Cove Mountain
About
Cove Mountain is a summit of 2,677 feet in Virginia, about 3 miles from the town of Buchanan. It sits within the Glenwood and Pedlar Ranger Districts of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest, and the Appalachian National Scenic Trail passes through the area. For comfortable weather, aim for late spring or early fall. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Roanoke show May highs around 76°F and September highs near 79°F, while temperatures on the summit run cooler than those figures. The Appalachian Trail passes about half a mile away, and the Little Cove Mountain Trail is about a mile off. Climbers can head to Harkening Hill, roughly 2.8 miles away, and paddlers will find Jennings Creek about 3 miles out.
Summit Facts
Summit elevation
2,677 ft
Elevation from USGS 3D Elevation Program terrain data (about 10 m resolution).
Location
Cove Mountain
Virginia
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–Jun. The mildest months here, with typical highs of 68–82°F and lows of 42–60°F.
Typical monthly averages (not a forecast) from the Roanoke 8 N, VA weather station, 19 mi away. High / low in °F, and days with snow.
- Jan46° high25° low2 days with snow
- Feb49° high27° low2 days with snow
- Mar58° high33° low1 days with snow
- Apr68° high42° low
- May76° high51° low
- Jun82° high60° low
- Jul86° high64° low
- Aug85° high63° low
- Sep79° high56° low
- Oct69° high45° low
- Nov58° high34° low
- Dec49° high28° low1 days with snow
The station sits about 1,500 ft lower than this spot, so expect it to run cooler up here.
Where it is
- Glenwood and Pedlar Ranger Districts · Ranger district
- Appalachian National Scenic Trail · National Park Service
- George Washington and Jefferson National Forest · National forest
- Nearest town
- Buchanan, Virginia · 3 mi
Source: USFS EDW boundaries; NPS Land Resources boundaries; USGS GNIS populated places
Conditions
Active alerts for Glenwood and Pedlar Ranger Districts as of Oct 9, 2026:
Prohibitions on the James River Footbridge on the Appalachian National Scenic Trail
information · posted Aug 24, 2026
Source: USFS forest alerts
Nearby
- Appalachian TrailHiking0.5 mi
- Little Cove Mountain TrailHiking1 mi
- Harkening HillRock climbing2.8 mi
- Boulder XRock climbing3 mi
- Jennings CreekCanoeing3.1 mi
- Looney CreekCanoeing3.4 mi
- North CreekCamping5.7 mi
- Colon Hollow ShelterCamping5.8 mi
Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)
