Views of the Blue Ridge from the Piedmont Foothills

When the humidity drops below 30%, the views of the Blue Ridge Mountains from the North Carolina Piedmont Foothills can take your breath away. Above, the view to the northwest from the town of Rutherfordton shows the Black Mountain range with Mt. Mitchell in the center. The closest ridge has an elevation of 2,000 feet. The ridge in the middle is Hickory Nut Mountain at 3,200 feet. The distant ridge is over 6,500 feet.

Due north is a 3,700 foot mountain between Marion and Linville Gorge. The east fork of the Catawba River descends from Grandfather Mountain through the valley to the left of this impressive peak.

Rarely can one see detail on the slopes of the Black Mountains from more than thirty miles away, but today was the exception. An approaching cold front created unusual high level clouds as the setting sun gave a salmon tint to the scene, above.

Pinnacle Peak at 2,500 feet has the definitive mountain shape as part of a range that towers over a small town and church steeple at sunset.

Mike’s Mountain, at 2,300 feet, sits astride the Rutherford/McDowell County line to the north. The failed community of Queen’s Gap sits at the base of the mountain, hoping to be resurrected in the future. In the distance just right of Mike’s Mountain is the peak at Little Switzerland and the Blue Ridge Parkway.

• November 23, 2013
• Autumn, Black Mountains, Blue Ridge Escarpment, Hickory Nut Mountain, Linville Gorge, Mt. Mitchell, North Carolina, Piedmont Plateau, Queen's Gap
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