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Summit

Little Snowball Mountain

North Carolina

About

Little Snowball Mountain is a summit of 4,713 feet in the Appalachian Ranger District of the National Forests in North Carolina, about 4.5 miles from the town of Barnardsville. Summer and early fall are the most comfortable times to go. Typical averages from a nearby weather station show July highs around 76°F and September highs near 70°F with lows in the mid-50s. That station sits a few hundred feet lower than the summit, so temperatures up top run a little cooler. The closest outing is the Snowball hike, about 2.3 miles away. Douglas Falls and Craggy Pinnacle Trail are both within about 3.5 miles, and the Snake's Den climbing area is roughly 4.8 miles off.

Summit Facts

Summit elevation

4,713 ft

Elevation from USGS 3D Elevation Program terrain data (about 10 m resolution).

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Location

Little Snowball Mountain

North Carolina

Name and location: U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS). Elevation: USGS 3D Elevation Program. View the GNIS record.

Facts about this place

When to go

Best time to go: Apr–Oct. The mildest months here, with typical highs of 61–76°F and lows of 42–61°F.

Typical monthly averages (not a forecast) from the Swannanoa 2 Sse, NC weather station, 11 mi away. High / low in °F, and days with snow.

  1. Jan41° high25° low6 days with snow
  2. Feb44° high27° low5 days with snow
  3. Mar52° high33° low5 days with snow
  4. Apr62° high42° low2 days with snow
  5. May69° high50° low
  6. Jun73° high57° low
  7. Jul76° high61° low
  8. Aug75° high59° low
  9. Sep70° high54° low
  10. Oct61° high44° low
  11. Nov52° high34° low2 days with snow
  12. Dec44° high28° low5 days with snow

Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020

Where it is

Nearest town
Barnardsville, North Carolina · 4.5 mi

Source: USFS EDW boundaries; USGS GNIS populated places

Conditions

Active alerts for Appalachian Ranger District as of Oct 9, 2026:

Source: USFS forest alerts

Nearby

Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)

Is Little Snowball Mountain open right now?

Closure in the area

There's a closure order in National Forests in North Carolina. It doesn't name Little Snowball Mountain, so check the source for the area it covers (2 listed).

As of · Source: USFS · National Forests in North Carolina. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Best time to visit Little Snowball Mountain

Best months: May and September–October. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

  1. Jan

    41° / 25°

    13 wet · 6 snow

  2. Feb

    44° / 27°

    12 wet · 5 snow

  3. Mar

    52° / 33°

    13 wet · 5 snow

  4. Apr

    62° / 42°

    12 wet · 2 snow

  5. May

    69° / 50°

    12 wet

  6. Jun

    73° / 57°

    14 wet

  7. Jul

    76° / 61°

    14 wet

  8. Aug

    75° / 59°

    13 wet

  9. Sep

    70° / 54°

    10 wet

  10. Oct

    61° / 44°

    9 wet

  11. Nov

    52° / 34°

    10 wet · 2 snow

  12. Dec

    44° / 28°

    12 wet · 5 snow

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Swannanoa 2 Sse, NC, 10.5 mi away at 4,320 ft. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.