With the Blue Ridge Mountains, Pisgah National Forest and Nanatahala National Forest, as neighbors, there is never a shortage of places to explore the beauty of your Western North Carolina home, be it on foot or bike. And right in your own backyard - 2,100 acres of some of the most scenic landscape of all. With trails like Paw Paw Cove, Bearpen Patch and Hickory Mountain, Bear Lake Reserve has more than 17 miles of varied and wild terrain to explore. Take a morning shoreline stroll along Bear Creek Lake. Hike past cascading creeks and along trails that wind their way through deep green forests and past giant rock outcrops. Best of all, every trail leads you right back home again. So, pick up our field guide and get out there.

For more information on outdoor adventures in the area, visit www.mountainlovers.com.