Van life in Pisgah National Forest
Pisgah National Forest is a beautiful van life destination in the western North Carolina, full of beautiful mountains, hiking, waterfalls, biking, camping, and more. There is an endless amount of things to do. While Pisgah National Forest is 500,000 acres, this guide is going to focus on the Pisgah Ranger District. The Pisgah Ranger District is located south of Asheville and north of Brevard.
Van life in Pisgah National Forest is an easy area to stay. Tons of camping, day activities, resources, and other vans. There is a little bit of everything for people of all physical shape. Bringing a dog is also an easy task, dogs are welcome throughout the forest with many things to do. The forest is also free to enter with no parking fees (With a few exceptions for some recreational activities).
Where to camp
Pisgah National Forest is full of camping for RVs, tents, and vans. When you first enter the forests on US 276 from Brevard, you will pass Davidson River Campground. Davidson River Campground is a paid campground that offers electrical hookups.
Throughout the national forest are free dispersed campsites. These sites are first come first serve and do not offer any hookups, you may also stay up to 14 days. During the busy seasons these sites fill up fast so you must get to them early on in the day. Many of the sites are along creeks. Our experiences with these sites were great except for groups that did not clean up their site before they left.
Things to do
There are many things to do in Pisgah National Forest. Tons of waterfalls, hiking, picnic areas, mountain biking, horseback riding, and more. Map of the area.
- Sliding rock
- Fee area with swimming and natural water slide.
- Looking Glass Falls
- Frying Pan Lookout Tower
- Requires a hike up to the top. The path starts along the Blue Ridge Parkway.
- Moore Cove Falls Trail
- Requires a short hike to reach the 50 foot falls. Parking is along the side of the roadway.
- Cradle of Forestry in America
- First forestry school in America.
- Mountain biking
- There are lots of mountain biking trails and bike shops in the forest and surrounding areas. The “MTB Project” app is a great way to find trails as well as information on them. Sycamore Cove, Black Mountain, and Bennett Gap are a few of the popular trails.
- Hiking
- There are miles and miles of hiking trails in Pisgah National Forest. “AllTrails” is a good resource for finding hiking trails in the national forest.
Blue ridge parkway
Pisgah National Forest features miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway. Along the drive there are many beautiful overlooks and pull off points, as well as miles of hiking trails. There are many roads that lead you to the parkway.
