Roan Mountain State Park is one of the prime parts of the state park system. It stands at the foot of the Roan Massif, and its RV campground offers a great base for exploring the highlands not just of the Roan but all the spectacular highlands of Northeast Tennessee, Western North Carolina and Southwest Virginia. There is also plenty to do and see inside the park during the summer including interpretive ranger programs, weekly free concerts on Friday evenings, a tour of the century-old Miller Farmstead, and exploring around the old iron mining operations along the Peg Leg Mine.
There is also the nearby splendors of the Highlands of the Roan and the Hampton Creek Cove State Natural Area. The Appalachian Trail is atop the Roan Highlands, following the state border between Tennessee and North Carolina for about 14 miles and offering some of the most spectacular balds and marks the last time the trail will be above 6,000 feet on a northbound trip for another 1,000 miles. If that is not reason enough to make the trip to Roan Mountain, there is also the annual Roan Mountain Rhododendron Festival, the oldest festival in Carter County which has attracted some pretty important people, including Richard Nixon back in the days when he was vice president of the United States.
The park is located on Tenn. Highway 143, a few miles off U.S.
Highway 19E near the village of Roan Mountain. It is about 30 minutes from Johnson City and 60 minutes from Kingsport. It is situated on 2,000 acres of .
