SILER RIDGE (VIA WINDING STAIR)

Siler Bald at 5,216 feet was named for William Siler whose great grandson, Reverend A. Rufus Morgan, helped establish the A.T. in North Carolina. The U.S. Forest Service clears and maintains the bald which has a grassy summit with spectacular (and nearly 360 degree) views from Tray Mountain to the Great Smoky Mountains. Wayah Bald, about six trail miles north, can also be seen to the north. This is a backtrack hike that starts at Winding Stair Gap on U.S. 64 about ten miles from Franklin, N.C. and climbs over 2200 feet through Snowbird Gap to the summit of Siler Bald.