Rising in the far southwestern portion of Virginia, and extending partially into extreme southeastern Kentucky and northern Tennessee, is a great landform of immense beauty and natural diversity. This site is about The High Knob Landform.
Whitewater rolled out of the high country of the sprawling High Knob Massif during the weekend of September 26-27, thanks to a healthy 3.75" to 6.00" of drenching rainfall.
This was captured in dramatic fashion amid Little Stony Basin by my friend and photographer Roddy Addington on Sunday, September 27, after the flow had actually decreased from its peak on Saturday ( September 26, 2009 ).
Downcutting through resistant ledge-forming quartz arenite sandstones, amid rugged depths of Little Stony Gorge, has created one of the most complete whitewater runs in the southeastern United States, with BIG drops and a continuous action-packed adventure via 250 to 300 feet of vertical drop per mile for 3 miles.
Little Stony Gorge is part of the little known but unique and locally infamous 5-PLUS-5 section of the High Knob Massif, where FIVE Class V steep creeks are lined up consecutively from west to east across the core of the massif ( with many other very steep creeks and micro-creek tributaries ).
South Fork Gorge
Straight Fork Gorge
Chimney Rock Gorge
Mountain Fork of Big Stony Gorge
Little Stony Gorge
Actually 6 counting Guest River Gorge that goes up to Class V.
Straight Fork & Chimney Rock being never run and unrated.
Little Stony Gorge recently being rated Class IV-V, like adjacent Guest River Gorge, but with absolute Class V+ drops ( e.g., the Big Falls ) at any level and a Class V-V+ nature at high volume.
Little Stony Creek is an American Whitewater rated Class IV-V steep creek at normal flows. The rating varies depending upon what kayaker you talk with, and what level(s) they have run it. Like most all steep creeks, the difficulty of Little Stony Gorge varies significantly with flow volume
Most amazingly, Little Stony Gorge possesses the least mean gradient, the least max gradient, and the shortest distance of THE FIVE major gorges noted above ( and is also much shorter than the AW Class IV-V rated Guest River Gorge of the High Knob Massif ).
Although the Straight Fork & Chimney Rock gorges have not been "officially" rated, they are the real deal with 1460 to 1505 feet of vertical drop in only 4 miles ( analogous drop to that of the tight & technically STEEP Class V+ South Fork Gorge ).
It should be noted, however, that adding the Ramey Fork of Little Stony onto the Little Stony Gorge run generates a 433 foot per mile gradient, via 650 feet of vertical drop in 1.5 miles. The Ramey Fork plunges into Little Stony Gorge just downstream of the ledge supporting falls, where the best rapids begin.
While seldom if ever run, this tributary has a big boulder garden and is there as a potential future addition ( like many others within this remote massif ).
The above drop has broken bodies & boats! It is a 25-30 footer that some proclaim is the best within the southeastern United States.
However, it is not the highest or toughest drop in the great High Knob Massif, or even on the Little Stony, as just downstream, after an 11-footer, is the Big Falls of Little Stony Gorge
with its 35-40 foot plunge!
John King, former American Whitewater stream team coordinator for this area, reported that only 3 people had "officially" dared the plunging fury of the Big Falls up through 2008.
[ Update: Nearly a dozen had run it up through 2012 ].
Big Falls of Little Stony Gorge of the High Knob Massif
Other American Whitewater rated runs in the High Knob Massif area include the following:
Cove Creek Gorge.....Class IV-V+
( Cascades Section )
Dry Fork Gorge.....Class IV-V+
( Jasper Creek Narrows of Stock Creek Basin )
Crab Orchard Falls.....Class IV-V
( Guest River Gorge Tributary )
Clear Creek Gorge.....Class IV+
( Mainstem of Clear Creek )
Devil Fork Gorge.....Class III+(IV)
( Mainstem of Devil Fork )
Upper Stock Creek Gorge.....Class III-V
Powell River ( Appalachia-Big Stone Gap ).....Class II-IV
Lower Big Stony Gorge.....Class III
( Fast bedrock run )
Powell River ( Norton-Appalachia ).....Class II-III
Stock Creek to Natural Tunnel.....Class II-III
( Lower Gorge section )
Powell River ( Big Stone Gap-Dryden ).....Class I-II
Clinch River ( St. Paul-Dungannon ).....Class II
Many other STEEP micro-creeks are potential runs.
