Table Rock (North Carolina)

The Linville Gorge Wilderness ("The Grand Canyon of North Carolina") is the third largest wilderness area in North Carolina (after Shining Rock Wilderness and Joyce-Kilmer Slickrock Wilderness) and one of only two wilderness gorges in the Southern United States (along with Bald River Gorge Wilderness in Tennessee). Maintained by the United States Forest Service, it comprises 11,786 acres (47.7 km2) around the Linville River, and is situated inside the Pisgah National Forest. The river is approximately 1,400 feet (427 m) below the ridge, thus hiking in and out of the Gorge is challenging and enjoyable for those who like serious hiking. The plant and animal community is extremely diverse, with a dense hardwood/pine forest and a wide variety of smaller trees and other plants as well as bear, fox, raccoon, trout, grouse, wild turkey, vultures, owls, hawks, copperheads, and timber rattlesnakes. Popular tourist attractions in or near the wilderness are: Linville Falls, a waterfall fed by the river and free to the public. Wiseman's View, a rock outcrop near the center of the gorge that gives an excellent view of the interior of the gorge. Linville Caverns, a privately maintained cave attraction accessible by automobile from U.S. Route 221.

Linville Caverns are privately owned active limestone caverns located in northern McDowell County, North Carolina, just south of the village of Linville Falls, on U.S. Highway 221. The caverns are open to the public year-round for guided tours. Linville Caverns have been open for tours since the late 1930s and remain the only show caverns in North Carolina. The caverns were discovered in 1822, by local fishermen and since that time have been of interest to locals and travelers alike. Half hour guided tours escort visitors through the caverns with information about cavern history, resident creatures, and the formations viewed along the way. Formed in a deposit of Shady Dolomite at the base of Humpback Mountain, Linville Caverns offer an environment for the public to explore the subterranean world of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Visitors hear the lore surrounding the caverns, including the tale of the Civil War deserters who used the caverns as a hideout, as well as the geology of the stalactites, stalagmites, and other formations found on the tour route. In the fall and winter months, caverns visitors may be able to view the caverns' most popular residents, the tricolored bats and little brown bats. These insect-eating creatures hibernate in the caverns from late fall until early spring. White-nose syndrome, a disease caused by the fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans, was discovered among the bats that roost in Linville Cavern during the winter months. While harmless to humans and domestic animals, the fungus is deadly to bats. The visitor center takes steps to mitigate the spread of the fungus by asking guests to step in a bleach solution that kills any fungus on the soles of their shoes.

Henry Seawell Brown and Mary Jane English Farmstead, also known as the Brown Family Farm, is a historic home and farm located near Ashford, McDowell County, North Carolina. The farmhouse was built in 1916, and is 1+1⁄2-story, three-bay, frame dwelling with Queen Anne and Colonial Revival style design elements. It has a two-story portico, triangular pedimented front gable, hip-roofed dormers, fish-scale shingles, and one-story wraparound front porch. It has a two-story rear ell. Also on the property are a contributing barn and garage (1920s).It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009.

Humpback Mountain is a mountain in the North Carolina High Country and the Pisgah National Forest, located southwest of Linville Falls. The mountain is accessible along the Blue Ridge Parkway, which ride along its eastern slope. The peak reaches an elevation of 4,245 feet (1,294 m), in Avery County; while the overall mountain is also in McDowell County. Two ridges, Mill Ridge and Dividing Ridge, form from the western side of the mountain. Split by the Eastern Continental Divide, the mountain generates feeder streams to the North Fork Catawba River on its eastern slopes and to the North Toe River on its western slopes.

Doe Hill Mountain is a mountain in the North Carolina High Country, located northwest of Linville Falls. Though the mountain itself is undeveloped, it is flanked on all sides by tree farms and the following roads: US 221 to the east, NC 194 to the north, US 19E to the west and Brushy Creek Road (SR-1101) to the south. Pink Ridge form from the northern side of the mountain. The mountain generates feeder streams to the North Toe River.

