Trails › United States of America › North Carolina › Great Balsam Mountains

Mountains to Sea Trail

In the Great Balsam Mountains

Trail2.1 km · 1.3 miBest Mar–Nov

Next nearby hike: Pinetree Loop 0.3 mi · 0.5 kmExplore Great Balsam Mountains →

National Forests in North CarolinaNational Forests in North Carolina354 Trace Ridge · National Forests in North CarolinaAvery Creek · National Forests in North CarolinaBad Fork · National Forests in North CarolinaBear Branch · National Forests in North CarolinaBent Creek Trail · National Forests in North CarolinaBig Creek · National Forests in North CarolinaDeer Lake Lodge Trail · National Forests in North CarolinaExplorer Loop · National Forests in North CarolinaFletcher Creek · National Forests in North CarolinaGreen's Lick Trail · National Forests in North CarolinaIngles Field Gap · National Forests in North CarolinaLower Sidehill · National Forests in North CarolinaMiddle Fork · National Forests in North CarolinaMount Pisgah Summit Trail · National Forests in North CarolinaNorth Boundary · National Forests in North CarolinaNorth Mills River · National Forests in North CarolinaPinetree Loop · National Forests in North CarolinaSpencer Gap · National Forests in North CarolinaBlue Ridge ParkwayBrushy Ridge Trail · Blue Ridge ParkwayShut-In Nrt · Blue Ridge ParkwayBlue Ridge ParkwayEndStart5 kmN ↑

Mountains to Sea Trail other trails nearby (tap a dot to open it)

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USGS National Digital Trails (US public domain) · OpenStreetMap · Basemap: OpenFreeMap (OpenMapTiles, © OSM contributors).

7-day forecast

Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0)

Best time to hike

Best months: Mar–Nov · highs 12–25 °C (54–77 °F)

  1. J6°-4°107
  2. F8°-2°119
  3. M12°1°122
  4. A16°5°105
  5. M20°9°109
  6. J24°14°127
  7. J25°16°124
  8. A25°15°125
  9. S22°12°121
  10. O17°7°88
  11. N12°2°103
  12. D7°-2°116

Average high °C · low °C · precipitation mm per month. Highlighted: best months.

How we pick months

Best months are those where the 1981–2010 average daily high is 10–27 °C (50–81 °F), the average overnight low is 0 °C (32 °F) or warmer, and average precipitation is 200 mm (7.9 in) or less. Values are long-term monthly averages for the ~1 km cell at the trail point on the map, from CHELSA V2.1 climatologies (Karger et al., CC0), not a forecast. Higher or more exposed parts of a route can be colder, wetter or snowier.

About this trail

About 2.1 km (1.3 mi) long, Mountains to Sea Trail is a trail in National Forests in North Carolina, North Carolina, United States of America. It is in the Great Balsam Mountains. It lies about 7.4 km west of Avery Creek.

Short summary written from the trail facts on this page.

Trail facts

Length
2.1 km · 1.3 mi (agency length field)
Source
USGS National Digital Trails (US public domain)
Managed by
National Park Service
Data from
National Park Service
Mountain range
Great Balsam Mountains (Blue Ridge Mountains › Appalachian Mountains; GMBA)
Nearest town
7.4 km W of Avery Creek (Buncombe County, North Carolina) · GeoNames
Park or forest
National Forests in North Carolina
Connects to
Shut-In Nrt (National Recreation Trail) (at its start or end)
Best months
Mar–Nov
Country
United States of America
Region
North Carolina
Continent
North America
Route centre
35.4756, -82.6268
How it’s scored

Hikers can rate difficulty from 1 to 10 (1 = flat, short, easy walk for anyone; 3 = gentle hills, a little effort; 5 = moderate climbs, some fitness needed; 7 = steep or long, solid fitness required; 10 = extremely strenuous or technical; long steep climbing; experienced hikers only). The community average is shown once at least 3 people have rated the trail; until then the official or computed score is used when we have one.

More trails in the Great Balsam Mountains

All 86 →

Ingles Field Gap

2.9 km · 1.7 mi · 2.7 km away

North Boundary

7.8 km · 1.9 mi · 3.0 km away

Avery Creek

3.4 km · 2.0 mi · 3.1 km away

Bad Fork

2.8 km · 2.4 mi · 3.9 km away

Brushy Ridge Trail

2.8 km · 2.7 mi · 4.3 km away

Bear Branch

2.5 km · 3.2 mi · 5.2 km away

Nearest trails

distance from the trail centre

Pinetree Loop

0.3 mi · 0.5 km · National Forests in North Carolina

Explorer Loop

0.8 mi · 1.2 km · National Forests in North Carolina

Deer Lake Lodge Trail

1.3 mi · 2.0 km · National Forests in North Carolina

Bent Creek Trail

1.4 mi · 2.3 km · National Forests in North Carolina

Lower Sidehill

1.6 mi · 2.5 km · National Forests in North Carolina

Green's Lick Trail

1.6 mi · 2.6 km · National Forests in North Carolina

All trails in North Carolina → · All 36,834 trails in United States of America →