Reference LINKS in upper right of every main page
on this website for a more complete listings & information.
Unique Geological & Climatic
Setting of High Knob Massif
A unique geological and climatic setting has made this remnant high country mass of the High Knob Landform a haven for steep creeks, but its been largely overlooked throughout the years due to several primary reasons:
1 ). Prior to my long-term climatic research there had been little understanding of this massif and landform ( and its significant wetness ) from such a viewpoint across multiple sciences.
2 ). Few understood that all the mountains from Guest River Gorge to the Duffield Valley are part of the same connected and consolidated mass, from which all these creeks originate and drain, despite it being obvious on satellite imagery & mapping.
3 ). A previous and distinct lack of understanding of its basic structural geology & hydrogeology
( i.e., beyond that rooted in endless hydrocarbon searches ).
Figure 1
*Structural Geology of Central-Southwestern Massif
Adapted from Mitra ( 1988 ) - Figure 23
on Page 93 of GSA Bulletin, Volume 100.
The RED line above denotes the topographical surface form of the High Knob Massif into which all of the basins and gorges have been carved over time ( up until present ) across its central and southwestern portions.
A notable exception to this ideal form, as also applies to Figure 3, being highly overturned stratigraphy that is associated with the Back Stone Mountain Syncline along its southeastern flanks, as well as locally overturned rocks toward the northwest across its Little Stone-Pickem Mountain flanks.
*The above also being exemplified by USGS Cross-Sections within the Big Stone Gap, East Stone Gap, Norton, & Wise-Fort Blackmore quadrangles ( especially visible when joining stratigraphic units which have been weathered away by erosion ).
A notable duplex-imbricate system, which has developed upon and in association with the great Cumberland Overthrust Block, forms the structural geology of much of the High Knob Massif and has generated its most impressive gorges ( southwest of Little Stony Gorge which
is carved into the single tectonic ramp zone like adjacent Guest River Gorge ).
The duplex-imbricate section of the massif being highly correlated to that portion with higher topographic relief, roughly from Burns Creek and Bowman Mountain southwest to Cliff Mountain and The Divide near Duffield.
The main crest zone of the High Knob Massif correlates well to the duplex region, which can be seen in the above photograph looking across lofty High Knob Lake Basin as standing above the lower tectonic ramping zone of the Osborne Ridge backcountry in the distance.
Mountain Fork of Big Stony Creek ( American Whitewater rated Class V+ steep creek ) draining the High Knob Lake Basin, between the higher mountain walls visible downstream of this broadly U-shaped basin seen across middle, right foreground above, is only one of many major gorges carved into the duplex.
With contrast from the late afternoon sun, and a telephoto lens, upper portions of the complex 41.9 square mile Big Stony Basin multi-gorge system stands distinctly above the lower elevation Little Stony Basin ( 16.4 square miles ), only a portion of which is visible in this photograph as the outward spreading backcountry along Osborne Ridge.
The 40+ square mile Powell Mountain block of the massif, from South Fork Gorge to Cliff Mountain, is also dominated by long, deep mountain gorges drained by STEEP creeks as part of this most interesting duplex-imbricate system.
Gorges and hollows carved into the frontslope and forelimb ( e.g., Pickem & Little Stone Mountain ), as illustrated by Figure 1, of this system are generally much shorter but even steeper and more precipitous in their downward plunge off the massif.
Figure 2
Duplex In RED - Single Tectonic Ramp Zone In BLUE
Adapted from NASA Visible Satellite Image by Wayne Browning
This system is roughly illustrated above, with the section of the massif within RED being the duplex-imbricate zone which lies adjacent to a single tectonic ramping zone ( in BLUE ).
Figure 3
*Structural Geology Eastern Portion of High Knob Massif
Adapted from Mitra ( 1988 ) - Figure 23
Page 93 of GSA Bulletin, Volume 100.
The BLUE line above denoting the idealized topographical surface form of eastern portions of the High Knob Massif, with the notable exception being that its southern & southeastern flanks possess highly overturned stratigraphy associated with the very rugged Back Stone Mountain Syncline ( the basins, hollows, and gorges of today having been carved into this form over time ).
