Nature
Waterrock Knob, in western North Carolina, is the highest peak in the Plott Balsams and one of the tallest mountains in the Eastern United States, rising 6,292 feet. Its summit lies within the Blue Ridge Parkway National Park Service unit near Cherokee and Richland Balsam. The mountain takes its name from a spring near the summit where hunters once refilled their canteens. Long valued for combining high ground with water access, it is now especially popular because the Blue Ridge Parkway passes directly by it. A short summit trail from the visitor center makes this prominent high peak one of the region’s most accessible mountain destinations.
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North Carolina · United States
