There is SO much to do in and around Roan Mountain and the surrounding Western North Carolina mountains. We’ve included just SOME items of interest.
Roan Mountain State Park
Roan Mountain State Park encompasses 2,006 acres of the southern Appalachian forest at the base of 6,285 foot Roan Mountain. Park elevation ranges from 3,000 feet in the valley, to around 3,700 feet on surrounding ridges. Rich hardwood forests allow for a great diversity of life and a wide range of outdoor activities.
Park guests have opportunities to hike along creeks and ridges, fish for trout, play tennis, swim, tour a century old farmhouse, join rangers and naturalists for educational programs, and enjoy mountain music concerts. Wildflowers and wildlife inhabit the hollows and ridges of the Roan foothills in abundance. From Dutchman’s-breeches to deer, trillium to turkeys and bee balm to black bears there is always something to discover.
Watauga Lake Recreation Area
Watauga lake boasts cool, clear water reflecting the surrounding mountains and is one of the most beautiful lakes in the entire TVA system. The word “Watauga” is a Native American term meaning beautiful waters. The lake is located in Carter and Johnson counties in upper East Tennessee. Nearby communities include Mountain City, Butler, Hampton, and Elizabethton. Thirteen species of game fish including rainbow and brown trout, walleye, and smallmouth and largemouth bass inhabit the waters of the lake. Enjoy boating, fishing, and swimming.
Sugar Mtn. & Beech Mtn. Ski Resorts
Located less than 20 miles away in Western North Carolina, is some of the best skiing and snowboarding the Southeast has to offer. From terrain parks to tubing hills, escape the crowds on the hill and relax at the Mountain House or the Creek House.
Bristol Motor Speedway
Bristol International Dragway opened in 1965 under National Hot Rod Association sanction. At the time it was considered a state of the art super dragway, the best in the country.
Because the dragstrip sat between two mountains the acoustics were such that the strip earned the name “Thunder Valley” because of the thundering noise cars made when they traveled down the strip. Located less than 40 miles away, whether you are taking a tour or attending a race, you are guaranteed excitement.
Doe River Covered Bridge
Built in 1882, this white clapboard bridge is the oldest in the state still in use today. Located in downtown Elizabethton, it spans 134 feet across the Doe River.
Also Close By:
- Sycamore Shoals State Park
- Barter Theater
- Biltmore House
- Jonesboro (Tennessee’s oldest town)
- Blowing Rock
- Tweetsie Railroad
- The Blue Ridge Parkway
- Watauga River (Trophy Trout Stream)