Pilot Mountain Hike
No. of days: 1 day
Date: 19 November 2011 (Compare this with Nandi Hills, in Bangalore - Day Outing!!)
Picasa Web Album Link: here
This hike came as a surprise. A one day hike, more of an outing was arranged by Chi Alpha group. We (my roommates and I) decided to go.
We were picked by Kurt in the morning at 8:00am. Stopped at McDonalds (Western Blvd.) and met the rest of the NC State group. Once there, Steve briefed the drivers and we were on our way to Pilot Mountain. We reached there by 10:35am. After waiting for about 45mins or so for the other groups to join us (UNC, …), we went up to the parking area atop the Pilot Mountain. Oh yeah, by the way we did spend some of that waiting time searching for a frizbee which was later found by Brianna :-)
We reached the parking lot at the top at about 12:00pm. After lunch we started the hike. All the trails there have been marked. Although the trails have been classified into “Moderate, Difficult etc”, in my opinion everything is “very” easy. At times, we got to see the magnificent scenery and the pinnacle stood majestic. We hiked around the pinnacle and another trail. This place has amazing rock structure and is a good place for rock climbing. Pinnacle however is not open to climbing. We did see a lot of climbers having fun. It’s now in my TODO list.. We got back to the parking lot at about 2:20pm for snacks. Had an energy bar and took on another trail (this one was small. 0.5miles or so). But this trail provided a clear view of the pinnacle. It was worth the walk. At 3:45pm, we decided to leave and head back home. I reached home at 6:00pm.
Info:
Trails: Maps available at the park station at the entrance. All trails are marked by round colored plastic plates.
Difficulty: Very Easy (My opinion). Trails have been marked “Moderate”, “Strenuous”, etc.
Best time to visit: Nov/Dec if you want a good un-obstructed view from the top, else Fall for the colors.
Activities: A very good place for rock climbing
Permission: Required for camping. Camping allowed at dedicated places only.
Getting There: 127miles from Raleigh. Google Maps/Navigation works :-)