Geography of North Carolina
The geography of North Carolina falls naturally into three divisions or sections—the Appalachian Mountains formed mostly by the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains, the Middle or Piedmont Plateau, and the Eastern or Tidewater section, also known as the Coastal Plain. North Carolina covers 53,821 square miles (139,396 km2) and is 503 miles (810 km) long by 150 miles (240 km) wide. The physical characteristics of the state can be pictured as a surface spread out upon a vast , sloping down from the summits of the Smoky Mountains, an altitude of near seven thousand feet, to the ocean level.
The mountains of North Carolina may be conveniently classed as four separate chains:
Each of these mountain ranges is marked by distinct characteristics. The Smoky Mountain chain (as contrasted with the Blue Ridge) is more continuous, more elevated, more regular in its direction and height, and rises very uniformly from 5000 to 6,621 feet (2,018.1 m).
The Blue Ridge is composed of many fragments scarcely connected into a continuous and regular chain. Its higher summits range from 5000 to nearly 6,700 feet (2,040 m); however, its average elevation is from 3000 to 4,000 feet (1,200 m). The eastern slopes of the Blue Ridge rise sharply from 1500 to 4,500 feet (1,370 m) above the terrain to the east; to observers they often appear as a vast, lofty wall running across the state's western horizon. The Brushy Mountain range presents, throughout the greater part of its course, a remarkable uniformity in direction and elevation, many of its peaks rising above 2,000 feet (600 m), and a few rising above 2,500 feet (760 m). The last, the Uwharrie range, sometimes presents a succession of elevated ridges, then a number of bold and isolated knobs, which often appear higher than they actually are, due to the relative flatness of the surrounding terrain.
The piedmont section consists of the tallest peaks east of the Rocky Mountains. The tallest of the Appalachian Mountains is Mount Mitchell. Mount Mitchell is also the tallest point east of the Mississippi River. The section enclosed within these limits is in shape somewhat like an ellipse. Its length is about one hundred and eighty miles; its average breadth from twenty to fifty miles. It is a high plateau, from the plane of which several high mountains rise, including the Roan, the Grandfather, and the Black. Between the mountains are scenic fertile valleys, plentifully watered by streams.
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