North Carolina trails · Anst - Appalachian Rd
Anst - Appalachian Rd
A 20.8-mile network in North Carolina, with 3,378 ft of climbing. Reaches Bluff Mountain and other pass/spring/summit/viewpoint destinations. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service.
Elevation profile
The climbing leans toward the final third: 45% of the ascent falls between mile 13.9 and mile 20.8. It gives back about 4,583 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Bluff Mountain (summit)
- Gragg Gap (pass)
- Garenflo Gap (pass)
- Catpen Gap (pass)
- Pump Gap (pass)
- Big Rock Spring (spring)
- Deer Park Mountain (summit)
- Taylor Hollow Gap (pass)
- Tanyard Gap (pass)
- Lover's Leap (viewpoint)
Heads up
Getting there
A.T. TRAILHEAD, HOT SPRINGS — parking nearby. 35.88965, -82.83282 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:35 a.m., the sun rises at 7:02 a.m. and sets at 8:00 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 8:26 p.m. (EDT) — 12 h 58 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 20.8-mile route takes roughly 9 h 23 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 4:25 p.m. — 3 h 35 min before sunset.
Loop options
- ANST - APPALACHIAN RD + Appalachian National Scenic Trail — 4.6 mi loop, 523 ft gain
- ANST - APPALACHIAN RD + Appalachian National Scenic Trail — 5.4 mi loop, 691 ft gain
- ANST - APPALACHIAN RD + Appalachian National Scenic Trail — 6.4 mi loop, 1,191 ft gain
Across the border
- Continues into TN as ANST - APPALACHIAN RD — view on the map
- Continues into TN as ANST - APPALACHIAN RD — view on the map
Nearby trails
- Appalachian Trail — 17.6 mi
- Balsam Mountain Trail — 25.0 mi
- Hemphill Bald Trail — 26.5 mi
- Big Butt — 27.7 mi