Richland Balsam Self-Guiding Trail

Numbered posts keyed to an interpretive brochure describe the changing composition of a lofty spruce-fir forest at 6,410 feet—the highest elevation reached by a Parkway trail. Here’s an oddity—a rough, rooty trail a lot like the backcountry tracks that wind everywhere in western North Carolina’s national forests. It seems poorly maintained—no mowing or elaborate steps. It’s either ripe for rehab or a nice wild counterpoint to the Parkway’s generally groomed paths. Maybe it’s both—and a reminder that nature’s “beauty” can be untidy and unkempt, and more real in its roughness. Before you start your hike, enjoy the fine view of the Shining Rock Wilderness on the overlook’s skyline. Prominent peaks run from Cold Mountain on the left, to the white-quartz summit of Shining Rock and on to Devil’s Courthouse on the right. The gentle pyramid is Mt. Pisgah.