7 Favorite Things To Do in Banner Elk

1. Hike Profile Trail

Grandfather Mountain is one of the oldest mountains in America touting 750 million years old and home to some of the oldest geological formations in the United States.  With the development of the new parking lot (with bathrooms), Profile Trail from start tot Calloway Peak is 11 miles round-trip.  It is considered “strenuous” but is not dangerous and can be easily hiked in good pair of running shoes.  With an incredible pay-off Calloway Peak has truly amazing, breath-taking views.

2. Banner Elk Winery

Banner Elk Winery & Villa is the jewel of the High Country. Nestles in the awe-inspiring majestic Blue Ridge Mountains stands the high country’s original winery. Banner Elk Winery has the standard for crafting wines. The award-winning wines are steeped deeply in western north carolina’s history. Beautiful scenery and warm hospitality makes this a perfect spot to spend the afternoon in both summer or winter. 

3. Greenway Park & Trails

Directly behind the Azalea Inn B & B in downtown Banner Elk there is a beautiful park called Greenway Park with wonderful swings, a big jungle gym, a dog park along and approximately 1.1 miles of walking trails.  The trails are easy and can be enjoyed by young children and the elderly. The first trail begins in the park and follows a couple of different paths where they currently end behind the Art Cellar Gallery. The second pathway crosses Shawneehaw Avenue in front of the Banner Elk Art Gallery via a wooden staircase.  This section, aptly called Pine Needle Hill, traverses a hillside via a boardwalk coming out at Jackson’s Corner. 

4. Winter Fun at Hawks Nest Resort

Skiing on Sugar Mountain and Beech Mountain are both wonderful experiences. However a little farther away (30 minutes) is Hawks Nest Resort and Appalachian Ski Mountain. Hawks Nest is the largest snow-tubing park on the East coast with nearly 30 lanes for tubing. Hawks Nest also offers winter zip-line tours that soar above the tubing lanes. Appalachian Ski Mountain was the first ski resort in North Carolina and provides skiing, snowboarding and ice skating. Appalachian is also home to the French-Swiss Ski College, which has taught more than a million lessons since opening in the early 1970s.

5. Linville Falls

Linville Falls is a collection of 3 waterfalls, a gorge and a walking trail – all about 20 minutes from Banner Elk. There is easy, free parking and a 1- mile very wide walking trail. The falls move in several distinct directions, beginning in a twin set of upper falls, moving down a small gorge, and culminating in a high-volume 45-foot (14 m) drop. Linville Falls has the highest volume of any waterfall on the Northern Edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Linville Falls marks the beginning of the Linville Gorge, which is formed by the Linville River, which continues on after the falls before finally ending near Lake James.

6. White Water the Nolichucky River

Worth the day! The Nolichucky River is a Class 3-4 river so you should definitely hire a guide. It is a 115-mile (185 km) river that flows through Western North Carolina and East Tennessee and has a ton of fun, adventurous rapids. Traversing the Pisgah National Forest and the Cherokee National Forest in the Blue Ridge Mountains, the river’s watershed is home to some of the highest mountains in the Appalachians, including Mount Mitchell, the highest point in the eastern United States. The river is a tributary of the French Broad River, and is impounded by Nolichucky Dam near Greeneville, Tennessee. Some guide companies offer a picnic lunch.

7. Drive the Blue Ridge Parkway from Banner Elk to Blowing Rock

Free, romantic and absolutely gorgeous. This 1243-ft. concrete segmental bridge on the Blue Ridge Parkway snakes around the slopes of Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina. It was completed in 1987 at a cost of $10 million and was the last section of the Blue Ridge Parkway to be finished. To ride across and get a close look at this engineering marvel, drive north on the Parkway Milepost 304.