Pilot Mountain State Park

We camped out in pilot mountain a few months back. It was overall a good experience my only tip is if you plan to go try to choose a weekend that isn’t overly busy or near a holiday. We made the mistake of going near a holiday and the camp sites are all very close together so people you don’t know are sleeping just feet from your tent. We actually ended up leaving because it was too cramped for us and we felt if we talked or played music at all it would be disruptive to those around us (lots of children). We knew we couldn’t get a refund so we didn’t bother trying. We came back the following week on a week night and there were only 2 or 3 other groups on the entire site; a much better experience! :) the couple who run the site are super nice and accommodating!

Beautiful place with great hiking trails. Deer are calm and peaceful and will literally walk right up to you. Enjoy!

Pilot Mountain State Park is about 1.5 hours away from Durham, perfect for a day hiking trip! Parking, as others have mentioned, is tight at the visitor’s center, but we decided to park at the top of the trail instead of hiking all the way up, and there’s plenty of parking at the lot there.
We did the Ledge Spring trail and Jomeokee trail, which took about 3 hours total (with a 15 minute stop for lunch at a random spot), and explored several overlooks along the way. The trails are well-​maintained, although narrow and uphill at several points. The Jomeokee trail circles the Pilot Mountain itself, but climbing is now prohibited. We enjoyed seeing about 30 – 40 people rockclimbing along the rest of the trail. There were lots of people hiking but it wasn’t too crowded even on a sunny Saturday.
Great views of Pilot Mountain and the scenery below, and the park is totally free!

Went to the park with a Meetup group last Saturday and did a six-​mile hike from the overflow parking lot to Big Pinnacle. Unfortunately, it was rainy so we didn’t get much of a view. The hike was good — not too difficult but not too easy. There were people rock climbing on the sport climbs near the trail (not sure why you would be climbing on such a rainy day, but hey — to each his own). Would recommend the park for a good day hike for people in the greater Charlotte area!

Very peaceful high atop pilot mountain with gorgeous views of surrounding valley, the mountain is a quick, easy ride from mount airy and is loaded with a variety of hiking & camping options. This is not a huge, rough terrain type excursion and appears to be perfect for famlies and novice hikers and campers. It’s worth making the effort to get there and a half day will afford you plenty of time — enjoy —

Awesome and free state park with hiking, camping, and rock climbing. The routes for climbing are varied and challenging and the views from the summit are incredible. The main office is small but the lady there is very nice and helpful and I saw numerous Rangers out and about in the park, too. All upkeep seems tip tap top and you can’t beat the views. What is more, aspects such as access for climbers is made clear and straightforward. Very impressive, a gem of a park.

Visited Pilot Mountain for the first time in the spur of the moment and it was beautiful! The day was perfect. I hate a lot of the trails were closed, but we did get there late in the evening. It was really nice though. On top of that, it was Earth Day.

I would have loved to hike these trails as the mountain looks awesome!
I tried to come here this past weekend but the address on google maps took us to a really secluded park entrance near the Yadkin River with no trails.
It seemed like a really unsafe area for outsiders because we saw a car with «white pride» stickers all over it. We didn’t feel safe. We went down a tiny gravel road looking for trails and didn’t find any.
After this, we decided to go home since seeing that car really freaked us out.
Maybe next time we will be able to find the main entrance!

I went back today to do the 9.2 combined trails to push myself this time and several things stick out to me that some maybe would want to know:
1)There were several downed trees that crossed over the Grassy Ridge trail. I am guessing these were from a recent storm we have had. Some effort was made to clear these as there were several trees that had been worked on to clear the path. Some were still there however. For horseback riders, this may present a problem.
2)Probably the most important thing I wanted to add is the Mountain trail was a lot more difficult this time. It was muddy at parts and the streams you have to cross were flowing good. I had to get creative and go off the trail a few times to find a way to cross a few of them. Some of the rocks were slick and tough to climb. Clearly the rain we have had the past few days has made an impact.
I also forgot how hard it was to actually stay on trail. A lot of the trail isn’t even a trail and the landscape blends together. One marker I found was a downed tree and that threw me off course for about 5 minutes or so. It was hard to push myself while searching for the circle markers.
3)Today I saw a family or whatever of deer on the Grindstone trail. They ran across about 50 yards in front of me. Also a small black bear was digging, saw me, and ran off. I just mentioned this for safety and it may be a good idea to take people with you.
It took me about 1 hour and 50 minutes to do the entire loop this time. It would be tougher in warmer temps but today it was 56 degrees when I started and about 65 when I left.
Still awesome and cannot wait to go back and do the loop from the other direction.

