Looking Glass Rock | |
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Highest point | |
Elevation | 3,969 ft (1,210 m) NAVD 88 [1] |
Coordinates | 35°18′13″N82°47′36″W / 35.3037213°N 82.7934611°W Coordinates: 35°18′13″N82°47′36″W / 35.3037213°N 82.7934611°W [2] |
Geography | |
Location | Transylvania County, North Carolina, U.S. |
Parent range | Appalachian Mountains |
Topo map | USGS Shining Rock |
Looking Glass Rock is a pluton monolith in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina, United States.
In geology, a pluton is a body of intrusive igneous rock that is crystallized from magma slowly cooling below the surface of the Earth. While pluton is a general term to describe an intrusive igneous body, there has been some confusion around the world as to what is the definition of a pluton. Pluton has been used to describe any non-tabular intrusive body, and batholith has been used to describe systems of plutons. In other literature, batholith and pluton have been used interchangeably. In central Europe, smaller bodies are described as batholiths and larger bodies as plutons. In practice the term pluton most often means a non-tabular igneous intrusive body. The most common rock types in plutons are granite, granodiorite, tonalite, monzonite, and quartz diorite. Generally light colored, coarse-grained plutons of these compositions are referred to as granitoids. Examples of plutons include Denali in Alaska; Cuillin in Skye, Scotland; Cardinal Peak in Washington State; Mount Kinabalu in Malaysia; and Stone Mountain in the US state of Georgia.
A monolith is a geological feature consisting of a single massive stone or rock, such as some mountains, or a single large piece of rock placed as, or within, a monument or building. Erosion usually exposes the geological formations, which are often made of very hard and solid igneous or metamorphic rock.
The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They once reached elevations similar to those of the Alps and the Rocky Mountains before experiencing natural erosion. The Appalachian chain is a barrier to east–west travel, as it forms a series of alternating ridgelines and valleys oriented in opposition to most highways and railroads running east–west.
The mountain is located within Pisgah National Forest about 5.5 miles (8.9 km) northwest of Brevard and 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Asheville. Named for the way its granite face reflects the sunshine, it rises from the valley floor to an elevation of almost 4,000 feet (1,200 m).
Pisgah National Forest is a National Forest in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina. It is administered by the United States Forest Service, part of the United States Department of Agriculture. The Pisgah National Forest is completely contained within the state of North Carolina. The forest is managed together with the other three North Carolina National Forests from common headquarters in Asheville, North Carolina. There are local ranger district offices located in Pisgah Forest, Mars Hill, and Nebo.
Brevard is a city in Transylvania County, North Carolina, United States, with a population of 7,609 as of the 2010 Census. It is the county seat of Transylvania County.
Asheville is a city and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 12th-most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The city's population was 89,121 according to 2016 estimates. It is the principal city in the five-county Asheville metropolitan area, with a population of 424,858 in 2010.
Trails from Forest Service Road 475 and 475B lead to the top of the mountain. It is a moderate/strenuous trail climbing 1700 ft over 3.1 miles to its peak where panoramic views can be seen. There is a flat slab on the top, that can be used as a helipad. [3]
A helipad is a landing area or platform for helicopters and powered lift aircraft.
Looking Glass Rock is a popular rock climbing destination. Whether it is free climbing, multi-pitch or aid climbing, dozens of routes traverse the South Face, North Face, Nose Area, Sun Wall, Invisible Wall and Hidden Wall to the top of the mountain.
Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, down or across natural rock formations or artificial rock walls. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Professional rock climbing competitions have the objectives of either completing the route in the quickest possible time or attaining the farthest point on an increasingly difficult route.
