About Friends of DuPont Forest

The DuPont State Recreational Forest is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains between Hendersonville and Brevard, North Carolina. Its 10,400 acres of forest feature four major waterfalls on the Little River and several on the Grassy Creek.The original 7600 acre forest was established in 1996 through a generous bargain sale from the DuPont Corporation. In 2000, the Forest was expanded by two property additions, including the spectacular 2200 acre tract in the center of the Forest containing High Falls, Triple Falls, and Bridal Veil Falls.

• See History of DuPont State Recreational Forest.

The original property is presently open to hunting, fishing, hiking, horseback riding and mountain biking (see maps, trail guide and user policies ).

Getting There

The DuPont State Recreational Forest can be accessed from Hendersonville via Kanuga/Crab Creek Rd, from Asheville/Brevard via US64 and Little River Rd, or from Greenville/Brevard via Cedar Mountain and Cascade Lake Rd. See directions to public parking lots.

The Landscape

The DuPont State Recreational Forest lies in an upland plateau of the Little River valley, with large sections of gently rolling land bordered by moderately steep hills and mountains. Most all of the ridges have exposed granite slabs and domes. Elevation ranges from 2300′ below Hooker Falls on the Little River to 3600′ on the granite dome of Stone Mountain. Except for 21 small wildlife clearings, hundreds of acres of exposed granite, and a former camp facility on Lake Julia, the entire property is forested, mostly with young to medium aged trees, dating back to fires, farms, and forestry operations in the middle part of this century. Though sections of the property are white pine plantation (especially the Flatwood near Guion Farm), most are mixed with hardwoods gradually succeeding the softwoods.

The Little River flows through the Forest both upstream and downstream of the Agfa Corporation manufacturing site. The property contains four major waterfalls on the Little River, and several smaller waterfalls on the Grassy Creek, which drains a large portion of the eastern part of the Forest.

Learn more about the ecological importance of the DuPont State Recreational Forest.

Trails and Roads

Approximately eighty miles of dirt roads exist on the property. The paved roads (Staton, Cascade Lake, and Old CCC) and state gravel roads (Sky Valley and Pinnacle Mountain) are public roadways open to motorized traffic. Larger gravel roads put in by the Cliffs development may also be opened to the public in the future. All remaining roads are closed to vehicular traffic (including ATV’s), but most will be maintained as roads to support forestry & fire operations. Many of these roads have gentle grades, and present excellent opportunities for hikers, cyclists, and equestrians wanting to avoid steep terrain.

Many of the dirt roads have recently been repaired to minimize soil erosion. Much of this work has been done by volunteer crews, primarily from the Pisgah Trailblazers horseback riding club and the Blue Ridge Bicycle Club. Public use policies will need to be reviewed periodically to assure that surface water quality is not being degraded by eroded roadbeds.

See trail guide and maps of trail system.