67 degree spring sunshine? Of course I’m heading off to the trails! Well worth the one hour drive to Pilot.
I got lucky and parked at the small bottom lot and started on the Grindstone trail. It’s a 3 mile hike up to the pinnacle. It definitely isn’t a beginners course. A lot of rocks and inclines. I would advise hiking shoes and not running shoes for this trail. It took me a little over an hour to get to the top, which was a parking lot FULL of people. Given it was a beautiful Saturday afternoon, that should be expected.
Along the Grindstone trail, there is definitely less traffic because it’s one of the harder trails.
A lot of areas to go rock climbing. Which I am definitely going to be trying, once I find a group of people willing to let me tag along lol.
I saw ONE runner along this trail. Of course he was an elitist (training for a full marathon). If you’re just getting into running, don’t do this trail. Like I said it is very rocky and you will probably end up rolling your ankle.
If you are like me and use hiking as a form of decompression, you may be disappointed once you get to the top and there are hoards of people. It was difficult to sit and enjoy the views in the midst of families and pets. Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE children and animals, but after a difficult hike I like to sit in silence for a bit.
There is a 0.8 mile loop around the pinnacle, Jomeokee trail. I suggest you do it. How the Rock eroded is gorgeous, and you can only appreciate it’s magnificence by walking that trail.
The upper parking lot is much larger. For those of you seeking a more leisurely hike, park up there and just do the Jomeokee trail.
They have other rigorous trails that I will definitely be back for. I’ll let you know how it goes!
Happy hiking!

The view alone will make you wanna come back and see the beauty of the area. The trails lead to many parts of the park to see the view and nature. This is a good spot to take a family to have a BBQ and take pictures.

this place had great views. the wait to park was about fifteen minutes but it was worth it. i want to return and hike some of the trails here instead of watching others do it. I was very pleased when I realized taking some time out to check out the summit was totally worth it.

The Indian’s guidepost. Hiking. Rappeling. Camping. Picnics. Beautiful views. Free.

My boyfriend and I decided to take a day trip to Pilot Mountain — totally doable from Raleigh! It takes less than 2 hours to get there. We parked at the lot on the right when you enter the park and hiked the Grindstone Trail to the Summit — it’s about 3 miles — the trail is in really good condition — there were a few grinders (steep hills) but if you exercise regularly those shouldn’t be too bad. There are a lot of steps the closer you get to the summit and that is the toughest part.
There is a parking lot at the summit with a nice view and picnic area. There are a few trails around the pinnacle — we went on one that was .8 miles — lots of stairs that can be tough on the knees and then you loop around the larger pinnacle — you can’t climb up it but it’s a nice hike.
If you are driving on 52 and are looking for a picnic area or a little bit of exercise — definitely check out Pilot Mountain.
The bathroom facilities are better than average for the state parks.
My friends who have camped here and gone horse back riding have raved about their time at Pilot Mountain.

Pilot Mountain towers over the surrounding valley like a kid taking fourth grade for the third time. You’re not allowed to actually summit the peak but you can do the 360-​degree trail around it. Hiking up here is crowded and easy and free. Camping is crowded and easy and cheap. Climbing is not so crowded, not so easy and awesome. I would recommend any of these activiites, whether you were held back in school or not.

I’m not sure why it took me so long to actually visit this park. I’ve driving by it a few times and I’ve taken pictures of it from a distance. But finally I took a detour here on my way up north.
The road pretty much goes up to a parking lot near the top. You have several lookouts over the surrounding lands. There’s also the Little Pinnacle trail which is an easy trail to another amazing view.
The trail to Pilot Mountain is mostly steps otherwise it’s easy. The park service did a wonderful job in making this an easy climb. The trail goes around what the rocky portion of Pilot Mountain. Unfortunatey, there is no way to go up to the top so the top serves as a wildlife refuge.
There are also other trails that lead down and around the mountain but I’ll need to come back for those.
This is definitely a big tourist attraction and rightfully so. When I was there, I noticed a bunch of cars from out of state.

Easy to find and Moderately easy to hike! I’m not the best person to go hiking with. I do not use the best judgement on anything and when gravity is involved you can forget it! We had a very good time and everyone was accounted for (in our group).

While in Winston Salem for business, my boyfriend and I made the trek to the Pilot Mountain state park to check out the scenery on a chilly Sunday morning. I’d vacationed in NC every year as a kid and had always wanted to check out this park but never had the chance. It was even more beautiful that I expected! From the summit, you could see for miles. It was extremely peaceful.
We took a short hike around the main peak and the course was fairly difficult. If you don’t like stairs or climbing over large rocks, this isn’t the course for you. I wish we’d had more time to go exploring because the scenery was so beautiful. I’d definitely go back if I had the chance!
P. S. This park has the nicest public bathrooms I’ve ever seen!

We took a trip out to Pilot Mountain sometime last summer (2010) on a weekend. We liked the trails we went on — the Ledge Spring Trail and the Jomeokee Trails. The Jomeokee is pretty flat and easy and has some good views — you’re at the peak of Pilot Mountain. The Ledge Spring Trail is a reasonably short trail, but it can take a some time to complete. There are a lot of uneven surfaces to be aware of. Also, you descend for a while, so you have to be prepared to come up. We didn’t find the Ledge Spring trail that difficult, but it was on the challenging side.
Overall, we had a good time, and we’ll eventually go back. The mountain had exploded with people the weekend we first went there, don’t know if that’s a regular thing or not. We had to wait on the mountain in our car for a parking spot at the trail heads. The people working handled it well, they let a car in for every one that left. So we just turned off the car and waited until the line started again — I think it took around 10 – 15 minutes to get a space, but they warned us at the bottom about the delay. Also, there were a lot of rock climbers on the Ledge Spring Trail — we spent a decent amount of time dodging their equipment/​lunches/​bags. Some groups kept off the trail as much as possible, others sprawled all over the place. It wasn’t the most quiet isolated hike, but if we lived closer it would be a place we frequented. Also, I might recommend going a bit early in case there are crowds.