Rising 5,538 feet just a stone’s throw north of Boone, North Carolina, Elk Knob ranks among the highest summits of Watauga County and the centerpiece of a 4,423-acre state park only established back in the early 2000s. Visitors here can give thanks to the Nature Conservancy, instrumental in protecting Elk Knob from proposed development back in the 1990s and getting the formerly privately owned lands transferred to state management.
Named for the elk that once roamed the area’s forests and meadows and sourcing some of the headwaters of the North Fork of the New River, Elk Knob belongs to a unique block of peaks in the northwestern North Carolina High Country known as the Amphibolite Mountains. The name comes from the unusual exposure in this corner of the Blue Ridge Province of the metamorphic rock amphibolite. This calcium- and magnesium-rich bedrock weathers to nutrient-rich soils that are less acidic than your typical Blue Ridge conditions, resulting in a unique floral diversity.
Besides Elk Knob, the Amphibolites—sometimes also called the Northern Peaks— include such summits as Snake Mountain (the 5,566-foot high point of this subrange, located due west of Elk Knob), Bluff Mountain, Three Top Mountain, The Peak, Phoenix Mountain, Howard Knob, Paddy Mountain, Rittle Knob and Mount Jefferson. They help form the divide between the New River—one of the oldest known rivers in the world—and the Watauga River watersheds.
Lacking the dense thickets of rhododendron common in much of this region on account of the amphibolite bedrock, the slope-side hardwood forests of Elk Knob have a more open feel and support a fertile ground-cover that includes numerous species of spring ephemerals and other wildflowers. Among the especially rare plants that have been documented in and around Elk Knob State Park are trailing wolf’s bane, Heller’s blazing star, and Gray’s lily. Hikers approaching the Elk Knob summit can also eyeball a wind-beaten stand of dwarfed American beeches.
Birders will love Elk Knob State Park’s avian diversity, which includes quite the plethora of nesting species: from Neotropical warblers such as the chestnut-sided and the golden-winged to the indigo bunting and the northern saw-whet owl.
This lightly developed park is a hiker’s paradise, the crown jewel being the moderate-to-strenuous 1.9-mile Summit Trail switchbacking to the tippy-top of Elk Knob. From the summit viewpoint, clear-day vistas include a number of other eminences, from fellow Amphibolite mountaintops such as Bluff Mountain and The Peak to more distant rises, including famous Grandfather Mountain—high point of the Blue Ridge Escarpment—and Virginia’s loftiest peak, 5,729-foot Mount Rogers.
You can also gaze down at the Long Hope Valley, an ecologically fascinating perched valley known for its boreal-style sphagnum bogs and spruce-hemlock woods.
Other trails in Elk Knob State Park include the family-friendly, mile-long Beech Tree Trail and half-mile Maple Run Trail. The more strenuous Backcountry Trail, two miles long, accesses the park’s numerous backcountry campsites (including designated group-camping areas).
(It’s worth noting that future plans call for linking Elk Knob State Park with the Northern Peaks State Trail, which’ll eventually straddle Watauga and Ashe counties.)
Winter visitors to Elk Knob State Park can enjoy topnotch cross-country skiing and snowshoeing, taking advantage of the healthy snowfall that typically graces the “Northern Peaks.”
The short park road also leads to a picnic area set close to the Beech Tree Trail. Otherwise, facilities remain on the limited side in this still fairly young state park and there’s an admirable focus on maintaining its more primitive character. That said, the park does include an amphitheater, and a visitor center (at the park entrance), additional trails, and other upgrades are in the works.
Just a short drive from Boone off Meat Camp Road, Elk Knob State Park is a recreational treasure and a fine introduction to the magic of the unique Amphibolite Mountains of North Carolina’s Blue Ridge country.
Insider Tips:
-Keep in mind that no campfires are allowed at Elk Knob State Park’s backcountry campsites, only camp-stoves.
-The Beech Tree Trail in Elk Knob State Park is an officially designated Kids in Parks TRACK Trail, offering smartphone-app “e-Adventures” and prizes for families that tackle it.