Chimney Rock State Park, NC
A month ago I went on a solo adventure to Chimney Rock State Park in North Carolina. I’m a huge fan of solo travel and adventuring because it gives me time to just be me. When I’m exploring on my own I don’t have to worry about anyone else, I can follow my intuition and it also is a really good opportunity to connect with myself. If you haven’t done any solo adventuring, I would definitely recommend it! (Just be sure you are fully prepared, especially if you’re going to an unfamiliar place!)
Chimney Rock was the perfect solo, day trip for me. It was a three hour drive from Sumter, South Carolina and is only an hour and 45 minutes outside of Charlotte. From Sumter, I pretty much have to drive three hours no matter where I’m going to get to any good hiking spots, which can make for a long day. Chimney Rock was great though because there were several shorter hikes, with a bunch of different views that I could do all in one trip!
Chimney Rock Mountain was purchased by the Morse family (how cool would it be to buy a mountain?!?!), who were from Missouri, in 1902. They developed it into beautiful attraction I saw during my trip. In 2007, the Morse family sold their 1,000 acre park to the state of North Carolina to be added to the growing Chimney Rock State Park. Today, the park is 7,000+ acres and let me tell ya, she’s a beauty!
Typically you can drive partway up the mountain after entering the park and then take an elevator up 26-stories before walking a few more stair to get to the top of Chimney Rock, which is where you see the American flag in the photo above. Right now though, they are doing construction so you have to start at the bottom of the mountain and hike/climb your way up and additional 500+ stairs to get to the top. It’s defiantly a workout, but totally worth the view!
I started by taking the Four Seasons Trail (moderate), which is .70 (one way) miles of hiking through a wooded area and then hopped on The Outcroppings (moderate to strenuous), which is a network of stairs and boardwalks that take you to the Chimney level. There are about 500 stairs on The Outcroppings, so you’ll be beating your stair stepper record for sure, but there are several really pretty vistas along the way that break it up well.
After making it to the top of Chimney Rock, I continued my hike with Exclamation Point Trail (strenuous), which is .60 miles round trip to take in the view from 2,480 feet. There weren’t a whole lot of people on this trail, which was nice so I was able to get some genuine alone time during this stretch.
After reaching the top of Exclamation Point Trail I made my way back down to the Chimney level, took the 500+ stairs down The Outcroppings to hit the Hickory Nut Falls Trail (moderate), which is .70 miles (one way). At the end of Hickory Nut Falls Trail I was rewarded with a stunning view of a 404-foot tall waterfall (one of the tallest of its kind east of the Mississippi). Hickory Nut Falls was also featured in “The Last of the Mohicans,” so if you think you’ve seen this one before, you probably have!
Chimney Rock State Park was the perfect day trip, even with the six hour round trip drive. I packed a lunch and plenty of water and made a great solo adventure out of it. To make it through everything I mentioned above it took me about four and a half hours. If you’re in the North Carolina area, Chimney Rock is a must see!
Light, Love & the Highest Vibrations,
Lon