*The above also being exemplified by the USGS Cross-Section shown on the Coeburn quadrangle.
The core of the duplexhas been breached southwest of the High Knob peak and Grindstone Ridge Dome, within which lies today the majestic Powell Valley of Wise County ( inverted V-shaped, green valley visible in Figure 2 between steep, brownish mountain walls standing beneath snow covered highcountry of the massif ).
Without getting too technical in geology, this duplex has formed via folding and upward arching of the main Pine Mountain Thrust Sheet by an underlying system called the Bales Thrust, and its associated imbricates.
This has generated an atypically wide and complex fold with many enhanced faults and fractures ( this has played a very important role over time in the great karstification of the High Knob Landform ).
This can be seen in the idealized form of Figure 1, where movement along ramp Number 2 of the Bales Thrust Sheet has generated enhanced upward movement and folding along ramp Number 1 of the main Pine Mountain Thrust ( additional imbricate thrusts & faults exist which are not shown in this idealized form ).
A topographical aspect of this interesting structural geology is that the High Knob Massif possesses a very long backslope, such that it has the longest distance between its crestlines and south flanking valleys along the Clinch River of any mountain in all of western Virginia ( the form illustrated by Figure 1 ).
The backslope is so long that the distance from Valley Creek in northern Scott County, Va., to the crest of Grindstone Dome, or High Knob and Eagle Knob in Wise County, Va., is greater than the entire distance from base to base across Mount Rogers, much greater than the entire base to base distance across Brumley Mountain, and much, much greater than the distance across Whitetop Mountain.
An array of long, deep mountain gorges have eroded into this long backslope over time, such that the High Knob Massif contains one of the greatest concentrations of gorges of any singular mass of mountain in Virginia ( and Appalachians ).
This atypically LONG backslope has also allowed for creation of an array of elevated basins, with lofty valleys and coves where more resistant stratigraphy is present. These extend into the single tectonic ramp zone as well, which is also broad in nature but lower in mean elevation ( e.g., Little Stony Basin ).
The bottom line, all these gorges are drained by steep to VERY STEEP creeks and micro-creeks!
The above being very exciting to me personally, since many years ago upon first beginning my research in the massif I wondered what supported such distinct and visible terrain differences across its highcountry ( such as that seen in this aerial photograph taken by Donnie Rose in which the higher, more folded duplex section is visible across much of the picture in front of a small section of lower lying terrain seen in upper left background ).
Now these differences are known to be caused by the transition from a single tectonic ramp to that of a duplex-imbricate system, in going from rugged Guest River Gorge southwest to the Duffield Valley ( and beyond, as the duplex dominates much of the HKL across Lee County into extreme northern Tennessee ).
Rain Event of
September 25-27, 2009
The rain event that got whitewater rolling out of the High Knob Massif this weekend generated the heaviest amounts, of 5.00" to 6.00", across the Big Cherry Basin ( southwest from the High Knob peak ).
The tendency for enhanced precipitation amounts across the High Knob Massif has made it the wettest location in Virginia for which we have available records over the longer-term, and thus raises the potential significance of all these steep creeks!
Upsloping S-SE winds enhanced totals along the crest zone and southeastern slopes of the massif, despite weak orographic forcing, with downsloping into the City of Norton reducing totals to 3.74" .
Although 3.74" was still more rainthan measured in places removed from the High Knob Massif and Big Black Mountain lifting corridor, it was a notable reduction of rainfall due partly to large quantities of air being deflected down and sinking into Norton lee of the sprawling massif.
Rainfall totals within the Big Cherry Basin, Big Stone Gap, Appalachia, Keokee, and Holmes Mill, Ky., corridor were further enhanced by vigorous convection ( thunderstorms ) which fired during the afternoon hours of September 25.
A Doppler estimated bullseye of 3.00" of rain was indicated that afternoon along the northwestern flank of the HKL, centered on High Butte of Stone Mountain between Lake Keokee & Roaring Branch Gorge ( just southwest of the "Big Stone Gap" in the mountain ).
