Black Mt. Crest Trail, NC

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Billed as the most difficult hike in the East my son and I started out at 6:30 a.m. from Bowlens Creek trailhead, off of Water Shed Road, south of Burnsville, NC. The old forest road is easy to follow, there are a few turn offs but if you stay to the left you will reach Celo Knob after a 3000 foot climb. Once on the ridge the change in altitude is minor from Celo Knob to Winter Star mountain. The trail is overgrown but easy to follow if you are use to herdpaths. The trail in this section, from Bowlen Creek to Winter Star is marked by only three signs so one needs to follow the dirt path carefully.
The short climb up Winter Star is follow by a drop into Deep Gap, an area one can camp in. The drop is several hundred feet and the climb out of the Gap is roughly 700 feet to Potato Hill. Once on Potato Hill you drop down 200 feet only to regain the elevation on Balsam. You again drop a 100 feet or so and regain the elevation again once up Cattail. After this you begin a slow steady climb up Big Tom, Mount Craig, and finally Mount Mitchell.

The section from Deep Gap to Mount Mitchell is more like a hike in the Northeast. The section from Bowlens Creek to Winter Star is more like sections of the AT in the south.

We did not find this 12 mile hike to be very difficult. It does have many fine points but it is in no way difficult. We finished by 2:15 p.m. with breaks.
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Just a follow-up:

From Bowlens Creek you climb 3000 ft. to Celo Knob: 6327 ft., the next two mountains have small elevations changes, Gibbs Mt., 6200 ft., Horse Rock, 6200 ft., follow by Winter Star Mt. at 6203 ft. After a short climb up Winter Star you drop into Deep Gap, follow by approx. 700 ft. climb to Potato Hill, 6475 ft., than slight drop and climb to Cattail Peak, 6600 ft., now steady gradual climb to Balsam Cone, 6600 ft., next Big Tom, 6630 ft., follow by Mt. Craig, 6647 ft., and finally Mount Mitchell, the highest peak in the East, 6684 ft. The total mileage from Bowlens Creek to Mount Mitchell roughly 12 miles, one way.