flying asheville

[restlesss]

hey all, I was looking at doing the MST from Clingman's Dome to Asheville, Can anyone tell me where the easiest place to get off the trail to go to the Asheville Airport. And how long (mileage) is it from Clingman's Dome to that access point?

thanks

Restlesss

[bwb49]

the MST comes very close to the Asheville airport and the places to get off are numerousMST and Asheville airport.jpg
the blue trace is the MST and the airport is in the lower right corner
I don't know the mileage from Clingman's Dome
have you looked at the MST web site? http://www.ncmst.org/

[WingedMonkey]

Like bwb49 says, go to the MST site and check out the interactive map (a new addition) and the Trails Illustrated maps. The airport is about midway between Asheville and Hendersonville.

Once you get south of Asheville (where the trail more or less follows the Blue Ridge parkway, check Google maps too) you have several options on where to leave the trail.

Where the Blue Ridge Parkway crosses Hendersonville Road (Hwy 25) there is local bus service to the airport. (Route 6 ) http://www.ashevillenc.gov/Departmen...Schedules.aspx from there to the airport is about 7 miles.

Just before where the Blue Ridge crosses under I-26 there is a side trail to Schenck Pkwy where REI and other expensive shops and hotels are located in Biltmore Park. It's only 4 miles to the airport from REI if you take take a cab or shuttle on I-26, It's about 6.5 miles by local highways and there is bus service (again route 6) from along Hwy 25 (2 miles from REI) in Skyland that goes to the airport.

The next road crossing with access is Brevard Road (191) at the Blue Ridge but it is 9 to 10 miles to the airport depending which road you take and there is no bus service on Brevard Hwy.

After you cross the French Broad River you enter Bent Creek Experimental Forest and the Shut In Trail, of course my favorite part of the trail because that's where my ancestors settled in 1800 and lived until Vanderbuilt ran them out, and if you have time the North Carolina Arboretum is also on a side trail. The trouble is after you cross Brevard Road (191) the only way to the airport is by side trails and winding forest roads that lead back to Mills River Recreation area and from there another 10 miles to the airport. You will either have to walk the forest roads (with a map) or contact the local shuttle service.

[Tennessee Viking]

The first access will be at where the Parkway crosses NC 191. From there, the airport is to the south. But if you walk north, there are a few hotels (with shuttles) around the old mall. You can also jump off at where the parkway crosses US 25 (walk south) to another round of hotels (with shuttles).

If the Pisgah Inn is open, you might be able to arrange a shuttle from a local service from there to the airport. This will probably the easiest of the options.

The mileage on the route has changed since NPS has requested the FMST to route a road walk from the Smokies thru Cherokee and Sylva and rejoin at the established trail at Balsam Gap. The issue has to do with NPS worrying about hikers walking thru the Parkway tunnels. They didn't have a problem with that the last several years. I am more if you are careful enough to stay on the very side, its walkable.

So you are looking at a bit over 110 miles from Clingmans to NC 191 (traditional route). Around 135-140 with the proposed NPS reroute.

One of my buddies has mapped out most of the MST, http://artshikingmaps.info/. Taba also sells his MST trail guide at thru-hiker.us.

[WingedMonkey]

My bad.
I misread your post and gave directions for getting to airport going south from Mt. Mitchell not from Clingmans. Same info but just flip it all.
Check out what Tennessee is saying about the re-route off the Blue Ridge leaving GSMNP. The Park Service wants hikers to hike into Cherokee and off the Parkway then back up on to the ridge. I would tell you to ignore what they want unless you need supply in Cherokee anyway.

[Chaco Taco]

Depending on the weather as well as when you are hiking, those parts of the BRP get closed. There was a section a mile before and mile after The Inn that got shut down in 2010 from storm damage. You can usually get that info if you google the Pisgah Inn. Id put the word out on here about a ride going into your hike. There are so many hikers in town that are on here. I found a ride in 08 through this site and had no issues.

[samgriffin4]

I'll give you a ride. Just tell me when and where and I'll pick you up! I live in Asheville, so it's really not inconvenient at all. I posted a note on this forum last March about offering rides and such to MST hikers but I went and did the PCT, so I was unable to help the majority of the time.

My number is (704)421-4727 Give me a call anytime.
If you'd prefer, my email is: [email protected]

Sam "Rattler" Griffin

PCT '11