Pink Beds Best Hike

• Difficulty: Moderate
• Total Length: 4.3 mi
• Trail Tread Condition: Some Obstacles
• Climb: Few Hills
• Lowest Elevation: 3150 ft
• Highest Elevation: 3290 ft
• Total Elevation Gain: 200 ft
• Trails/Roads Used: Pink Beds Loop, optionally, Mountains to Sea Alternate
• Hike Configuration: Loop
• Starting point: Pink Beds Picnic Area
• How to Get There: From Asheville, take I-240 west to I-26 east to the exit for the Asheville Airport (exit 40). Turn right onto NC 280; follow this 4-lane highway for 16 miles toward Brevard. At the intersection with US highways 276 and 64, turn right onto US 276 west (follow signs for Pisgah National Forest). Proceed up 276 for 11.4 miles to the Pink Beds Picnic Area, just past the Forest Discovery Center. The trail starts at the sign board at the back of the lot.

Note: you may want to check with the Ranger Station before hiking, because as of the last time I hiked here, a major bridge was washed away. If the bridge is still gone, you can wade the river if the water is not high and you are prepared to get wet. Or, you can shorten the loop by cutting across the middle via the Mountains to Sea Trail.

This relatively flat loop takes you through several interesting areas in the Pink Beds valley. Named for the profusion of pink wildflowers that grow here in the spring (including mountain laurel and rhododendron), this high-elevation (about 3200'), relatively flat valley also contains some very large pine trees, rare mountain bogs, dammed up streams, clear babbling brooks and scenic open woods. Begin behind the sign board with the map, on the left side of the parking area. This loop can be hiked either way, but I begin the description by bearing right after crossing the fledgling South Fork Mills River on a small log bridge.

Only a moderate stream at this point, having just tumbled off the ridges above, this river grows to become one of the larger tributaries in the French Broad system. You'll cross it several times on the first part of the hike, once on an innovative log bridge. This river is up for National Wild and Scenic River status. If it happens, it will be the longest river in the state in this system. The river's headwaters are here in the Pink Beds valley, protected on all sides by large mountains from pollution. It's a good thing, because the city of Asheville draws from this river for drinking water further downstream. This area is also notable in that it is part of the area called the Cradle of Forestry in America. This is where modern forestry research, techniques and education began. You can learn more about that back down 276 a few hundred yards at the Forest Discovery Center and museum.

The trail starts out narrow and sometimes muddy, with lots of man-made structures to carry you over the mud. Footing is generally good, though there are lots of roots in places. Coursing through an undergrowth of Mountain Laurel, there are some very large pine trees at the beginning of the hike and their soft needles carpet the path. The trail loosely follows the South Fork Mills River until the end of the loop, occasionally crossing it and tributaries on log or plank bridges. The woods are very lush and there are flat, boggy areas - more reminiscent of something you'd see on the coastal plain than in the mountains. These areas contain several rare and endangered plant species, so enjoy their unique beauty from on the trail. Other areas of the forest are more typical of a Western North Carolina scene, with tall mixed hardwoods and some pines and hemlocks.

You will come to the intersection with the Mountains to Sea trail. Turning right would ascend the ridge to Black Mountain and turning left would bring you through the middle of the loop, making a shorter loop possible (especially useful if the bridge is washed out or the trail flooded further on). Past the opposite end of the loop the Mountains to Sea trail ascends the Pisgah Ridge on its way to Shining Rock.

Past this intersection the trail will pass into an open area of tall grasses and dying trees. This is where beaver dams have played their part in changing the forest and they have made quite an impact. Large pools of water drift lazily past the trail and dead skeletons of mountain laurel bushes and trees line the pools' banks. At this point the trail may be flooded; check with the ranger station before you hike because if the bridge hasn't been replaced, you may have to do what my wife and I did once - take off your boots, hike up your pants, stick your feet in the muck and wade through waste-deep, ice-cold mountain water to reach the trail on the other side!

Past this crossing, the trail dries out a bit and travels through fern-filled woods. You'll come to the intersection with the trail to the gauging station on the Mills River. Turn left here and begin a gradual ascent into the "foothills" (so-to-speak) of the Pisgah Ridge. The trail never gains an appreciable amount of altitude but it does dry out a bit, and take you through beautiful open forests of oak and tuliptree. As it loops around and heads back toward the parking area, you will cross several crystal-clear tributaries trickling down from the Pisgah Ridge. There are many tunnels of rhododendron along this stretch, and if it starts to rain you will stay dry for a while after. Then again, if it stops raining, they will drip on you for a long time after as well! Toward the end, not far from closing the loop and arriving back at the parking area, the trail will pass through several large openings in the forest - this time man-made. These meadows are "wildlife clearings" which the Forest Service keeps mowed for the benefit of grazing and fringe animals, such as deer and wild turkey. Hike this section at dawn or dusk and you're likely to see one of them.