If I had to pick my favorite short day hike near home it would unequivocally be the hike up Flat Laurel Creek to Sam Knob. Sam Knob itself is certainly near the top of my short list of favorite southern summits. Add to it a pleasant 3-mile hike up a well-worn trail through high elevation forests and fields, a few waterfalls, and long-distance views and you have yourself one absolute gem of a hike, one that will never disappoint. Sam Knob, at 6,050', is a stand alone peak adjacent to the massive Great Balsam Range of peaks. Each of it's twin summits provides spectacular views of the surrounding river gorges and something on the order of a dozen neighboring Southern 6000-footers.

On this early October day I was hoping to add to the mix some peak fall colors. The sun was shining from blue skies when I left my house but by the time I made the 1/2 hour drive to the trailhead the peaks had become solidly socked in with clouds...such is weather in the mountains. Although disappointed that my color pictures wouldn't be quite so vibrant, this is hardly a hike you can feel short-changed on in any possible way. So, off I went...the colors, while dulled by the clouds, were still fabulous (and not quite peak I was surprised to discover giving me a chance to come back) and the refreshing nature of a brisk fall day made me anxious for the fabulous "off-season" of hiking that is soon to follow. Come on along with me as I make a fall hike along one of my favorite routes in the entirety of the Southern Appalachians...enjoy...

Trailhead GPS Coordinates: 35.308036, -82.908910

Hike Length: 6.5 miles Hike Duration: 3:00

Trailhead Temp: 45'F Trail Traffic: 10-25 people

Min. Elevation: 5,000' Max. Elevation: 6,050'

Total Vertical Gain: 1,050' Avg. Elevation Gain / Mile: 323'

Trails Used (Blaze Color):

Flat Laurel Creek (orange), Sam Knob (blue), Sam Knob Summit (unblazed)

Sam Knob via Flat Laurel Creek, Haywood County (10-7-14)

