
About and How to Visit:
Blackrock Mountain in the Plott Balsam Mountains is part of a network of conservation lands in progress of being added to an expansion of national park land at Waterrock Knob on the Blue Ridge Parkway. SAHC leads a guided group hike to from Waterrock Knob to Blackrock Mountain in October.
The Blackrock Mountain summit and land trust protected land can be viewed from the Plott Balsam overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway (mile post 458), the Waterrock Knob visitor center (mile post 451.2), and multiple locations along the parkway on the drive north from Waterrock Knob. A publicly-accessible hiking trail originates on the Blue Ridge Parkway below the Waterrock Knob overlook. A proposed future trail will link Waterrock Knob with the Blackrock Mountain summit purchased by SAHC, which contains a destination vantage point with stunning views.
SAHC’s involvement in conservation:
In 2013, Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy purchased the summit of Blackrock Mountain, with more than 250 surrounding acres. The property adjoins other conservation lands: SAHC’s 60-acre Blackrock Ridge tract (protected in 2010), the Sylva Watershed (protected with a conservation easement held by the Land Trust for the Little Tennessee), and The Nature Conservancy’s Plott-Balsam Preserve.