#averycounty

This is why they call it the Blue Ridge Mountains!

•Grandfather Mountain rises 5,964 feet above sea level.

•It is located at the meeting point of Avery, Caldwell, and Watauga counties.

•The mountain is famous for its rugged character, and is home to many hidden caves and significant cliffs.

•It has been reported that Grandfather Mountain has experienced some of the "highest surface wind speeds ever recorded," with unverified speeds in excess of 200 mph.

•Grandfather Mountain is the highest peak on the eastern escarpment of the Blue Ridge Mountains, one of the major chains of the Appalachian Mountains. (Nearby Mt. Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Mississippi River, is on the western escarpment.)

•The Blue Ridge Parkway passes by the south side of the mountain and also passes over the nearby Grandmother Gap.

•Grandfather Mountain’s famous Mile High Swinging Bridge, built in 1952, is America’s highest suspension footbridge.

•Two rivers have headwaters on Grandfather Mountain, the Linville River, flowing east, and the Watauga River, flowing west.

•Many lesser streams originate on the slopes of Grandfather, including: Upper Boone Fork, Little Wilson Creek, Wilson Creek (North Carolina), Stack Rock Creek, and others.

•The primary massif (ridge) of the mountain is oriented roughly north to south, and features four named peaks:

Calloway Peak (5,964 ft.), Attic Window Peak (5,949 ft.), MacRae Peak (5,844 ft.), and Linville Peak (5,295 ft.).

•Due to the considerable elevation gain, the mountain boasts 16 distinct ecological communities.

•The mountain is estimated to be 300 million years old – with certain rock formations dating back 1.2 billion years.

📍Pictured is Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina from an airplane. November 2023 by flyinredneck.

Abandoned house in Avery County, North Carolina

1908- Farm at the foot of Spear Tops by the North Toe River near the Spear community in what is now Avery County, N.C. Avery County was formed in 1911.