Three Mile is an unincorporated community in Avery County, North Carolina, United States. The community is located along NC 194 (Three Mile Highway); the name is derived from the air miles-straight-line distance of three miles between US 19-E to US 221. It is a rural, unincorporated community, vs. a chartered town and is part of the Green Valley Community and fire district, near the South Toe River. The community is 4 miles from the Mitchell County line and 5 miles East of the Mitchell County Town of Spruce Pine. Due to better roads and close proximity, the area has historical ties to Spruce Pine, population 2,200, for shopping and eating, vs. to the Avery County Seat town of Newland, which is 11 miles north. Spruce Pine has several large shopping centers, several motels, numerous restaurants, bars, alcohol sales and a regional hospital. The unincorporated community of Linville Falls, 4 miles East, is where Avery, Burke and McDowell Counties converge. Burnsville in Yancey County, is 18 miles west, Asheville is 55 miles Southwest, Boone is 30 miles East and the Johnson City, Tricities TN-VA area is 50 miles north. The area has Avery County's only section of 4-lane highway; a 2-mile section of US 19E, extending from the Gushers Knob Road intersection, to the Toe River bridge at Schoolhouse Mine. The NC DOT has planned that section of highway for expansion to 4 lanes for 3 miles, from the Toe River bridge to connect with the 4-lane, US 19E Highway at the city limits of Spruce Pine. 19E was extended in October of 2020 from Spruce Pine, all of the way to Interstate 26 in Madison County, near Mars Hill, making travel to the Asheville area much faster. There are several major, regional employers nearby: Mayland Community College-Main Campus, Schoolhouse Mine mica and quartz mine owned by Sibelco and 2 large side-by-side NC State Prisons; Mountain View and Avery-Mitchell. The community area also has several churches, the Avery County Airport (7A8); a public, a regional airport with a paved, 3100 foot runway for general aviation with,several hangars, and aviation fuel, but no tower or rescue crew, Riverside P-5 Elementary School, Green Valley Fire Station, an Avery county park, an Avery County EMS station, a campground, 2 tombstone shops, an automotive garage, a shooting range, along with several small stores and a public landfill. There Mile's children residents attend Riverside Elementary School grades P-5, then Avery Middle School in Newland for grades 6-8 and then the adjacent county's sole central high school, Avery County High School, for grades 9-12, along with classes for high school students at Mayland Community College. Avery County School buses provide transportation, as does Avery County transportation.

Mayland Community College is a public community college in Spruce Pine, North Carolina. The college also operates learning centers in Newland and Burnsville. The name of the college is derived from the three counties it primarily serves: Mitchell, Avery, and Yancey. It is part of the North Carolina Community College System. Mayland Community College was first chartered as Mayland Technical Institute in February 1970 by the General Assembly of North Carolina upon recommendations by the State Board of Education, the Advisory Budget Commission, and Governor Robert W. Scott. The president of the college is Dr. John C. Boyd. The school's nickname is the Mountain Lions. Mayland offers a variety of curriculum programs, including numerous college transfer options, as well as nursing, adult education, distance learning, and dual enrollment for high school students. To assist the local workforce, MCC provides several workforce development and continuing education courses that directly serve the needs of local and regional business and industries, as well as the civic and cultural interests of the community.

The Linville River is a river in western North Carolina, United States. The river begins in the slopes of Peak Mountain, Sugar Mountain and Flattop Mountain, in the Linville Gap area (also known as Tynecastle). As it goes south through Avery County, it passes through the communities of Grandfather, Linville, Pineola, Crossnore and finally at Linville Falls. After entering Burke County at the community of Linville Falls, the river becomes the centerpiece of the Linville Falls and the Linville Gorge, an area referred to as "the Grand Canyon of North Carolina." After approximately 30 miles (48 km), the river ends at Lake James and the Catawba River; the original confluence with the Catawba River has been flooded by the creation of the reservoir in 1923. In 1975, North Carolina designated 13.0 miles (20.9 km) of the river as Linville State Natural River, including it in the state's Natural and Scenic Rivers System.

Montezuma is an unincorporated community in Avery County, North Carolina, United States. Before its founding in 1883, it had two variant names, Aaron and Bull Scrape. The community is located on Old State Highway 181 and is on the Eastern Continental Divide.

Ingalls is an unincorporated community in Avery County, North Carolina, United States. The community is located at the intersection of US 19-E and NC 194. The Avery County Airport (Morrison Field) is located two miles south from Ingalls, towards Spruce Pine.

Mortimer, North Carolina is a ghost town in Wilson Creek Township, Caldwell County, in the northwestern part of the state. Once a mill town with a population of around 800, the town flooded in 1940 and was subsequently abandoned. Several remains are existent today, including machinery from the mill and the foundations of several buildings.

Fort San Juan was a late 16th-century fort built by the Spanish under the command of conquistador Juan Pardo in the native village of Joara, in what is now Burke County, North Carolina. Used as an outpost for Pardo's expedition into the interior of what was known to the Spaniards as "la Florida", Fort San Juan was the foremost of six forts built and garrisoned by Pardo in modern-day North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee to extend Spain's effective control deeper into the North American continent. Fort San Juan was the first European settlement in North Carolina and the interior of present-day United States, predating the earliest English settlement at Roanoke Island, North Carolina by 18 years. In 1568, natives from Joara and the region surrounding the fort razed this and the five other Spanish forts, killing all but one of the soldiers. After the fort's destruction, its exact location was lost. Archaeological work has been underway for years, revealing artifacts suggestive of Spanish settlement. During the summer of 2013, archaeologists affiliated with the University of Michigan, Tulane University and Warren Wilson College announced that they had discovered evidence of a defensive moat and other remains, definitive evidence of Fort San Juan.