Brushy Mountains (North Carolina)

The Brushy Mountains are a mountain range located in northwestern North Carolina. They are an isolated "spur" of the much larger Blue Ridge Mountains, separated from them by the Yadkin River valley. A deeply eroded range, they move from the southwest to the northeast, and cross five counties in North Carolina: Caldwell, Alexander, Wilkes, Iredell, and Yadkin. The Brushy Mountains divide, for much of their courses, the waters of the Yadkin River and the Catawba River, two of central North Carolina's largest rivers. The range is approximately convert|45|mi|km long, but only 4-8 miles wide. The highest point in the chain is Pores Knob (2,680 feet, 817 meters), in Wilkes County. Other prominent peaks are Hibriten Mountain in Caldwell County, Potters Peak in Wilkes County, and Hickory Knob in Alexander County. The "Brushies", as they are often called by locals, usually rise from 300 to convert|800|ft|m above the surrounding countryside, with few peaks rising more than a thousand feet above their base. The Brushies are primarily known for their abundance of apple orchards, and the Brushy Mountain Apple Festival is held in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina each year to celebrate the harvest. The region was also once known as a hotbed of "moonshining", or the production of illegal homemade liquor. Several of the earliest stars of stock-car racing in the 1940s and 1950's got their start in the moonshining business in the Brushy Mountains.