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| | | Roan High Knob - Unaka Mountain, TN | | | |
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Roan High Knob - Unaka Mountain, TN
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| Hiking | 7.98 Miles |
1,852 AEG |
| | Hiking | 7.98 Miles | | | |
| 1,852 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | I was on my way to hike to Mount Rogers, the Virginia highpoint, and decided to stop on the way to hike to a couple of peaks in East Tennessee: Roan High Knob and Unaka Mountain. Actually, both are on the Tennessee/North Carolina state line.
Roan High Knob
I started and ended this hike at the Carvers Gap TH. I parked in Tennessee, but another 100 feet or so down the road was a sign that read "Welcome to North Carolina". The parking lot was almost completely full, but I only saw 2 other hikers on the trail. Everyone else was going in the other direction toward Grassy Bald.
The hike was on the Appalachian Trail in a spruce-fir forest, so there were no scenic vistas. The summit was on a spur trail maybe 500 feet off of the Appalachian Trail.
Roan High Knob is at an elevation of 6,285 feet and it has 3,485 feet of prominence. It is noteworthy in that it is a county highpoint of two different counties in two different states: Carter County, Tennessee and Mitchell County, North Carolina.
Unaka Mountain
After finishing the hike to Roan High Knob, I drove about an hour over to Unaka Mountain (elevation of 5,180 feet and prominence of 1,420 feet). The last 4 miles or so the trailhead were on a gravel road that most vehicles drive on if you had a bit of clearance. About 2 miles before getting to the TH a bear crossed the road in front of me.
From where I parked I took the Appalachian Trail to the Unaka Mountain summit. This hike was through a forest of deciduous hardwoods. I enjoyed the hike although there was nothing in the way of views. After getting back to my car, I decided to continue walking on the road to a scenic vista and to the Unaka Wilderness highpoint. The vista had some nice views, so I was glad that I went there.
There were quite a few rhododendrons still blooming.
There are lots of places to hike in this area, and I would not mind spending a few days there sometime.
Distance and elevation gain for the 2 hikes are below. Stats above are the sum of the two.
Roan High Knob: 3.45 miles with 820 feet of AEG
Unaka Mountain: 4.53 miles with 1,032 feet of AEG |
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Wildflowers Observation Moderate
There were a lot of rhododendrons, and a few other flowers that i did not recognize. |
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| Civilization is a nice place to visit but I wouldn't want to live there |
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