A few specific storm rainfall totals for the September 25-27 period included:
Flat Spur of Hazel Mountain: 1.92"
Whitesburg 2 SSE, Ky.: 2.01"
Mountain Mission School in Grundy: 2.23"
Nora 4 SSE: 2.33"
Hurley 4 S: 2.58"
Hearld of Sandy Ridge: 2.60"
Baxter, Ky.: 2.79"
Fort Blackmore: 3.08"
Nealy Ridge: 3.15"
Clintwood 1 W: 3.21"
Natural Tunnel State Park: 3.24"
Dungannon: 3.27"
Coeburn ( downtown ): 3.55"
Norton WP: 3.74"
Duffield TVA: 3.80"
( South Fork Gorge ) Big Stone Gap WP: 3.84"
Robbins Chapel: 3.98"
Head of Powell Valley: 4.17"
Fox Gap of Indian Mountain: 4.50"
Bonny Blue: 4.65"
Mountain Empire Community College 4.81"
( Little Stone Mountain arm ) Appalachia Lake WP: 4.89"
Appalachia ( downtown ): 5.02"
Keokee ES: 5.62"
Closplint 4 ESE, Ky.: 5.73"
Big Cherry Dam of High Knob Massif: 5.87"
Some flooding did occur across the area, with numerous road closures in Wise County. A few pictures submitted to the public archives of WCYB-TV illustrated the situation.
Flooding In Big Stone Gap - September 26, 2009
Flooding In Norton - September 26, 2009
High Water In The Wallen Creek Basin at Stickleyville
Photograph by Jennifer McElroy
This event boosted September rainfall totals into the 9.00" to 11.00"+ range within the wettest places amid the High Knob Massif, with 11.00"+ amounts being located in Little Stony Basin ( no wonder whitewater has been gushing! ).
Although the Little Stony Basin received less rainfall during the September 25-27 episode, than did Big Cherry Basin, it was a target of excessive rain and hail during PM hours of September 8.
During the September 8 event, nearly stationary thunderstorms with backbuilding convection ( aided by Doppler indicated storm relative easterly upslope flow from Guest River Gorge toward Moore Knob ) generated excessive rainfall and hail with flash flooding into Little Stony Gorge. A very localized but notable event.
While flooding was more widespread during the September 25-27 event, the severity of flooding within the hardest hit East Stone Gap to Big Stone Gap area was reduced by several important factors:
1 ). A forested, intact Big Cherry Basin watershed.
2 ). Sinking of significant amounts of water into extensive underground conduit systems.
3 ). Big Cherry Dam which held back ALOT of water from the highcountry basin.
Although the High Knob Landform, and in particular it's remnant massif, can handle more total rain ( and rain + snow melt ) without flooding than other locations across southwestern Virginia, due to its unique hydrogeology and great karstification, there eventually comes important points at which subterranean conduits fill up.
When that happens, flood potential increases rapidly to generate very flashy situations where water rises can become extremely fast!
Breaks Gorge Whitewater
While the High Knob Massif certainly offers the ultimate & beyond in STEEP Creekin' ( VERY STEEP ), awesome Breaks Gorge located on the Virginia-Kentucky border amid Breaks Interstate Park provides the most dangerous commerically rafted river experience in the region!
In addition, as is now a much anticipated annual tradition, the Whitewater Rolls rain or shine during each weekend in October via controlled releases from John Flannagan Dam.
This gives the Russell Fork big volume to go along with a respectably steep mean drop of 140 feet per mile ( max gradient of up to 190 feet per mile ) to make it one of the truly classic river runs in the United States.
Riding Air - Russell Fork Gorge - Breaks Interstate Park
The Russell Fork Gorge is a solid Class IV-V+ adventure, set amid a gorgeous mountain chasm carved into the northeastern end of Pine Mountain.
Pine Mountain is a geologic mirror image of the northwesternflank of the High Knob Landform ( the HKL being the dominant anticline of the great Cumberland Mountain Overthrust Block ).
Featured on this websitenumerous times, Pine Mountain is the second major anticline forming this world-renowned Cumberland Block and stands as the northwestern most mountain ridge of the southern Appalachians, Cumberland Mountains, and Cumberland Overthrust.
