Nestled In North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains Is A Cute Town With The East's Highest Mountain Resort

While Colorado is typically considered the state with the best skiing in the country, the Southeast is also filled with mountain ranges that are home to some iconic and lesser-known ski resorts. North Carolina, in particular, is the site of the convergence of the Appalachian Mountains and the Blue Ridge Mountains, and visitors to Asheville, North Carolina can visit the state's first established ski area. On the western side of the state, Beech Mountain is an idyllic winter wonderland that rests 5,506 feet above sea level, making it the highest town in the eastern U.S. Here, the Beech Mountain Ski Resort offers a variety of trails and lifts that will please the most experienced skier or snowboarder as well as accommodating a newcomer. In fact, the town is a beautiful place to visit all year round.

Beech Mountain was originally hunting land for Cherokee Natives, and fell along an animal trail that was known at the time as The Great Trading Path. After being largely known as a lumbering area at the dawn of the 20th century, a portion of the land was purchased by a dentist from Birmingham, Alabama named Thomas Brigham, who hoped to turn it into a ski resort. He ultimately sold the land, and his vision was carried out by the new owners, Harry and Grover Robbins, who developed the resort through their Carolina Caribbean Corporation. The brothers and their team of investors created the Beech Mountain Club, but the Carolina Caribbean Corporation filed for bankruptcy in 1975. The resort reopened as the Beech Mountain Ski Resort in 1981 and has continued to be one of the best winter resorts in the country ever since.

With 17 runs and 8 lifts to accommodate skiers and snowboarders of all ages and skill levels, Beech Mountain Ski Resort is a paradise for those with a burning desire to hit the slopes. The skiable area contains 95 acres with a vertical decline of 830 feet. The Powder Bowl Terrain Park is designated for snowboarding use and contains grinding rails, half pipes and platforms from which advanced snowboarders can bust out tricks. There is a designated tubing area with 700 foot runs and cosmic lights for night runs. The 2024-2025 season of operation began on November 30th and was scheduled to end on March 22nd. The resort sells single-day and multi-day ticket packages, as well as flex tickets, which grant flexibility on when to use the lift ticket.

There are plenty of options for patrons who'd rather opt to kick back and take in the sights. There is a bar at the top of the hill called 5506' Skybar, which offers decks with scenic views of the Blue Ridge Mountains and a variety of adult beverages, including the locally brewed Beech Mountain Brewing Co. beer. If one were to descend the mountainside by ski or lift, they would find Alpine Village at the base, which features a gift shop, restaurants, a brewery, and a school that offers lessons for beginners.

Because of its elevation, Beech Mountain stays fairly temperate year round, never exceeding around 72 degrees or so in the summer. The area is filled with hiking, biking, and fishing options that make a trip to Beech Mountain just as desirable during the warmer months, with enrapturing foliage colors during the fall. A good trail to take during the verdant months would be the Beech Mountain Overlook Trail, an out-and-back trail of about 1 mile that is listed as "moderate" on AllTrails. Along the path, one might run into a variety of wildlife, including white-tailed deer, red foxes, and black bears, just to name a few. On top of housing a living museum for birds of prey about 100 miles from Beech Mountain, the state of North Carolina is very friendly for bird watching. The Beech Mountain area is acknowledged by the High Country Audubon Society as a prime bird-watching locale, with species like the Carolina junco and red-tailed hawks known to fly through its skies.

There are also many events that are held at the resort and in town. At the resort, the Retro 80's Weekend has skiers dressing like they were in the movie "Better Off Dead" and celebrating everything '80s. In addition to the ski resort, the Robbins Brothers also constructed an amusement park themed after "The Wizard of Oz" called Land of Oz. Though the park closed down in 1980, the owning family kept portions of the park intact, and festivals like the Autumn at Oz has thousands of tourists flocking to its location to re-experience some of the original magic of the park. Beech Mountain is a winter getaway like no other, and proves that Colorado doesn't have the market cornered on winter fun.