Free climbing is a form of rock climbing in which the climber may use climbing equipment such as ropes and other means of climbing protection, but only to protect against injury during falls and not to assist progress. The climber makes progress by using physical ability to move over the rock via handholds and footholds. Free climbing more specifically may include solo climbing, traditional climbing, sport climbing and bouldering. Free climbing a multi-pitch route means free-climbing each of its pitches in a single session. At the end of each pitch, climbers are allowed to anchor themselves to belay stations and rest. If they fail climbing a pitch, they are allowed to use the rope to return to the beginning of that pitch and try it again.
From the top of Looking Glass Rock, panoramic views can be seen of the Blue Ridge Parkway and surrounding mountains of Transylvania County.
The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and All-American Road in the United States, noted for its scenic beauty. The parkway, which is America's longest linear park, runs for 469 miles (755 km) through 29 Virginia and North Carolina counties, linking Shenandoah National Park to Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It runs mostly along the spine of the Blue Ridge, a major mountain chain that is part of the Appalachian Mountains. Its southern terminus is at U.S. 441 on the boundary between Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Cherokee Indian Reservation in North Carolina, from which it travels north to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. The roadway continues through Shenandoah as Skyline Drive, a similar scenic road which is managed by a different National Park Service unit. Both Skyline Drive and the Virginia portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway are part of Virginia State Route 48, though this designation is not signed.
Longs Peak is a high and prominent mountain summit in the northern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The 14,259-foot (4346 m) fourteener is located in the Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness, 9.6 miles (15.5 km) southwest by south of the Town of Estes Park, Colorado, United States. Longs Peak is the northmost "fourteener" in the Rocky Mountains and the highest point in Boulder County and Rocky Mountain National Park. The mountain was named in honor of explorer Stephen Harriman Long and is featured on the Colorado state quarter.
The Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in Clark County, Nevada, is an area managed by the Bureau of Land Management as part of its National Landscape Conservation System, and protected as a National Conservation Area. It is about 15 miles (24 km) west of Las Vegas, and is easily seen from the Las Vegas Strip. More than two million people visit the area each year.
Bridge Mountain is a mountain located in the Spring Mountain range of southern Nevada. It is located on land managed by the United States Bureau of Land Management as the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, part of the Rainbow Mountain Wilderness. Bridge Mountain is named for the natural feature of a bridge-like natural arch of sandstone near the summit.
Pilot Mountain, a metamorphic quartzite monadnock rising to a peak 2,421 feet (738 m) above sea level, is one of the most distinctive natural features in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is a remnant of the ancient chain of Sauratown Mountains. The Saura Indians, the region's earliest known inhabitants, called the mountain "Jomeokee", meaning "great guide".
Hanging Rock State Park is a 8,605-acre (3,482 ha) North Carolina state park in Stokes County, North Carolina in the United States. The park is 30 miles (48 km) north of Winston-Salem and is located approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) from Danbury in Stokes County.
Morrow Mountain State Park is a state park in Stanly County, North Carolina, USA. Located near Albemarle, 4,545 acres (18.39 km2) within the Uwharrie Mountains.
Clingmans Dome is a mountain in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina, in the southeastern United States. At an elevation of 6,643 feet (2,025 m), it is the highest mountain in the Smokies, the highest point in the state of Tennessee, and the highest point along the 2,192-mile (3,528 km) Appalachian Trail. It is also the third highest point in mainland Eastern North America, after the nearby Mount Mitchell and Mount Craig.
Mount Ascutney is a monadnock located in southern Vermont. With a summit elevation of about 3144 feet, it is the second-highest peak in Windsor County, Vermont. Particularly noteworthy about Ascutney are its granite outcrops, one of which, near its peak, serves as a launching point for hang-gliders. The mountain is very steep, and its trails traverse a Vermont state forest.
Mount Charleston, including Charleston Peak at 11,916 feet (3,632 m), is the highest mountain in both the Spring Mountains and Clark County, in Nevada, United States. It is the eighth-highest mountain in the state. Well separated from higher peaks by large, low basins, Charleston Peak is the most topographically prominent peak in Nevada, and the eighth-most-prominent peak in the contiguous United States. It is one of eight ultra-prominent peaks in Nevada. It is located about 35 miles (56 km) northwest of Las Vegas within the Mount Charleston Wilderness, which is within the Spring Mountains National Recreation Area of the Humboldt–Toiyabe National Forest.
