and Sumter National Forests 

If you are willing to drive one to three hours each way to the west and northwest of Charlotte, you will be able to choose from many day hiking opportunities in the spectacular Blue Ridge and Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina. The day hikes and hiking opportunities are too numerous to list and describe in one article, but they are all worth the effort to drive to and explore. Many of these hikes are located along, in, and/or near the following:

• Blue Ridge Parkway
• Pisgah National Forest
• Nantahala National Forest
• Cherokee National Forest (east Tennessee)
• Mount Jefferson State Natural Area
• New River State Park
• Elk Knob State Park
• Mount Mitchell State Park (highest point in eastern U.S. east of Mississippi River at 6,684 feet)
• Gorges State Park
• Mount Rogers National Recreation Area (in Jefferson National Forest, southern Virginia)
• Chimney Rock Park at Chimney Rock State Park
• Appalachian National Scenic Trail (various sections of the AT are easily accessible for day hikes of varying lengths and skill levels)
• Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Explore the websites of those areas for examples and ideas of day hiking excursions. 

Remember to try and take some time often to enjoy the great outdoors! There are certainly plenty of opportunities in and around Charlotte, and in the broader region. A good day hike is good for the body, mind, and soul. 

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