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The summit of Max Patch might be the best picnic spot for a Blue Ridge sunset. This 6.9-mile route traces the NC/TN border along birch- and larkspur-lined paths.
Trail Facts
- Distance: 5.9
Waypoints
MPM001
Location: 35.7731018066406, -82.995849609375
Ascend log steps from Brown Gap (3,500 ft.) through a hardwood forest to the ridgeline; toothwort, stonecrop, and larkspur grow at your feet
MPM002
Location: 35.7781715393066, -82.9827270507812
Drop to S side of ridgeline, where in spring the blooms of mountain laurel and pungent evergreen galax grow in this warmer, drier environment
MPM003
Location: 35.7824211120606, -82.9784164428711
Ascend back along ridgeline
MPM004
Location: 35.7892303466797, -82.9702529907226
Look S for a flat, sheltered campsite (room for 2 or 3 tents)
MPM005
Location: 35.7893600463867, -82.9636001586914
L @ Y; hillside and path with pink-striped spring beauties. Catch glimpses of Max Patch through openings between trees
MPM006
Location: 35.7922210693359, -82.9618530273438
Straight @ 4-way across Max Patch Rd. (NC 1182). Descend and cross small stream through thinly wooded hillside with yellow birch
MPM007
Location: 35.7927284240723, -82.9581909179688
Straight across grassy road; ascend SE side of bald on steep log steps
MPM008
Location: 35.7945899963379, -82.9579772949219
R @ Y; listen for Eastern towhees and field sparrows in fields below
MPM009
Location: 35.7973709106445, -82.9565963745117
Grassy summit of Max Patch (4,629 ft.) anchors SW end of Buckeye Ridge. Expansive 360-degree views of Smokies; Mt. Mitchell rises in the E. Backtrack to trailhead