Cannon Mountain is a 4,080-foot (1,240 m) peak in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It is known for both its technical rock and ice climbing on its cliff face and skiing at Cannon Mountain Ski Area. It was also home to the Old Man of the Mountain, until that formation collapsed on May 3, 2003.
Mount Moosilauke is a 4,802-foot-high (1,464 m) mountain at the southwestern end of the White Mountains in the town of Benton, New Hampshire, United States. It is the tenth highest and most southwesterly of the 4,000 foot summits in the White Mountains.
The Linville Gorge Wilderness is the third largest wilderness area in North Carolina and one of only two wilderness gorges in the Southern United States. Maintained by the United States Forest Service, it comprises 11,786 acres (47.7 km2) around the Linville River, and is situated inside the Pisgah National Forest. The river is approximately 1,400 feet below the ridge, thus hiking in and out of the Gorge is challenging and enjoyable for those who like serious hiking. The plant and animal community is extremely diverse, with a dense hardwood/pine forest and a wide variety of smaller trees and other plants as well as bear, fox, raccoon, trout, grouse, wild turkey, vultures, owls, hawks, copperheads, and timber rattlesnakes.
Devil's Courthouse is a mountain in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina in the United States of America. The mountain is located at the Western edge of the Pisgah National Forest about 10 miles northwest of Brevard and 28 miles southwest of Asheville. Located at milepost 422.4 of the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Devil's Courthouse has a moderate/strenuous trail climbing a half mile to its peak where panoramic views can be seen.
The Sauratown Mountains,( Pronounced Sar-a -town like Laura not Sour) which are sometimes called "the mountains away from the mountains", are an isolated mountain range located within Stokes and Surry counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The vast majority of the range is located in Stokes County, and even though the range occupies only 5% of Stokes County's area, it dominates the county's scenery from almost every direction. The Sauras rise sharply 800 to 1,700 feet above the surrounding terrain. The Sauratown Mountains were named after the "Sauras", a Native American tribe that lived in the area before European settlers arrived in the early 1700s. The range consists of rugged, heavily forested ridges frequently broken by large quartzite rock cliffs that can be seen for miles. The Sauratown Mountains are known for offering some of the best rock climbing in North Carolina. The highest point in the Sauratown Mountains is Moore's Knob, which rises to 2,579 feet.
Slick Rock Falls is a waterfall in Western North Carolina, located near Brevard.
Moore's Knob is the highest mountain in the Sauratown Mountains of Stokes County, North Carolina. The Sauratown Mountains are an isolated remnant of the much larger Blue Ridge Mountains far to the west and north. A rugged, deeply eroded range, the Sauras feature dramatic rock cliffs which can be seen for miles. Moore's Knob has an elevation of 2,579 feet above sea level.
Black Balsam Knob, also known as Black Balsam Bald, is in the Pisgah National Forest southwest of Asheville, North Carolina, near milepost 420 on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is the second highest mountain in the Great Balsam Mountains. The Great Balsams are within the Blue Ridge Mountains, which are part of the Appalachian Mountains. It is the 23rd highest of the 40 mountains in North Carolina over 6000 feet.
Poke-O-Moonshine Mountain, spelled Pokamoonshine on U.S. Geological Survey maps, and sometimes known as just Poke-O, is a minor peak of the Adirondack Mountains. The name is believed to be a corruption of the Algonquin words pohqui, meaning 'broken', and moosie, meaning 'smooth'. It is located in the town of Chesterfield, New York, United States, on New York state Forest Preserve land, part of the Taylor Pond Wild Forest complex within the Adirondack Park. Due to its location next to the pass through which most travelers from the north enter the range, it has been called the "gateway to the Adirondacks".