For much more information on Russell Fork River whitewater action, and the many activities of each season, please visit this interesting website of veteran kayaker & American Whitewater stream team coordinator Steve Ruth:
August continued the wet and cool trend of Summer 2009 with an especially CHILLY July being a notable aspect of this season in the southern Appalachians.
A few statistics for selected locations included:
Dickenson County
Elevation 1560 feet
( Lower Elevations of Russell Fork Basin ) Clintwood 1 W
Average Summer Max: 78.1 degrees
Average Summer Min: 57.6 degrees
Mean: 67.8 degrees
August Rainfall: 4.14"
Summer Rainfall: 18.52"
2009 Precipitation: 39.69"
Elevation 2650 feet
( Along the Tennessee Valley Divide )
Nora 4 SSE On Long Ridge
Average Summer Max: 75.4 degrees
Average Summer Min: 60.7 degrees
Mean: 68.0 degrees
August Rainfall: 3.75"
Summer Rainfall: 15.88"
2009 Precipitation: 36.73"
Wise County
Elevation 1945 feet
( Grindstone Ridge Base of High Knob Massif ) Head of Powell Valley August Rainfall: 5.27" Summer Rainfall: 17.27" 2009 Precipitation: 45.36"
Elevation 2342 feet
( Northern Base of High Knob Massif ) City of Norton Water Plant
August Rainfall: 5.19"
Summer Rainfall: 18.60"
2009 Precipitation: 49.30"
Water Elevation 2360 feet
( Northwest Mountain Flank of High Knob Massif ) Appalachia Lake Water Plant August Rainfall: 6.99" Summer Rainfall: 18.57" 2009 Precipitation: 49.37"
Water Elevation 3120 feet
( High Knob Massif Crest Zone ) Big Cherry Dam of High Knob Massif
August Rainfall: 7.08"
Summer Rainfall: 20.94" ( M )
2009 Precipitation: 52.51" ( M )
Elevation 4178 feet
( High Knob Massif Crest Zone )
Eagle Knob of High Knob Massif
Average Summer Max: 69.4 degrees
Average Summer Min: 56.4 degrees
Mean: 62.9 degrees
Max Temp: 78 degrees on June 19
Min Temp: 47 degrees on June 6, July 19
( M ) - Indicates missing moisture due to evaporation
between hand-measurements of the NWS rain gauge.
Average summer maximums remained in the 60s across the upper northern and eastern slopes and highest elevations of the High Knob Massif, with not a single day during the season breaking 80 degrees on the Eagle Knob of High Knob ( with good exposure to insolation at 4178 feet above mean sea level ).
This implied that mid-upper 70s were the best summer could generate amid the shady northern slopes at highest elevations of the massif.
An average nightly minimum of 56.4 degrees on Eagle Knob also meant that most nights in lofty basins of the High Knob high country had temps dipping into the 50 to 56 degree range ( via cold air drainage off the crestlines ).
The above being rather typical for summer MIN temperatures in mid-upper elevation basins with low-mid 50s, for example, also being observed for MEAN minimums during the June-August period of Summer 2008.
The above is why camp fires & blankets felt so good to backcountry hikers and those enjoying designated recreation areas at majestic High Knob Lake, Bark Camp Lake, and Flag Rock.
Ah, summer in the high country!
High Knob Meadow - Elevation 4223 feet
Looking Across Big Cherry Basin of High Knob Massif
Rainfall extremes for the June-August period of summer varied from 12.47" in Grundy to as much as 24.00" in wettest portions of the High Knob Massif ( along the Wise-Scott-Lee border area ).
A hand-measured rainfall total of 20.94" at Big Cherry Dam of the High Knob Massif by my friend Gary Hampton, Superintendent of the South Fork Gorge ( Big Stone Gap ) Water Plant and his staff, was one of the greatest reported in the entire region despite missing moisture due to evaporation between measurements( 0.31"+ of evaporation from the rain gauge just during June ).
The peak known as High Knob caps a remnant massif ( large mountain mass ) that is part of an extraordinarily diverse mountain landform, the High Knob Landform ( HKL ).
The High Knob Massif is the remnant highcountry of the HKL. It extends from majestic Guest River Gorge southwestward to the Duffield Valley, to include its rugged northwestern arm called Little Stone Mountain.
