The Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina are among the oldest mountains on Earth. The landscape is full of superlatives: the highest mountain (Mount Mitchell), deepest gorge (Linville Gorge), and highest waterfall (Whitewater Falls) in the eastern United States; and the oldest river in North America (the New River); and the two most visited National Park lands in the country (the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park). The region is also blessed with a stunning diversity of plant and animal life; more, in fact, than the whole of Europe.
This Heritage Area includes the following sites:
- Peaks of Otter
- Mountain Gateway Museum
- Mabry Mill Cultural Site
- Thomas Wolfe Memorial
- Zebulon B. Vance Birthplace
- Moses Cone Memorial Park
- Linn Cove Viaduct
- Historic Carson House
- Carl Sandburg Home