Hiking in Blue Ridge Parkway

A finance professional experienced in foreign direct investments, Rebecca Gaskin Gain sits on the board of CBZ Holdings as an independent non-executive director. CBZ Holdings is the largest finance and investment bank in Zimbabwe. Outside of work, Rebecca Gaskin Gain joins her husband in hiking in the Blue Ridge Parkway.

The Blue Ridge Parkway offers 469 miles of hiking trails through Appalachia’s rolling pastures, towering mountains, cascading waterfalls, and gorges filled with wildflowers. Over 100 hiking trails that travail through Virginia and North Carolina offer close-up views of unique geological and biological environments. Some of these trails also lead to storied historical sites in the area.

The hiking trails in Blue Ridge Parkway are categorized into easy, moderate, and strenuous to fit all types of hikers. One of the most popular easy trails is the Humpback Rocks trail, which offers magnificent views of the Humpback Rocks and the Humpback Mountains. The 3.9-mile trail ends at the Humpback Rock picnic area.

The Otter Creek and James River hiking trails, considered moderately-difficult trails, lead to the lowest elevation in Blue Ridge Parkway at 649 feet above sea level. These trails, which have a cumulative distance of 5.2 miles, offer scenic views of the Otter Lake, the unique geological formation of the James River water gap, and the historic Kanawha Canal which dates back to the Civil War.

Hikers looking for strenuous hiking trails in the Blue Ridge Parkway may proceed to the Appalachian Trail, which is accessible from the Humpback gap. At an elevation of 3,650 feet above sea level, this portion of the Appalachian Trail spanning two miles offers hikers a different sense of accomplishment having hiked on the nation’s premier hiking trail.