January 13, 2010
Calcareous Core of High Knob Landform
In between Little Stone Mountain and the core of the remnant massif lies a arrowhead-shaped valley, the majestic Powell Valley of Wise County, Va., which marks the end of a great erosional breach in the HKL that continues southwestward as the beautifully rolling valleys of Lee County, Va., past historic and famous Cumberland Gap to Norris Lake and the I-75 corridor of northern Tennessee.
From a geological perspective, majestic Powell Valley of Wise County marks the ending of the great erosional breachment of the High Knob Landform which formed via headward erosion over time toward the northeast.
January 2013
Powell Valley Overlook Northeast End of Calcareous Heart of HKL
The northwestern mountain flank of the HKL is especially rugged and distinct with extraordinary natural features such as Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, Cave Springs Wilderness Area, and Roaring Branch Gorge ( to note only a few ).
When you stand upon lofty High Knob you are standing on a landform whose roots extend downward for several miles beneath your feet and whose surface spreads outward across ten counties and three states.
But what truly makes the HKL special is that its landform possesses endemic characteristics on many major levels of the natural sciences. This is the realization that must be learned in order to truly appreciate this great mountain landscape, since it's loss due to ignorance for what it is would be one of the greatest tragedies in the history of Virginia and the United States.
This is not a landform made for resource extractions.
It is the fresh water giver, clean air maker, and major weather changer of this region.
Water Elevation 3120 feet Big Cherry Lake of High Knob Massif
4 ). an eroded calcareous core that separates these mountain flanks and narrows by headward erosion, to the northeast, into the inverted V-shaped Powell Valley ( adjacent to the High Knob peak ).
*The HKL is the most dominant structural feature of the 3125 square mile Cumberland Mountain Overthrust Block, the largest piece of deformed continental crust of its kind exposed in the Appalachians
( also called the Pine Mountain Thrust Sheet ).
The Cumberland Overthrust Block is the northwestern-most major thrust sheet in the great southern Appalachian fold-thrust belt and is considered to be the classic model for mountain building ( orogenic ) processes of folding and thrust faulting associated with
"thin-skinned" tectonics.
Back Stone Mountain Syncline
Rocks Overturned Toward Southeast Southeast Flank of High Knob Massif
*The breached Powell Valley Anticline of the HKL is the only geological structure in Virginia ( and known in the Appalachians )
to host caves in all major cave bearing stratas from
Cambrian through Mississippian age.
April 10, 2011
The Devil's Bathtub
Unique Geological Features Inside A Unique Geological Feature Awesome Beauty - Devil Fork Basin of High Knob Massif
The Powell Valley Anticline is the structural foundation, and support for the High Knob Landform. However, as noted in my extensive follow-up comments at the end of this section,
the HKL is much more than just a geological structure.
Clinch River Watershed
Clear Creek Gorge of High Knob Massif Majestic "Balanced Rock" Formation
*Embedded within the northwestern mountain flank of the
High Knob Landform, adjacent to Fern Lake and Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, is the unique circular basin in which lies Middlesboro, Kentucky. This is widely felt to be an astrobleme.
Summer View from The Pinnacle Overlook Astrobleme ( Impact Structure ) of Middlesboro Basin
*From base to base the High Knob Massif ( remnant highcountry of the HKL ) is the widest single mountain mass in all of western Virginia, and one of the widest in the Appalachians.
*The High Knob Massif contains thehighest upper elevation basins in the entire 150+ air mile expanse of the Cumberland Mountains ( valleys at 2400 to 3600 feet above sea level ).
( Valley Floor Elevation 3400 to 3600 feet )
Jefferson National Forest of Clinch Ranger District
Basin Head of Big Stony Creek Gorge of Clinch River High Knob Lake Basin & Special Biological Area
*The High Knob Massif contains the longest backslope
( distance from its S-SE base to N-NW crestline that is not associated with a ridge or spur ) of any mountain in western Virginia and the Cumberland Mountains.
*The High Knob Massif and its NW arm contain one of the greatest concentrations of mountain gorges of any singular mountain mass in the southern Appalachians ( a result of its large size and amazing structural geology ).
