I recently read this
article by Derek Halsey in the Mountain Times on the Kruger Brothers "Roan Mountain Suite", published on 10/18/2016. I am both a fan of the
Kruger Brothers and a lover of
Roan Mountain - and long-time occasional reader
of the
Mountain Times. I am an avid hiker and
Roan Mountain is one of my favorite places in the entire world!
I
am writing to point out some misconceptions in the introductory
statements the article, especially the portion I have bolded.
For most of the
hikers located in the High Country, Roan Mountain is considered part of
our family of peaks, even though it resides just across the border with
Tennessee.
In fact, when you
take the half hour drive from Banner Elk (right on Rt. 19E then left on
Rt. 143) to the mountaintop lot where you park to hike both the
Appalachian Trail as well as the Roan Mountain Grassy Highlands, a
“Welcome to North Carolina” sign stands just yards down the road. But
let there be no mistake, Roan Mountain firmly resides in the Volunteer
State and is happily claimed by the citizens of Tennessee.
The caption on the page 2 photo states:
Roan Mountain is considered part of our family of peaks in the High Country, but the mountain resides just across the Tennessee border.
It's
indeed true that the quickest and most direct way to get to Carver's
Gap and the summits of Roan Mountain from the Boone/Banner Elk, NC area is through
TN. Although it is possible to access Roan Mountain from the NC side by taking NC Hwy 261 via Bakersville, from most of the Boone area, this adds unnecessary time and miles to the trip. (However, keep in mind that this is the faster way to access Roan Mountain from areas in NC to the West and South of Boone). Due to its location, Roan Mountain is on the high country's periphery, although high
country residents do typically include it in the "local" repertoire of
hikes, because of its relative proximity and it being a true mountain gem.
It would be foolish to downplay the historical and cultural significance that the town of Roan Mountain, TN and
Roan Mountain TN state park play in that area. The Rhododendron festival
around the 4th of July and other celebrations throughout the year bring
world-famous acclaim to the town and its environs. But, while the Volunteer State may claim Roan Mountain as its own, the fact remains that the vast majority of the mountain itself, including the "highlands", lies within NC - and many Tarheels (including me) also claim it as their own.
This not only includes sharing the highest summit of Roan Mountain between NC and TN, Roan High Knob (the 6,285 ft peak, not 6,185 ft as stated in the article) but also includes all of
the following in NC: Roan High Bluff (the 6,267 ft peak, including the
associated overlook), the Rhododendron Gardens (and all vantage points
to the east, south and west), the bathroom facilities and parking areas on the summit area, and thus the vast majority of the mountain.
This
can be seen by taking a close look at the map of Roan Mountain: while
the NC/TN border runs to the west along the crest of the balds to
Carver's Gap and up to Roan High Knob,
just to the west at Toll House Gap, the state border takes an abrupt
turn to the north. This leaves the remainder of the mountain to the
west and south in NC.
Likewise, the
vast majority of the highlands east of Carver's Gap, including the
famed balds that run to Grassy Ridge Bald (along with the Appalachian
Trail
and the TN/NC border),
are mostly within NC. Just before Grassy Ridge Bald, the state line
also turns to the north, and nearly the entire summit area above 6,000
ft is in NC.
The
area I've chosen to focus on doesn't include the eastern part of the
highlands that also includes Yellow Mountain (split roughly half and
half between TN and NC), Big Yellow Mountain (which is almost entirely
in NC), Little Hump Mountain (split roughly half and half between TN and NC) and Hump Mountain
(which is almost entirely in NC). If these areas were included, too,
the highlands would tip to an even greater portion being in NC.
As
a beginning reference point, please see the USGS Topographic map
centered on Carver's Gap (Note: this map is a composite of 4 topo
quads):
Next, see
the markup I've done on the attached topographic map showing the area
in TN and NC (see: Roan Mountain Highlands centered on Carvers Gap with
lines - 8m per pixel.jpg). The state line is highlighted in red.
Everything to the north of the line is in Tennessee (Carter county).
Everything to the south of the line is in NC (Mitchell and Avery). On
this map, I've traced the 6,000 ft elevation contour line in a dark hue,
green in NC and blue in TN. I've also traced the 5,000 ft contour line
in a lighter hue, again, green in NC and blue in TN. I've done my best
to not obscure any text or contour labels on this map.
If
you compare the area within each of the shaded colors, i.e., green (in NC) vs. blue (in TN),
you'll easily see that the vast majority of the mountain is in NC. To
help display this more effectively, I've created another version of the
above map where I've shaded the areas in the respective states (see:
Roan Mountain Highlands centered on Carvers Gap with lines and shading -
8m per pixel.jpg). Dark blue indicates area in TN at or above 6,000
ft. Light blue indicates area in TN at or above 5,000 ft. Dark green
indicates area
in NC at or above 6,000 ft. Light blue indicates area in NC at or
above 5,000 ft. On this map, it's very easy to see that the vast
majority of the highlands is in NC.
