
Route: Spencer Gap Trail
Type: Out and Back
Distance: 3.3 miles
Conditions: Bright and sunny day!
Difficulty: Easy
Impressions: I was looking for something to get into today, as I'm still in my first weeks here in Asheville, NC and love to explore the new area. After picking up the National Geographic Pisgah Ranger District Map, I headed down the Blue Ridge Parkway in search of adventure. After arriving to and driving down F.R. 5000, I considered a couple of other options before settling for this random trail, Spence Gap. The current National Geographic Map for the area has this section of trail mislabeled, so the section I've done here is just the upper 1.65 miles near the parkway...
If you have extra time or an adventurous spirit, I also wandered the first gated road, I think it was called 5000A, off of 5000 coming from the parkway. It was about 3/4 of a mile long and ended in a tall grass, open area. This would be a great place to camp during the cooler months when the grass wasn't growing so tall.
Overall, Spencer Gap Trail is a nice trail to escape into the forest on and with it continuing for several more miles, could be used to start an overnight or weekend excursion. Enjoy!