Shelter View–Buck Gap, 5 saddles is a 7.5-mile out-and-back near Ridgecrest, NC. The route passes Buck Gap and Shelter View before reaching Rainbow Gap at the turnaround, 3.7 miles in. It climbs 1,843 ft, with sections as steep as 18% grade, and is mostly dirt. It scores 54/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: backcountry feel.
Elevation
0 mi2,654 – 3,717 ft · steepest grade: 18%8.1 mi
Getting there
Trailhead: Unnamed 35.62338, -82.27355
Nearest town Ridgecrest, NC
Directions
AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com
Shelter View–Buck Gap, 5 saddles
7.5 mi · ▲ 1,843 ft · 3 hr 25 min
Elevation 2,655–3,717 ft
Out & Back
Trailhead: 35.62338, -82.27355
Weather Sep 5: sunrise 7:05 AM · sunset 7:53 PM
Dogs allowed on leash · Parking lot at the trailhead
- Start at the trailhead, heading NE.
- 0.2 miTurn left onto Royal Gorge Trail, heading N.
- 0.9 miBear right onto Adventure Trail, heading N.
- 1.5 miSharp right onto Old Mitchell Toll Road, heading N.
- 0.2 miContinue straight onto East Ridge Trail, heading NW.
- 250 ftPass Buck Gap.
- 200 ftBear left onto Old Mitchell Toll Road, heading N.
- 50 ftTurn left onto Buck Gap Trail, heading N.
- 300 ftPass Shelter View.
- 200 ftTurn left onto Old Trestle Road, heading NE.
- 0.8 miBear left onto Lookout Trail, heading W.
- 50 ftSharp right onto Old Mitchell Toll Road, heading W.
- 50 ftContinue straight onto Old Trestle Road, heading W.
- 400 ftPass Rainbow Gap.
- 250 ftBear left onto Old Mitchell Toll Road, heading S.
- 100 ftReach Shelter View, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 100 ftBear right onto Old Trestle Road, heading W.
- 0.1 miContinue straight onto Old Mitchell Toll Road, heading W.
- 50 ftSharp left onto Lookout Trail, heading W.
- 50 ftBear right onto Old Trestle Road, heading W.
- 0.7 miTurn right onto Buck Gap Trail, heading N.
- 0.1 miTurn right onto Old Mitchell Toll Road, heading NE.
- 50 ftBear right onto East Ridge Trail, heading NE.
- 450 ftContinue straight onto Old Mitchell Toll Road, heading N.
- 0.2 miSharp left onto Adventure Trail, heading NE.
- 1.5 miBear left onto Mount Mitchell Road, heading S.
- 0.8 miContinue straight onto Royal Gorge Trail, heading SW.
- 150 ftTurn right, heading S.
- 450 ftArrive back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
88% dirt2% gravel10% unspecified
Weather
Sunrise 7:05 AMSunset 7:53 PM
Sunset
The best sunset spot on this hike is 3.0 mi in (~108 min). Leave by 5:45 PM for the 7:53 PM sunset. Back at your car by 9:27 PM, after dark — bring a headlamp.
Good to know
- Dogs allowed on leash
- Parking lot at the trailhead
More from this trailhead
- Lookout Mountain–Rhododendron Ridge Trail, 3 sights 4.4 mi · ▲ 1,457 ft
- Copperhead Mountain–Rhododendron Ridge Trail, 3 sights 4.7 mi · ▲ 1,503 ft
- Rattlesnake Mountain–Rhododendron Ridge Trail, 3 sights 4.8 mi · ▲ 1,593 ft
- Lookout Mountain–Rainbow Gap, 4 sights 5.3 mi · ▲ 1,966 ft
- Boggs Bunion–Sourwood Gap, 7 sights 6.2 mi · ▲ 2,239 ft
- Crestridge Lake–Rattlesnake Trail, 4 sights 6.2 mi · ▲ 2,128 ft
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Hikes near Ridgecrest, North Carolina