The Chimneys and Table Rock Mountain via the Mountain-to-Sea Trail
The Chimneys and Table Rock Mountain via the Mountain-to-Sea Trail
LENGTH: 16.34 MILES, ELEVATION GAIN: 4,147 FEET, TRAIL TYPE: OUT AND BACK
TREKKING WILD RATING – HArd
Day 1 – 6.3
We got to the trailhead at about 1:00 pm, and it was already pretty busy. However, we found a place to park easily. The hike starts with a significant climb up to the ridgeline. The trail is easy to follow, and you are rewarded during your climb with spectacular views of Lake James State Park. Once you reach the ridgeline, the trail levels out for the most part until you reach about 4.4 miles in. You then drop down into the gorge, where you will find a number of nice campsites. For us, those sites were full, so we continued on. At this point, you start a pretty steep climb back up to the ridgeline. With the wind howling in gusts up to 50 mph, we weren’t sure if we would find a suitable campsite this high up. Luckily, we came across a couple of nice camping options that were slightly shielded from the wind based on the direction it was blowing.
Since a big part of our trip revolves around photography, we set up camp, ate, and then headed up about half a mile to The Chimneys to have a great view for sunset. After taking a bunch of photos, we headed back to camp and sat by the campfire. Around 10 pm, we went to bed, and day one came to a close.
Day 2 – 8.0 miles
The next morning, we woke up, had coffee, and packed up camp. We hiked back up to the Chimneys and then up to the summit of Table Rock Mountain. At the Chimneys, you get to hike along the spine with great views to both your left and right. We reached the trailhead for Table Rock Mountain, which was relatively quiet, giving us the opportunity to take some photos with 360-degree views. We saw more people here than at any other point on our trip. There is a parking lot at the Table Rock Mountain trailhead, so a lot of people day hike the 1-mile trail to the summit.
Table Rock Mountain was our turning point for our out-and-back trek. We worked our way back down a steep downhill and then back up a steep incline. We stopped to camp about 1.9 miles from the trailhead. This could easily be done as an overnight trip, but with a 12-hour drive ahead of us, we chose to camp near the trailhead and hike out early in the morning to get a head start on our drive home.
Day 3 – 1.9 Miles
We woke up early, had coffee, and packed up camp. The Linville Gorge is a beautiful area, and we had plenty of time to talk about what a great trip it was on our drive back home.
What we learned
The Linville Gorge is an awesome area to hike. We originally planned to do the Grand Loop hike but didn’t have enough time. From our research, the east ridge had incredible views, so we decided to do that half of the loop. Our research proved to be right. We loved all the amazing views up on the ridge. One important thing to note before doing this hike is that it is a very dry hike. Water sources were very limited, and we actually ran out of water on day two. Be sure to pack enough water. One of my daughter’s and my favorite stories from this trip was when we finally reached a little swampy pond and had to push thousands of tadpoles out of the way to filter the water. As we sat there guzzling the water because we were so thirsty, a kid and his dad hiked by, and we heard the kid say to his dad, “I’d never drink water from there.” Never say never, kid. I wonder what his opinion was on day two of the hike. To this day, I still think that swamp water was some of the best water I have ever had while backpacking.
July 23, 2024
