I've not camped/hiked in that area, but the first thing that came to my mind was the Mountains to Sea trail that is pretty close. You could almost hike home from the Smokies!
West of Asheville is Mt. Pisgah, north of Asheville is Pisgah Forest. I really like the area west north of Brevard, up Hwy 276, and either side of the Blue Ridge Pkwy, specifically the Art Loeb trail.
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