Frying Pan Lookout / Blue Ridge Parkway
Hiking to Frying Pan Lookout Tower | Blue Ridge Parkway | Pisgah National Forest | January 2024
Last year when we were staying in Asheville, we had wanted to hike Mount Pisgah, but because the Blue Ridge Parkway was closed miles before that trailhead, we ended up settling for another peak, Ferrin Knob. We hoped to be able to hike Mt. Pisgah this year when we were staying near Brevard, but once again were prevented by the Parkway being closed. However, we decided it was still worth driving up US-276 to the parkway so that we could park at the closest overlook and go for a walk on the closed road. Curtis knew of a shorter peak with a firetower that we could hike to, but even if we didn’t make it that far we knew we’d still find great views along the road.
We weren’t the only ones with this idea — there were lots of others out hiking either up to the same peak or just along the road, as well as some bikers. At first we wondered why the road had to be closed, because as far as we could see, it appeared to be clear in both directions and this was a warmer than average week. But as we continued, we found more and more sections of the road partially covered by snow and ice, and there were some forest workers out clearing trees.
The further we walked, the more grateful we became that we had this opportunity to experience one of our favorite places in the Eastern US in a new way. Last summer we loved traveling slow on the Blue Ridge Parkway, and today being able to walk on the road took “slow travel” to a new level. I also remembered last year, how after we hiked to Cove Creek and Moore Creek Falls, we drove up to the Blue Ridge and stopped at the lookout (the same one we parked at today), but weren’t able to see anything because of the rain and low hanging clouds. It was a good reminder that sometimes it’s okay to not see everything when we’re visiting somewhere, because some places are just worth returning to on a better, brighter day. And as you can see from the pictures, it was indeed a bright and sunny day — and better yet, the clouds were incredible when we first arrived! It was impossible to look away.
The road going from the lookout where we parked (over US-276) to the trailhead for Frying Pan Lookout was just over 2 miles, and it gained about 400 feet of elevation very gradually the whole way up. There were several other lookouts where we stopped to rest and enjoy the view. We also got to walk through a long tunnel along the way. When we came to the trail, we found it was covered in a light blanket of snow, but it wasn’t so much that we needed snowshoes, or too packed down to necessitate crampons. The trail to the peak was a bit steeper than the road, and it contoured around the peak before going up to the top. The hardest part was the slightly melting snow on the last slope up, but we all managed going up and down just fine.
At the top, Curtis climbed the tower and I let Charlotte lead me around following different smells. Curtis found a letterbox, and when he went to put it back he was impaled by a branch that cut his forehead. He was fine, but it bled a lot at first which made it look much worse. Our biggest mistake on this hike though was forgetting to bring snacks or a lunch — it was now after 1 PM and we hadn’t eaten since breakfast, and the hike was turning out to be longer than expected, as we had walked 3.2 miles to get here. That’s the longest we’ve hiked in quite a while! But thankfully it was all downhill from here, and once we reached the road Charlotte really picked up the pace and we made great time walking back to the trailhead, hardly stopping at all. Altogether, the hike was almost 6 ½ miles long and 800 feet of elevation gain. Maybe someday we’ll finally make it up Mount Pisgah, but for now we’re just happy to still have a reason to come back here someday. If you’re interested, you can check out our AllTrails recording for this hike here.
Once back at the van, we had some snacks and then drove back down to the dispersed camping area. On our way down, we passed by more trails that we still have yet to hike, and other dispersed camping areas where we could stay. But those will have to wait for another time, because after 4 nights in Pisgah National Forest, we were ready to move on and visit some different areas. We already have another list started of the hikes we want to do next time we find ourselves near Brevard, and look forward to the day we can return!
