Geography of North Carolina - Blue Ridge/Appalachian Mountains

Blue Ridge/Appalachian Mountains

The mountains of North Carolina may be conveniently classed as four separate chains:

• The Great Smoky Mountains - also called the "Smokies".
• The Blue Ridge Mountains - North Carolina's largest mountain range, the Blue Ridge run across the state in a very tortuous course and often shoot out in spurs of great elevation over the surrounding terrain. The Black Mountains, a subrange of the Blue Ridge, are the highest mountains in the Eastern United States, and culminate in Mount Mitchell at 6,684 feet (2,037.3 m) above sea level.
• The Brushy Mountains - A much smaller and lower mountain range, the Brushy Mountains are located entirely within the state's borders. Often called the "Brushies", they divide, for the greater part of their courses, the waters of the Catawba River and Yadkin River. The Brushy Mountains begin at Hibriten Mountain in Caldwell County and terminate in Pilot Mountain and the Sauratown Mountains in Stokes County. The highest point in the Brushy Mountains is Pores Knob at 2,680 feet (817.4 m) above sea level.
• The Uwharrie Mountains - Named after a Native American tribe which once lived in the region. The Uwharries are North Carolina's easternmost mountain range; they are the oldest mountain range in North America and are the lowest mountain range in the state. The Uwharries begin in Montgomery County, North Carolina and terminate in the hills of Person County, North Carolina. The highest point in the Uwharries is High Rock Mountain, which is only 1,119 feet (341.1 m) above sea level. However, the Uwharries still rise several hundred feet above the surrounding terrain, which averages only 500 feet (150 m) above sea level.

Each of these mountain ranges is marked by distinct characteristics. The Smoky Mountain chain (as contrasted with the Blue Ridge) is more continuous, more elevated, more regular in its direction and height, and rises very uniformly from 5000 to 6,621 feet (2,018.1 m).

The Blue Ridge is composed of many fragments scarcely connected into a continuous and regular chain. Its higher summits range from 5000 to nearly 6,700 feet (2,040 m); however, its average elevation is from 3000 to 4,000 feet (1,200 m). The eastern slopes of the Blue Ridge rise sharply from 1500 to 4,500 feet (1,370 m) above the terrain to the east; to observers they often appear as a vast, lofty wall running across the state's western horizon. The Brushy Mountain range presents, throughout the greater part of its course, a remarkable uniformity in direction and elevation, many of its peaks rising above 2,000 feet (600 m), and a few rising above 2,500 feet (760 m). The last, the Uwharrie range, sometimes presents a succession of elevated ridges, then a number of bold and isolated knobs, which often appear higher than they actually are, due to the relative flatness of the surrounding terrain.

The mountain section consists of the tallest peaks east of the Rocky Mountains. The tallest of the Appalachian Mountains is Mount Mitchell. Mount Mitchell is also the tallest point east of the Mississippi River. The section enclosed within these limits is in shape somewhat like an ellipse. Its length is about one hundred and eighty miles; its average breadth from twenty to fifty miles. It is a high plateau, from the plane of which several high mountains rise, including the Roan, the Grandfather, and the Black. Between the mountains are scenic fertile valleys, plentifully watered by streams.

The mountains lie within the Appalachian-Blue Ridge forests ecoregion and are heavily forested. They often feature thick underbrush, except a few which have prairies on their summits, called balds.