Mount Mitchell State Park
Subnational Park · Burnsville, North Carolina
The highest peak of the Appalachian Mountains and the highest point in mainland North America east of the Mississippi River, at 6,684 feet. It was made North Carolina's first state park in 1915, in the same act of the legislature that created the state parks system - the mountain was being clear-cut and the state bought it to stop that. A short paved trail from the car park reaches an observation deck at the summit, so the highest ground in the eastern United States is a five-minute walk from a parking space.
2388 N.C. Highway 128, Burnsville, North Carolina, 28714, United States
FREE and open daily, with hours that change by month: 7 AM to 6 PM in January, February, November and December; to 8 PM in March, April and October; to 10 PM May through August; to 9 PM in September. Closed Christmas Day. ⚠ ACCESS IS VIA THE BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY, which the Park Service gates for ice - WINTER CLOSURES ARE FREQUENT AND PROLONGED, and the park posts its status on its own page. AS OF THIS WRITING THE PARKWAY IS CLOSED NORTH OF THE PARK and the only approach is from the Asheville side.
Mount Mitchell State Park on Spottos · Explore more places on Spottos