Mount Mitchell State Park

I come from a very flat state (Florida) so coming to the top of the highest mountain on this side of the Mississippi is amazing. The views are astonishing and the trails are beautiful. I can recommend this enough you have to come here and see it for yourself.

Great views, but that’s to be expected, eh? And as a bonus, you get to drive the awesome Blue Ridge Parkway to get here!
You have to go to the top, of course, and the views are truly spectacular. Not to be missed. But on your way down back to the parking lot, take a detour via the Balsam Meadow hike — a short but must-​see trail. I call it the Walk of the Dead (trees) because of all the fallen trees in the forest. You’ll see the sign for Balsam Meadow as you near the top of the paved path to the summit observation area. The trail is about ¾ mile and leads back to the upper parking lot. Along the way, there’s an intersection with the Mt Mitchell segment of the Mountains to Sea trail (if you were paying attention, you saw another intersection with the M to S trail — the Old Mitchell Trail — as you walked up from the parking lot). Near the bottom end of the trail, do take the short trail to a very cool mountain spring.
Upper parking lot is huge. My little lonesome car was dwarfed by its size.
Near the bottom of the upper parking lot there’s a great picnic area with two structures. Inside each are picnic tables and a fireplace. Several other picnic tables are scattered about in the open. Very cool. This area is also the trailhead for the Deep Gap trail. One thing I noticed about the trailhead signs in this park is that they very clearly spell out what is ahead on the trail and how far. Also what is behind you, and how far. Very informative.
Restrooms not open at the top parking lot. Unsatisfactory, even if it was a weekday with not many visitors.

Went camping for a night with my brother, niece and nephew. They’ve got 9 camping sites with a bathroom. It seemed like a well kept bathroom with flushing toilets and running water. No showers or hot water, but it was nice having the toilets. There were probably 5 sites in use on a non-​holiday, kids back-​in-​school, Monday night, so you may want to reserve ahead of time. They do offer bundles of firewood for $ 5. Be prepared for chillier temps overnight and rain even if it says just a 20% chance.
From the campsite, it is probably just over a 0.6 mile hike to the top. It was a neat trail that had a fairy tale quality to it at the time of day we went. The kids (ages 8 and 10) managed the trail well, just needed a hand in one or two spots. You also have the option to drive to the top. Even if you don’t camp at the campground, you can do the little hike through the campsites to give yourself a little sense of accomplishment and earning the view you get from the top. Or start from the park station for a longer hike.
I’m not a big fan of driving up the mountains, but didn’t think this was too bad or too long. Like the old saying goes, slow and steady doesn’t die driving over the edge.