Outdoor Things to Do in Asheville

Lake Tomahawk Park is a 16-acre town park around an 8.9-acre lake in Black Mountain, a short walk from downtown. A 0.55-mile walking trail loops the lake with views of the surrounding mountains, and the park has a fishing pier, playground, tennis courts, a picnic pavilion and public restrooms. Non-motorized boats are allowed on the water, and the Black Mountain Pool is at the park too. It's open every day from 5am to 11pm.

Hominy Creek River Park is a Buncombe County riverside park on Hominy Creek Road in West Asheville, where Hominy Creek meets the French Broad River. It has river access for paddlers and anglers, picnic tables, grills and a fitness course, and it marks the southern end of the French Broad River Greenway. Paddlers floating down from Bent Creek often take out here. The peninsula section is still closed after Hurricane Helene, and there are no restrooms.

Looking for some majestical waterfall energy? The popular High Falls loop trail will take you to see High Falls and Triple Falls in Dupont State Recreational Forest. Join Hike NC with Me in experiencing our weekly 360 degree hike!

Asheville E-Bikes rents e-bikes from its downtown office at 70 Woodfin Place, with four-hour, daily and multi-day rentals by appointment. Standard e-bikes fit riders from 5 foot 1 to 6 foot 2, with a 500-watt motor and about a 45-mile battery range, and cargo e-bikes carry up to 400 pounds. You can pick up downtown or get delivery and pickup within five miles for all-day rentals.

Foothills Watershed is a brewery, BBQ kitchen and mountain bike park on Catawba River Road in Old Fort, with riding trails, river access and outdoor seating.

Craggy Gardens is a set of short hiking trails on the Blue Ridge Parkway at Milepost 364, about 20 miles north of downtown Asheville. Craggy Pinnacle Trail climbs about 20 minutes to a rocky summit with 360-degree views, and the Craggy Gardens Trail starts at the visitor center and climbs through rhododendron to a large trail shelter. In June, pink and purple Catawba rhododendron covers the slopes. The visitor center at Milepost 364.4 has natural history exhibits and is open seasonally. The picnic area stays closed through 2026 after Hurricane Helene.

The French Broad River Greenway is a paved riverside walking and biking path in West Asheville, running about 4 miles along the French Broad River from Hominy Creek River Park to Craven Street near New Belgium Brewing. It passes Carrier Park and Amboy Riverfront Park, with river views, open fields and picnic spots along the way, and bridges link it to the Wilma Dykeman Greenway in the River Arts District. The stretch through French Broad River Park is still closed after Hurricane Helene. The greenway is open every day from 6am to 10pm.

Asheville Municipal Golf Course is a public golf course at 226 Fairway Drive in East Asheville, designed by Donald Ross in 1927 and one of the oldest courses in Western North Carolina. The par 72 layout plays 3,246 yards on the front nine and 3,194 on the back from the back tees, through rolling hills along the Swannanoa River valley. You can book tee times online or by phone, and the course hosts golf outings and events.

Devil’s Courthouse is a short but steep hike to an amazing view near the Blue Ridge Parkway. This is a family friendly, free hike that’s less than a mile! Check out the 360 degree video created by Hike NC with Me: https://youtu.be/SeITlUSHRK4

Black Mountain Golf Course is a public 18-hole course at 17 Ross Drive in Black Mountain, about 17 miles east of Asheville in the foothills of the Black Mountain Range. Established in 1929, the 6,215-yard, par 71 course has a front nine first designed by Donald Ross and a 747-yard par 6 17th hole that was once the longest hole in the world. There's a practice green, a pro shop, and the Green Tee Grille, and the course hosts group outings and charity tournaments. It's open year-round except Christmas Day, weather permitting, and you can book tee times online any time.

Catawba Falls is a waterfall hiking trail in Pisgah National Forest off Interstate 40 at Old Fort, east of Asheville. The trail follows the Catawba River upstream about 1.5 miles, past the 205-foot Lower Falls to the 80-foot Upper Falls. A Forest Service rebuild added 580 stairs, three overlooks and a 60-foot observation tower on the climb to Upper Falls, and the Ridge Trail loops back to the parking lot for about 3.5 miles total. The upper viewing platform reopened in September 2026 after Hurricane Helene repairs.

Wildcat Rock via Wildcat Rock Trail is a 3.5 mile out and back trail located near Gerton, North Carolina that features a waterfall and is rated as moderate. Check out the 360 degree video created by Hike NC with Me: https://youtu.be/Gc-cfzs8gDY

Hunter Banks Fly Fishing is a full-service fly shop and guide service at 29 Montford Avenue, near downtown Asheville, open since February 1985. Founder and owner Frank Smith's shop stocks rods, reels, flies, waders, apparel and gear from brands like Simms and Umpqua, and its guides take anglers out on the French Broad River, nearby tailwaters and freestone streams in the Blue Ridge. New anglers can start with a half-day fly fishing school from $300 or a full-day school from $400 that covers casting, knots, fly selection and reading water. The shop also teaches fly-tying classes and hosts fishing travel trips.

Curtis Wright Outfitters is a fly-fishing shop and guide service on North Main Street in downtown Weaverville, north of Asheville. The shop helps outfit anglers for trout and smallmouth bass trips in Western North Carolina. Half-day and full-day wading trips, guided river floats and fly-fishing lessons give beginners and experienced anglers different ways to get on the water. The retail shop is open Monday through Saturday.

