We visited Brevard in May 2025 as part of our May Carolinas loop.

After a lovely two days in Bryson City, we drove an easy 1.5 hours back east to Brevard, 40 minutes south of Asheville and hilariously to us, just 20 minute up the road from Lake Toxaway. Brevard’s draw for us was its location at the entrance to Pisgah National Forest, but we found so much more than great hiking there.

Brevard is a vibrant town with good food and drink options, and we enjoyed exploring downtown and the Lumberyard District. One of the first things that struck us about Brevard was their white squirrel mascot found all over town: the story goes that after a pair of white squirrels from a carnival in Florida were gifted to a Brevard resident in 1949, the squirrels escaped and started breeding in the wild. In 1986, Brevard declared themselves a sanctuary for squirrels, and the white squirrels now make up a third of all local squirrels. I was desperate to see one, but alas, not this trip. Apparently the best way to spot one is to drive through residential neighborhoods, or visit local parks or Brevard College.

Campground

We adored our big riverfront campsite at Davidson River Campground, a shady and peaceful (and popular! book way in advance!) campground within the national forest, just a few miles from Brevard. The campground has bathrooms and showers but no internet, and the campsites have picnic tables and fire rings, but no power or water (there are spigots conveniently located throughout the campground, and the nice people at the campground entrance gate let use their power outlet to make our morning smoothies). We spent time at our site reading by the river or sitting by the campfire, the whole time missing Bugsy… she would have absolutely loved it there.

Hiking

We chose highly-rated hikes close to home to take advantage of Brevard’s location near Pisgah NF and DuPont State Recreational Forest. Next time, we might drive a bit farther afield to check out Table Rock State Park, about 40 minutes away in South Carolina.

Our first hike in Pisgah was Coon Tree to Perry Cove loop, a 6.5-mile walk through the trees with two bigger climbs and no payoff vistas–but the woods were very pretty.

Next up, this four-mile Cedar Rock loop in Dupont State Recreational Forest had a super beginning with views from the bare rocks at the top, but after Cedar Rock the trail was a bit dull.

Finally, we hiked Daniel Ridge in Pisgah, a 4.9-mile loop through the forest and along a stream to a gorgeous waterfall. This was our favorite of the three hikes.

Eating and drinking

Beer

Our first order of business in Brevard was to drive downtown and explore on foot. Part of that exploration involved getting a beer at Brevard Brewing Company and strolling around the social district. Yes, Brevard has created a several block-wide area where you can buy an adult beverage and enjoy it as you wander around and pop into the cute shops. Wish more cities would follow Brevard’s lead!

Oskar Blues Brewery‘s East Coast outpost is in Brevard, just a few minutes from our campground. We had previously visited their Austin outpost (closed in 2023) and J likes their beer, so we checked it out. It’s a huge place with lots of dog- and family-friendly outdoor space and a burger-based food truck.

Weevil Gear & Beer was much more our speed: we love a combined outdoor store/drinking establishment (see: Lake Toxaway and Bryson City) and this one didn’t disappoint, with local beers on tap, a great patio, and Frodo, the adorable resident corgi.

Ecusta Brewing has a gorgeous new taproom overlooking green fields just a mile from our campground, and we enjoyed sitting on the deck. Their in-house Latin American-themed restaurant, Gordingo’s, looked delicious, but we had plans to hit the Indian food truck at Pisgah Tavern (another bike shop/beer joint combo) on our way home. The food truck closed at 6:00!!! So sad. I made us a curry at home instead!

Food

After browsing downtown shops, we stopped for a snack at Wood and Vine, a bistro and wine bar. The bartender recommended the shrimp cocktail, which is a hit-or-miss dish for us, and this one was really good!

Dinner our first night was carry-out salads from The Bohemian, and upon grabbing our food I wished we were eating in the restaurant instead of taking the salads to Oskar Blues because the ambiance was so appealing. Maybe next time!

Our best dining experience in Brevard was brunch at Morning Social. The entire menu looked scrumptious; we both ordered from the breakfast menu and soaked up the May sun on the patio. What a cool spot–and the Lumberyard District neighborhood deserves more exploration next trip.

From Brevard, it was an easy 40-minute drive up to Asheville–close enough for a day trip, sure, but we’ll definitely be back to spend a night or two in Brevard.