Waterrock Knob | |
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Looking south from the summit.
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Highest point | |
Elevation | 6,292 ft (1,918 m) |
Prominence | 1,947 ft (593 m) |
Coordinates | 35°27′51″N 83°08′16″W / 35.464268°N 83.137643°WCoordinates: 35°27′51″N 83°08′16″W / 35.464268°N 83.137643°W |
Geography | |
Location | Haywood / Jackson Counties, North Carolina, U.S. |
Parent range |
Plott Balsams Blue Ridge Mountains |
Topo map | USGS Sylva North |
Climbing | |
Easiest route | Hike |
Waterrock Knob is a mountain peak in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the highest peak in the Plott Balsams and is the 16th-highest mountain in the Eastern United States. It is the 15th-highest of the 40 mountains in North Carolina over 6000 feet.
The mountain is split by both Haywood and Jackson Counties in the western mountains of the state. It is located in the Plott Balsams mountain chain between the Great Smoky Mountains and the Great Balsam Mountains. The mountain's summit is located within the Blue Ridge Parkway National Park Service unit.
The mountain is a popular destination with tourists and amateur hikers, as it is easily accessible from the parkway. A visitors' center is located near its summit and a hiking trail leads to its top. The hiking trail and visitors' center are manned and maintained by the National Park Service, part of the United States Department of the Interior.
From the visitor center parking lot
Taken from the summit of Waterrock Knob
View of the Waterrock Knob parking lot and the Blue Ridge Parkway from the summit of Waterrock Knob