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7.0 miles
Distance
62 ft
Climb
-1,868 ft
Descent
01:04:33
Avg time
-1,806 ft
Altitude change
3,163 ft
Altitude min
4,969 ft
Altitude max
4,969 ft
Altitude start
3,163 ft
Altitude end
-4.9%
Grade
-100.1%
Grade max
11%
Grade min
5,089 ft
Distance climb
6 miles
Distance down
574 ft
Distance flat
01:04:33
Avg time
Laurel Mountain Details
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Activities
- Mountain Bike
- Hike
- Trail Running
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Riding AreaNorth Mills River
Mills River, North Carolina -
Difficulty Rating
-
Local Popularity30 in Mountain Biking [+]
- 5 in Trail Running
- 5 in Hiking
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Global Ranking
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State Ranking
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Hiking SAC ScaleT2 Mountain Hiking
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Trail TypeSingletrack
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Bike TypeAM, XC
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DirectionBoth DirectionsPopular Direction Shown
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Climb DifficultyBlack Diamond
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Physical RatingHard
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SeasonYear Round
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Dogs AllowedYes
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eBike Allowed
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Ride in RainYes
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Land OwnerU.S. Forest Service
Singletrack trail that follows a steady, grinding grade until hitting Sassafras Gap. At this point, it is mostly hike a bike until shortly before it intersects Pilot Rock
Access Info
3 usual parking spots: Mills River Recreation Area ($3 fee)- climb a long, step gravel road to the crest of the ridge. Trail is 100 yards past crest on right. 2nd aceess point - Park at the crest on the gravel road directly across from the trail. 3rd option - Pullovers at the base of Pilot Cove or Pilot Rock trail
Trail Supporters
USFSLand Manager
Local Trail Association
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Please consider joining or donating to the local trail association to supportDonate to earn trail karma!
trail development & maintenance.
Traditionally Indigenous Territory
Recent Activity on Trail
Past Week
- 2 rides
- 14 miles average
6 Months
- 4 rides
- 17 miles avg distance
All
- 78 rides
- Last: Oct 14, 2026
| c1 | c2 | c3 | c4 |
|---|---|---|---|
January | February | March | April |
May | June | July | August |
September | October | November | December |
Laurel Mountain Trail Reports
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Trail Conditions
- Unknown
- Snow Groomed
- Snow Packed
- Snow Covered
- Snow Cover Partial
- Freeze/thaw Cycle
- Icy
- Prevalent Mud
- Wet
- Variable
- Ideal
- Dry
- Very Dry
Trail Flow (Ridden Direction)
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The colour categories are based on what percentage of users are riding a trail in its intended direction.
The colour categories are based on what percentage of users are riding a trail in its intended direction.
- > 96%
- > 90%
- > 80%
- > 70%
- > 50%
- < 50%
- bi-directional trail
- no data
Trail Last Used
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- < 2 days
- < 1 week
- < 2 weeks
- < 1 month
- < 6 months
- > 6 months
Trail Ridden Direction
The intended direction a trail should be ridden.
- Downhill Only
- Downhill Primary
- Both Directions
- Uphill Primary
- Uphill Only
- One Direction
Contribute Details
Colors indicate trail is missing specified detail.
- Description
- Photos
- Description & Photos
- Videos
Trail Popularity ?
Trailforks scans activity logs to determine which trails are ridden the most in the last 9 months.
Trails are compared with nearby trails in the same city region with a possible 25 colour shades.
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- popular
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Activity Recordings
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Trails are colored based on popularity. The more popular a trail is, the more red. Less popular trails trend towards green.
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BC Backroad Status
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Directions to laurel-mountain trailhead
(35.411300, -82.747390)
Photos
44 more »
Videos
1 more »
mtb
4:47 |
784 |
Dec 21, 2011 , Mills River
Trail Lists
-
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-
Pisgah Area SORBA - All Maintained Trails
61 trails
Routes with this trail
★ 5.0 • 13 miles • 1,921 ft • 2 • Loop •
This is one of our favorite routes for Laurel Mountain and Pilot Rock that are featured in Freehub...
★ 3.0 • 42 miles • 6,477 ft • 16 • Loop •
Pisgah Epic covering some of the best of the Black Mountain area. This route starts at the bottom, climbs...
143 miles • 22,745 ft • 29 • Loop •
Tour de Brevard - The Showstopper This extremely difficult course throughout the entirety of the...
Trail Events
9 Reviews & Comments
epicbruce
As of Sept. 17, 2025. The trail is completely free of downed trees up to the intersection with Pilot Connector at Buck Spring Gap. Some amazing trail stewards have done a monumental job clearing several trees that fell this summer, as well as trimming back several sections of thick briars and stinging nettles. A correction to some of the comments: the gap where the steep, rocky hike-a-bike begins is called Good Enough Gap. The gap just east of that is Sassafras Gap which is where and very old bootleg trail drops south down to connect with Slate Rock Loop. With the Yellow Gap closure the best non-shuttle option is to out-n-back from North Mills river or the standard Laurel-Pilot loop.
funmtb-quebec
Pas pour les doux beaucoup de roches en devers et glissantes. J'ai seulement fait 1 km et c'était assez pour moi. Je ne fais pas du vélo pour marcher. Pas de place à l'erreur avec le cliff. J'ai fait beaucoup de sentiers noir et rouge dans ma carrière, mais ça ça demande encore plus. Un gros bravo à ceux qui réussissent ce sentiers.
mtbphilosopher
Amazing trail!! Be very careful of the HUGE YELLOWJACKET NEST just a few feet past the big rocks/cave on the right hand side about half way up the trail. We got lit up by them!!
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Nearby Trails
- Mount Pisgah Trail 2,238 ft
- Buck Spring Trail 2,359 ft
- Laurel Mountain Connector 3,589 ft
- Big Creek Trail 3,606 ft
- Pilot Rock 4,409 ft
- By blowmyfuse
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