Distance: 4.3 mile one way
Difficulty: Moderate
Elevation Change: gain = 1002 ft; loss = 717 ft
Mike Hike: 4.3 miles one way (picked up at Flat Top Manor)
source: Great Day Hikes of North Carolina’s Mountains-to-Sea Trail
This hike is in the Moses H. Cone Memorial Park area. The first 0.5 mile of the hike is much different than the rest of the hike. The difficulty rating in the guide is “moderate”, but this is primarily for the first 0.5 mile of the trail.
The parking area off Shull Mills Rd is very small and is in a curve on a narrow road. The start of the MST for this hike is just across the road, so I had to scramble to get across the road in a curve, over a ditch and up several steep wooden steps.
The walk up the hill is beautiful. On this day, it was very windy, but the sun was shining and made for a pleasant hike.
After about 0.5 mile I came to a stile built over a fence, once I scaled this, I was now on a gravel trail that continued to Flat Top Manor. The road was wide and well maintained.
About 3 miles into the hike, I reached Trout Lake, a beautiful, peaceful mountain lake. At this point on a typical weekend, you will see many families and day hikers strolling in from the BRP or Flat Top Manor.
On the day that I completed this hike, the Flat Top Manor was in the middle of some very extensive renovations. The house and gift shop were partially open and there was a Ranger available to answer any questions. Restrooms were also available. Due to the proximity of this area to Blowing Rock and Boone, it gets very crowded during the weekends.