The Bridal Veil Falls trailhead is located right outside of the High Falls Visitor’s Center. Check out the 360 degree video created by our friends at Hike NC with Me: https://youtu.be/l2gNXvOcNgQ

Bullington Gardens is a 12-acre public botanical garden on Upper Red Oak Trail in Hendersonville, about 30 minutes south of Asheville. It's a nonprofit partnership with NC Cooperative Extension and Henderson County Public Schools, and it teaches horticulture to students and visitors. Walk the perennial garden, herb garden, therapy garden and woodland paths, and look for the Fairy Trail, open June through August. Admission is free, with a suggested donation of $3 for adults and $2 for kids. From April through October it's open Monday through Saturday 9am to 4pm, and from November through March Monday through Friday.

Asheville Canoe House rents canoes for self-guided trips on the French Broad River from Hominy Creek River Park at 220 Hominy Creek Road in West Asheville. Choose a four-hour half-day rental, a private sunset trip, or a multi-day camping trip, and the shuttle takes you upriver so you paddle back to your car. Rentals include a canoe, paddles, life jackets and a dry bag with a first aid kit, and groups of eight canoes or more get group rates.

The Adventure Center of Asheville is an outdoor adventure park at 85 Expo Drive, about five minutes from downtown, behind Sam's Club. The Zipline Canopy Adventures fly through 150-year-old oaks with views of downtown Asheville: the Asheville Zipline Tour has 9 ziplines and the Skyline Tour has 5, and both end on 1,200-foot side-by-side zips, for ages 8 and up. Asheville Treetops Adventure Park has more than 77 climbing, rolling, swinging and rappelling challenges on 7 aerial trails, for ages 4 and up. KidZip was America's first zipline course built for kids, with 9 ziplines and 4 climbing elements for ages 4 to 10. Kolo Bike Park adds pump tracks, jump lines and skills areas, with bike rentals for adults and kids. In October the park hosts Asheville Plays' family-friendly Haunted Trail.

Navitat Canopy Adventures is a zipline park in Moody Cove at 242 Poverty Branch Road in Barnardsville, about 25 minutes north of downtown Asheville. The Mountaintop Tour runs side-by-side zips high over the cove, and the shorter Treetop Express Tour stays 100% in the trees, with ziplines and a rope descent in about half the time. Navitat at Night takes the Mountaintop Tour out under the stars. For family members who'd rather keep their feet on the ground, the Guided RTV Shadow Tour follows the zip course by off-road vehicle. Guests are weighed at check-in: the Mountaintop Tour takes riders from 60 to 265 pounds, and the Treetop Express takes riders from 35 to 225 pounds. Navitat is open Thursday through Monday, 9 AM to 5 PM, and closes December through February.

Holmes Educational State Forest is a free N.C. Forest Service forest with hiking trails, picnic grounds and nature exhibits on Crab Creek Road west of Hendersonville, about 35 miles from Asheville. Trails run from the flat half-mile Crab Creek Trail, past a retired Forest Service helicopter and the 1929 Spivey fire tower, to the strenuous Demonstration Trail loop that climbs the ridge to an overlook. On the Talking Tree Trail you press a button and the trees tell you about themselves. There are picnic tables, grills and a big picnic shelter with a stone fireplace. It's open Tuesday through Friday from 9am to 5pm, plus Saturday and Sunday 11am to 6pm from March through October.

Carrier Park is a City of Asheville riverfront park on Amboy Road in West Asheville, built on the site of the old New Asheville Motor Speedway along the French Broad River. Hurricane Helene flooded the park in 2024, and the city is planning its rebuild as part of the French Broad Riverfront Parks Recovery project, with construction expected to start in 2027. For now the east side is open, with the picnic shelter, wetlands education area, rolling lawn and parking lot, and the French Broad River Greenway runs through the whole park. The west side, including the playground, basketball and volleyball courts, roller rink, lawn bowling and sports field, is still closed, along with the velodrome. The park is open daily from 6 AM to 10 PM.

The Wilma Dykeman Greenway is a paved riverfront path through the River Arts District in Asheville, running about 2 miles along Riverside Drive from Amboy Road and Lyman Street to Hill Street. Opened in 2021, it was the city's first lit greenway and first two-way protected bike lane, and it includes Asheville's first public boat ramp at Craven Street. Walk past artist studios, public art like the giant bike sprocket sculpture, and river access at Jean Webb Park. It's open every day from 6am to 10pm.

Lake Julian Park is a Buncombe County park on the banks of 300-acre Lake Julian at 37 Lake Julian Road in Arden, just south of Asheville. Families come for fishing from the bank and the docks, paddleboat rentals, a playground, picnic areas and shelters, a disc golf course and outdoor games. The lake is a good spot for birding too, with herons, geese and ducks along the shore. The park is open every day, and hours change with the seasons, closing as early as 5 PM in December and as late as 9 PM in summer. The county also rents out spaces at the park for events, reunions and parties.

Asheville Botanical Garden is a free 14-acre native plant preserve at 151 W.T. Weaver Blvd. in North Asheville, next to UNC Asheville. Local volunteers founded it in 1960 as the University Botanical Gardens, and it still showcases plants native to the Southern Appalachians along mostly level gravel trails, a wildflower trail, stream crossings and a bird viewing deck. The grounds are open sunrise to sunset every day, and the Visitor Center and restrooms are open 10 am to 4 pm. Admission and parking are free, and the nonprofit runs on members and donors, with no university or government operating funds. In September 2026, UNC Asheville extended the garden's lease through 2072. Classes on native plants, meadows and pollinators run through the year, and the Day in the Gardens plant sale has been held every spring since 1969.