Pilot Mountain
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PilotMountainNC.jpg
Pilot Mountain, a quartzite monadnock rising to a peak of 2,240 feet above sea level, is one of the most distinctive natural features in the state of North Carolina. It is a remnant of the ancient chain of Sauratown Mountains. Its original Native American name is Jomeokee, for "great guide" or "pilot".
The town of Pilot Mountain, North Carolina is situated nearby the mountain. The city of Mt. Airy, North Carolina, known for its rock quarries and for being the birthplace of Andy Griffith, is just a few miles north.
Pilot Mountain has two distinctive pinnacles, named Big and Little Pinnacle. Big Pinnacle has two hundred foot high bare rock walls, and a rounded top covered in vegetation, reaching a height of approximately 1400 feet above the surrounding terrain. Trails on the mountain (as well as a paved road) allow access to Little Pinnacle, and the Jomeokee Trail leads around the base of Big Pinnacle; Big Pinnacle itself is closed to climbing. The Ledge Spring Trail is named for the ledge whose base it follows, with a series of springs, and is a popular location for rock climbing. Other trails include the Sassafras trail.
Pilot Mountain is part of the Pilot Mountain State Park, which also extends to the Yadkin River and is closely associated with the nearby Horne Creek Farm historical site. Other interesting rock formations lie a few miles east, at Hanging Rock State Park.
The mountain was also once called Pilot Knob.
In the television series The Andy Griffith Show, Sheriff Andy Taylor lived in "Mayberry" (a name suggestive of "Mt. Airy") and occasionally talked about driving to the nearby town of "Mt. Pilot".
External links
- Pilot Mountain State Park (http://www.ils.unc.edu/parkproject/visit/pimo/home.html)