Big Lost Cove Cliffs: Wilson Creek Area, Western North Carolina
Peregrine Falcons if you are lucky. Vistas even if you're not.
The hike. This is a hilly, wooded hike with a huge pay-off. We are all not always up to long, uneventful twists and turns in the woods, so I told a long, rambling story (we have a "Julian-Bridger" character series in which our hero grapples with life crises strikingly familiar to real-world situations) to get us there that day. But for our family the 1.5 mile "out" to the cliffs is only about an hour's walk and it is worth every step. As always, we have a "hands and knees" policy when within 10 feet of the cliff's edge. If you have really little ones, you will need to stay close. Perhaps approach the cliffs quietly, if you can convince your kids to "shh!": Peregrine falcons nest on the cliff face and it is great to watch them swoop and dive.
Directions. From Johnson City, head over to Elizabethton, through town, and right on 19E. Continue through Roan Mountain and Elk Park where 19E turns into 194. At Newland, go left on 181 toward Linville, but before you get to LInville, head right on 181, South toward Pineola. Just as you get into Pineola, go left on Old Jonas Ridge Road, cross over the Blue Ridge Parkway, and continue for 1.75 miles where there will be a white church on your left and you continue straight with the road turning to gravel. Continue on this, Pineola Road, for 1.6 miles and the trail will be on your left. There is pull-over parking on the road's shoulder (we pulled over on the right).
Directions. From Johnson City, head over to Elizabethton, through town, and right on 19E. Continue through Roan Mountain and Elk Park where 19E turns into 194. At Newland, go left on 181 toward Linville, but before you get to LInville, head right on 181, South toward Pineola. Just as you get into Pineola, go left on Old Jonas Ridge Road, cross over the Blue Ridge Parkway, and continue for 1.75 miles where there will be a white church on your left and you continue straight with the road turning to gravel. Continue on this, Pineola Road, for 1.6 miles and the trail will be on your left. There is pull-over parking on the road's shoulder (we pulled over on the right).