The Appalachian Trail crosses the mountain's northern slope some four miles (6 km) east of Newfound Gap, allowing day-hikers and rock climbers easy access.

[4] The steep northern face of Charlies Bunion is drained by the headwaters of the Middle Fork of the Little Pigeon River, and loses 2,000 feet (609 m) in elevation in just over a mile.

Then in 1929, a cloudburst dumped torrential rains on the Smokies, washing away the scalded soil from the western flank of the Sawteeth and giving it its current rocky appearance.

When they reached the now-barren western flank of the Sawteeth, Charlie Conner, a mountain guide from Oconaluftee, removed his shoe, revealing a badly-swollen foot.

In 1935, the Civilian Conservation Corps constructed a leg of the Appalachian Trail across the northern face of Charlies Bunion for the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which had officially opened the previous year.