Cane Creek Mountains
| Cane Creek Mountains | |
|---|---|
| Bass Mountains | |
Bass Mountain (Left) and Cane Creek Mountain (Right), 2 of the highest peaks in the range.
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| Highest point | |
| Peak | Cane Creek Mountain |
| Elevation | 301 m (988 ft) |
| Coordinates | 35°56′50.66″N 79°26′08.14″W / 35.9474056°N 79.4355944°WCoordinates: 35°56′50.66″N 79°26′08.14″W / 35.9474056°N 79.4355944°W |
| Dimensions | |
| Length | 21.17 km (13.15 mi) SW |
| Width | 8.91 km (5.54 mi) SE |
| Geography | |
Location of Cane Creek Mountains in Alamance County in North Carolina
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| Country | United States |
| State | North Carolina |
| Region | Alamance County |
| Geology | |
| Orogeny | Alleghenian orogeny |
Cane Creek Mountains is a small mountain range that lies south of Burlington, North Carolina. The range covers an area including Alamance County, Guilford County, Randolph County, and Chatham County in North Carolina.
The mountains are typical of the rolling terrain of the piedmont region of North Carolina, and are somewhat similar in formation to the nearby Caraway Mountains and Uwharrie Mountains. The Cane Creek Mountains may have formed as a part of the larger coastal range that was once the Uwharries, which are thought to have formed as a part of the Alleghenian or Appalachian orogeny 300–350 million years ago during the formation and rifting of Pangaea. This earlier range is thought to have had peaks more than 20,000 feet (6,100 m) high, which would rival the Himalayas, the Andes, and the Alaska Range. However, erosion has worn this old mountain range down. The highest peaks of this old range are now found in the Appalachian Mountains on the eastern coast of North America and in the Anti-Atlas Mountains of Morocco in Africa.
The heavily eroded hills of piedmont, including the Cane Creek Mountains, are remnants of the sizable mountain chain.
The Cane Creek Mountains lie in the Carolina Slate Belt, a belt that consists of heated and deformed volcanic and sedimentary rocks. The belt is best known for old abandoned gold mines. North Carolina led the nation in gold production for 50 years, between the discovery of a 17-pound (7.7 kg) gold nugget at the Reed Gold Mine in Cabarrus County, NC near Charlotte in 1799 and the discovery of gold during the California Gold Rush of 1849. Limited gold mining continues to take place, but several mining companies continue to operate, both on the slate belt and in and near the Cane Creek Mountains. Most mineral production in the area is crushed stone for road aggregate and pyrophyllite for refactories, ceramics, filler, paint and insecticide carriers.
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Wikipedia