Appalachian Highpoints Trip

 LAST UPDATED: 10/18/2020  

Five nights, seven state highpoints, and 1,679.7 miles. 

Isaac, Haley, and I took a road trip from Monday, Oct 12 to Saturday, Oct 17, 2020.   This page highlights our trip and is our digital scrapbook. 

With this trip, Isaac and I have visited the highest point in 18 states, and Haley has visited 11.  Read more about our high point adventures on the Highpointing page.

Pictures are tagged on Facebook with #AppalachianHighpointsTrip. 

Trailer for upcoming video


Day 1 - Monday, Oct 12: Drive to Knoxville

  • Miles Driven: 402 mi
  • State License Plate Game: 18 States 

We started with Dunkin Donuts, and Isaac and Haley did school in the car.  Isaac and I got Chick-fil-a for lunch while Haley got a Happy Meal from McDonald's.  We had dinner with Heather Hornback and her family at the Bluetick Tavern, followed by ice cream at Bruster’s.  We spent the night at the Hampton Inn Knoxville - Airport (B).  Haley was disappointed; the outdoor pool was closed for the season.


Day 2 - Tuesday, Oct 13: GA & SC Highpoints

  • Miles Driven: 267 mi (669 mi total)
  • State License Plate Game: 3 new states (22 Total)
Tuesday, we visited the highest point in Georgia, Brasstown Bald (C), and South Carolina, Sassafras Mountain (D).  We had dinner at the White Duck Taco Shop and spend the night at the Hampton Inn & Suites Ashville Biltmore Area in Asheville, NC (E).

Social Media Posts:

Day 3 - Wednesday, Oct 14: NC Highpoint

  • Miles Driven: 167 mi (825 mi total)
  • State License Plate Game: 4 new states (26 Total)
We spent the morning in Asheville, NC (E). We tried driving past the Biltmore Estate but can’t get close without a ticket. We had breakfast at Biscuit Head (GF Biscuits!) and played at Herb Watts Park, drove through downtown, and got lunch to-go at Roman’s Deli (GF Panini!). We had a beautiful drive with the leaves changing along the Blue Ridge Parkway on the way to Mt. Mitchell State Park. Once arriving at the park, we ate our packed lunch and then hiked the paved, 300-yard trail to the summit of Mt. Mitchell (F), the highest point in North Carolina and the highest point east of the Mississippi at 6,684 ft. We hiked the 3/4 mile nature trail back to the parking lot. We spent the night at Hampton Inn Kingsport (G) and got pizza from Main Street Pizza.

Day 4 - Thursday, Oct 15: KY & VA Highpoints

  • Miles Driven: 286 mi (1,111 mi total)
  • State License Plate Game: 4 new states (30 Total)
Thursday was our “Adventure Day!”  We started with Black Mountain, KY (H), which is on old coal mining land.  The 1.5 mi road to the summit used to be paved but had big potholes filled with water that you couldn’t tell how deep they were.  I was glad to have 4WD, but probably would have attempted it anyway if I didn’t!  Then we drove 2.5 hours to the Elk Garden Trailhead on Rt 600 along the Appalachian Trail.  It was almost a 10-mile roundtrip hike with 1,523 ft elevation gain to the summit of Mount Rogers, the highest point in Virginia (I). It was a beautiful hike with the leaves changing color, and we got to see wild ponies!  They were very tame and let people pet them.  While we were eating a snack at the summit, Haley lost a tooth that had been loose the past week!  She did well getting there, but we were all tired on the way back and hiked the last bit in the dark.  It took us about 7 hours for the close to 10 miles round trip. We then had a two-hour drive and spent the night at Hampton Inn Salem (J), just outside Roanoke, VA. 

Social Media Posts with Pictures:


Day 5 - Friday, Oct 16: WV Highpoint

  • Miles Driven: 240 mi (1,351 mi total)
  • State License Plate Game: 1 new state (31 Total)
After the long day on Thursday, the kids slept in, and I joined my Friday Bible Study via Zoom.  We didn’t leave the hotel until about noon.  Isaac and I got cheeseburgers (no bun for me) from Angelle’s Diner while Haley got a Chicken McNuggets Happy Meal from the McDonalds next door in Troutville, VA.  At the suggestion of a hiker on the Appalachian Trail, we stopped at Reddish Knob, which gives amazing 360 views of Virginia and West Virginia.  We continued on to Spruce Knob (K), the highest point in West Virginia, and one of the coldest stops at 39˚F.  It had a nice trail around the top with beautiful views and a lookout tower.  We spent the night at the Hampton Inn Elkins in Elkins, WV (L). We had supper delivered to our hotel room (Manicotti, Antipasta Salad, and a GF cheese pizza) from Gino’s Pizza and Spaghetti House.

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Day 6 - Saturday, Oct 17: MD Highpoint

  • Miles Driven: 328 mi (1,1680 mi total)
  • State License Plate Game: 1 new state (32 Total)
On Saturday, I joined my TMIY men's group via zoom, and then we got breakfast.  Haley swam while Isaac did some schoolwork.  We stopped at Olsen Tower, another suggestion of the hiker we met on the Appalachian Trail.  It was a great view, but a popular place, so we had to wait a while before making it to the top.  The tower swayed in the wind, which made Haley very uncomfortable.  (Isaac and I aren't afraid of heights, but even we were a little "shaken" by it - pun intended). We then continued on to the trailhead for Backbone Mountain (M). It took us about 45 minutes to make the 1.18-mile hike with 699 ft elevation gain to the summit.  We ate a snack, took a few pictures, and then it only took about 30 min to hike back down to the car.  Just a few miles down the road is Our Lady of the Pines, which claims to be the smallest church in the 48 states. We decided to come back a little longer way via I-70, so we'd have wifi most of the way.  Isaac still had quite a bit of school to finish since there were several days we had very little wifi while driving.  We stopped for supper near Morgantown, WV (O).  Isaac and I got Italian subs at Jersey Mikes, and Haley got a Chicken Nuggets kids meal at Wendy's.  We made it home at about 8:30pm.  

Social Media Posts with Pictures:

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