Flat Laurel Creek Trailhead
The sun lights up the foliage surrounding the Flat Laurel Creek parking area...unfortunately, this would be just about all the sunshine I'd see for the hike...
Sam Knob/Flat Laurel Creek Hike Route Map
My (approximate) route...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
With fall colors surrounding me I step off onto the Flat Laurel Creek Trail...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
Within a few hundred yards I reached my first stream crossing of the day, across the pleasantly named Bubbling Spring Branch...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
A glimpse through the trees treated me to the colors lining the cliffs above NC-215...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
With a dark wall of rhododendron on one side and colors to my left, this section of trail was beautiful in its contrast...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
The colors were really nice across the valley on Fork Ridge...if only there was some sun to light them up!...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
After wandering through thick forest for 3/4 of a mile its always a bit strange to run into the concrete bridge beneath Wildcat Falls...
Wildcat Falls
Wildcat Falls from the concrete bridge framed in autumn colors...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
Every so often through the canopy above the slopes of Little Sam Knob were visible. Its distinctive spruce-fir crown contrasted sharply with the colorful hardwoods below...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
Still quite a bit of green out there in spots...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
Heart Rock...about a mile or so in...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
A lone birch adds its distinctive yellow to the surroundings...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
A blazing red maple with Mt. Hardy (6,110') looming beyond...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
A mile and a half in the Flat Laurel Creek Trail serves up its first big visual treat...a fairly unobstructed 180-degree view of Fork Ridge across the valley with Mt. Hardy (6,110'), seen here, at its southern end...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
The sweeping 180-degree panorama of Fork Ridge from the Flat Laurel Creek Trail...no sun, but still very, very nice...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
At times it almost seemed like the leaves were creating their own light...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
At this time of year wildflowers are far and few between but this one can still be found quite regularly...Striped Gentian...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
The steep southern face of Sam Knob looms above me as the trail makes its turn to the east up the narrow Flat Laurel Creek Valley...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
Climbing into the upper reaches of the Flat Laurel Creek Valley the forest gives way to more of a mixed shrubland...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
There are a number of side trails down to picturesque Flat Laurel Creek after about the 2-mile mark. Just downstream the creek falls some 800' in about 3/4 mile...
Flat Laurel Creek Trail
As I was now above the 5,400' mark the colors started to look a bit past peak if anything. It's always amazing to me how fleeting the color season is in these high elevations...
Flat Laurel Creek-Sam Knob Trail Junction
Blue blazes mark my left turn onto the Sam Knob Trail...I'd immediately be crossing Flat Laurel Creek...
Sam Knob Trail
Flat Laurel Creek with Sam Knob rising to the far right. From the crossing at the lower end of the Sam Knob Trail...
Sam Knob Trail
A gradual climb and the open surrounding gives a good look at Little Sam Knob (5,862') back over my shoulder...
Sam Knob Trail
With freshly fallen leaves crunching underfoot, I begin the climb through the shrub-forest beneath Sam Knob...
Sam Knob Trail
Typically this section of trail can be very wet, but the relative lack of rain this year meant I found it unusually dry...
Sam Knob Trail
There's nothing quite like a fall maple...
Sam Knob Trail
Emerging from the trees onto the broad grassy lawn on the eastern flank of Sam Knob...
Sam Knob Trail
The entire upper end of the Flat Laurel Creek Valley can be seen to my east as I enter the large, grassy meadow beneath Sam Knob. The meadow is partly a man-made creation, mowing by the USFS keeps trees from creeping in, but it's still a wonderfully unique natural environment...
Sam Knob-Sam Knob Summit Trail Junction
For a shorter day hike to Sam Knob I'll often start at the Ivestor Gap Trailhead about a half mile from here just beyond the near ridge by the spruce forest...
Sam Knob Summit Trail
The hike up the lower part of the summit is through a nice high elevation forest. On a cloudy day like this it was far too dark for pics so I had to stow my camera until I reached the short stairway which would take me onto the more open slopes above...
Sam Knob Summit Trail
Reaching the upper slopes, the vegetation gets a lot lower and the first big views are offered soon thereafter of the upper Flat Laurel Creek Valley I had crossed earlier. From this vantage point Black Balsam Knob (6,214') is the broad peak to the left, Chestnut Bald (6,025') is pretty much center, and Mt. Hardy's dome (6,110') is to the right...
Sam Knob Summit Trail
Looking down over the huge shrub-land that is the upper Flat Laurel Creek Valley...
Sam Knob Summit Trail
Swinging around to the west side of the summit ridge I was treated to a clearer view of Mt. Hardy (to the right) with NC-215 winding below, where I started from...
Sam Knob Summit Trail
Low shrubs press in around me as I make my way closer to the summit...
Sam Knob Summit Trail
With huckleberries blazing at my feet I look across the West Fork Pigeon River Gorge to Fork Ridge...
Sam Knob Summit Trail
Increasing popularity has caused some serious erosion issues on Sam Knob, as it has on all the surrounding peaks...
North Summit Spur
Typically I head over to the north summit first, and today was no exception. Here I pass the huge quartz outcrop just below the top...
Sam Knob -- North Summit
The boulder that marks the north summit of Sam Knob, 6,050'...
Sam Knob -- North Summit
The view down the West Fork Pigeon River Gorge from the north summit of Sam Knob has to be one of my absolute favorites in the southern mountains...I could sit here for hours...
Sam Knob -- North Summit
A bit zoomed in from the last shot. The winds were really whipping this afternoon and it was wonderful to watch the patches of sun as they quickly rolled across the valleys and hills...
Sam Knob -- North Summit
The super-panorama looking north from the north summit of Sam Knob (6,050')...
North Summit Spur
Tearing myself away, I set my sights on the south summit, only a few hundred yards away...
South Summit Spur
It almost seemed to be clearing to the south but, unfortunately, it would never manage to make it over Sam Knob...
Sam Knob -- South Summit
The south summit of Sam Knob (6,050')...Far below me Highway 215 winds its way up the gorge beneath Mt. Hardy (6,110')...
Sam Knob -- South Summit
A closer look down to Highway 215 with Mt. Hardy (6,110') looming above. My starting point for this hike, 3-miles away, was along the road just left of the cliffs that can be seen to the left of the hairpin...
Sam Knob -- South Summit
Mt. Hardy and the upper reaches of Fork Ridge from the south summit of Sam Knob (6,050')...

dwhike

Sam Knob via Flat Laurel Creek (10-7-14)

Sam Knob via Flat Laurel Creek, Haywood County (10-7-14)