North Carolina: Shut-In Trail

The Shut-In Trail is a long, historic route which travels from NC 191 near Bent Creek and Asheville to the Mount Pisgah parking area. George W. Vanderbilt, builder of the famous Biltmore Estate near Asheville, constructed the Shut-In Trail around the year 1890. He used it to climb the Pisgah Ridge, linking his hunting lodge at Buck Springs below the summit of Mt. Pisgah to his famous Estate. (Hike WNC)

From the Hike WNC website.

The Shut-In Trail is an excellent Day Hike and is part of Segment 2 on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail (MST).

Shut-In Trail is a 15.7 mile moderately trafficked point-to-point trail located near Candler, North Carolina that features a river and is rated as moderate. The trail is primarily used for hiking and running and is accessible year-round. (All Trails)

Here’s a YouTube video of a Shut-in Trail hike.

Pisgah Inn Trailhead
[Great Day Hikes on North Carolina’s Mountains-to-Sea Trail] Hike 5
Distance: 4.5 miles one-way / Trail type: Natural surface
Trailhead 1: Pisgah Inn (BRP MP 506.8) Coordinates: N35.40323, W82.75365
Trailhead 1 elevation: 4,921 ft / Part of MST Segment 3
To find the trail: Back left corner (facing the inn) of the Pisgah Inn parking lot. Find the kiosk for the Mt. Pisgah Trail System and MST signpost, and head up the stone stairs onto the trail.

For the next mile, the trail traverses typical southern Appalachian hardwood forest, passing occasional overlooks and trail junctions.

At mile 1.0 is a clearing w/wooden benches on the right. This is the former site of Buck Spring Lodge. This hunting lodge, built between 1896 and 1903 and later expanded, was George Vanderbilt’s second house on his Biltmore Estate.

Interactive map of the trail
Comment on AllTrails
Full page map for this loop.
Comment from AllTrails