Blue Ridge Music Center hiking trails are as top notch as the Center’s museum, mid-day mountain music and the outdoor summer concert series. The Center keeps the rhythms and melodies of Blue Grass music alive from mid-May to the end of October. The trails keep the heart pumping year round and worth adding to any visit on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

You’ll find the turn for the trails before you get to the center itself. The trail heads being separate from the center’s main entrance keeps them available to hikers year round. The trails are easy to moderate in difficulty. Coming in at just under four miles, hardcore hikers and nature lovers alike will enjoy the journey through the woods and meadows that are up and around Fisher’s Peak .

Parking  

Travelling south on the Blue Ridge Parkway turn left following the signs for the Blue Ridge Music Center. You’ll see the sign for the trails pointing you to turn right before you reach the Center. Follow the dirt road going past a service road for a half mile to a small parking lot on the right. The trailhead is to the left.

State route 612 is just beyond the main entrance to the Center. Driving south on the Blue Ridge Parkway turn left and right if you are coming north. Once on the state route, the parking lot will be on the left in about a quarter of a mile. When the center is open, you can park near the entrance. Once you visit the museum and take in an afternoon concert, you can pick up the High Meadow Trail and follow it to the Fisher Peak Loop Trail.

The Trails

The Fisher Peak Loop Trail is about 2.25 miles. The first half of the trail climbs gradually in elevation. There aren’t many steep sections. When there are, they’re short stretches that are easy to manage. At times, the trail goes through open forest with mature trees and views of the surrounding mountains. The trail narrows in other places forcing hikers to brush up against tree branches and rhododendron bushes. Closer to the Center, a fast-running mountain stream with the clearest water crosses and runs parallel to the trail.

The High Meadow Trail runs behind the Center for just over a mile skirting the edge of a meadow on its way to connect with the Fisher Peak Loop Trail. During the spring, the meadow displays fragrant and colorful wild flowers. The expansive views from the trail also provide a perspective on the agrarian side of life in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Highly Recommend

Even when hiking on a winter day when a majority of the trees were covered with ice and a layer of snow lay over parts of the trails, the experience was tremendously enjoyable. In the spring, summer and fall when the weather is warmer, I know the trails will be even more enjoyable as foliage and wildflowers abound.

When you visit the Blue Ridge Music Center hiking trails, plan to extend your stay at Fancy Gap Cabins and Campground. Ten miles north of the Center close to milepost 203, reserve a motel room, camping cabin, tent site or a full hook-up RV space.