South Fork of Powell River Gorge
Big Stony Creek Gorge
Straight Fork Gorge
Chimney Rock Gorge
Devil Fork Gorge
Glady Fork Gorge
Cove Creek Gorge
Dry Creek Gorge of Cove Creek
Stock Creek Gorge
Laurel Fork Gorge of Stock Creek
Dry Fork Gorge of Stock Creek
Roddy Branch Gorge of Valley Creek
McGhee Creek Gorge
Dry Creek Gorge of Clinch River
Little Stony Creek Gorge
Guest River Gorge
Mill Creek Gorge
Burns Creek Gorge
Machine Creek Gorge
Clear Creek Gorge
Lost Creek Gorge
Roaring Branch Gorge
Maple Gap Karst Fields Looking Up South Fork Gorge of High Knob Massif
*The 2000 feet of vertical drop within only 0.8 mile off Grindstone Ridge Dome of High Knob is one of the greatest short-distance elevation changes west of the Blue Ridge province
( across the western expanse of the Appalachians ).
Head of Powell Valley
( A Topographic Dome Shape ) Grindstone Ridge Dome of High Knob Massif
*The northwestern mountain flank of the High Knob Landform
( geologic NW forelimb of Powell Valley Anticline ) possesses unusual beauty and potential to become a Linear Park & elongated conservation corridor with many scenic and already designated sites along its Little Stone, Stone, and Cumberland mountains ( a continuous mountain with different local names ).
Geological NW Forelimb of Powell Valley Anticline NW Flank of The High Knob Landform ( In RED )
NW Flank of The High Knob Landform
( A few places of interest - Norton to Middlesboro )
Legion Park Flag Rock Recreation Area Dual Norton Reservoir System Little Stone Gap - Powell Valley Overlook Rimrock Lake Appalachia Lake "The Big Stone Gap" SW VA Museum Historical State Park Roaring Branch Gorge High Butte of Stone Mountain Keokee Lake Cave Springs Wilderness Area The Stone Face in "The Pennington Gap" Yellow Rocks of Stone Mountain Rainbow Arch of Stone Mountain Stone Mountain State Natural Area Cranks Creek Lake Martins Fork Lake Martins Fork State Natural Area White Branch Falls & Gorge Wilderness Road State Park Shillalah Creek Wildlife Management Area Cumberland Gap National Historical Park "The Cumberland Gap" Fern Lake Childress-Wilson Gap Area
The Dual Norton Reservoir System, Flag Rock Recreation Area,
Little Stone Mountain Gap-Powell Valley Overlook, Rimrock Lake and Appalachia Lake are technically part of the High Knob Massif but mark the true beginning of this continuous NW mountain flank of the High Knob Landform ( stretching from Pickem Mountain & the City of Norton to Cumberland Gap and the I-75 corridor ).
All the same mountain but with different
local names given for specific sections.
City of Norton Parks & Recreation Beautiful Rock Formation In Legion Park
Many other cultural and physical features are present along this truly awesome and magnificent mountain flank.
An increasingly wide and majestic karst valley of rolling ridges and open expanses becomes a dominant topographic feature of the landform ( eroded calcareous core of the ancient High Knob ) southeast of its NW Flank and southwest of its remnant massif.
Southwestern Expanse of High Knob Landform Rolling Karst Valley In Golden Morning Light
Aspects of this truly incredible Calcareous Core ( Heart ) of the
High Knob Landform, where the bulk of people live, are featured
throughout this website.
SE Flank of The High Knob Landform
( A few places of interest - Duffield to Norris Lake )
The Divide ( North Fork of Clinch River Gap ) Elk Knob of Wallen Ridge Lovelady Gap of Wallen Ridge Wallen Creek Basin ( Stickleyville Area ) Buzzard Roost of Wallen Ridge Phoebe's Butt of Wallen's Ridge Kane Gap Overlook of Powell Mountain Stone Ridge & The Sinks Newman Ridge Blackwater Creek Basin to Kyles Ford Big & Little Sycamore Creek Basins Lone Ridge
Stickleyville Community Historic Wallen Creek Basin of High Knob Landform
While Wallen Ridge is technically an "interior ridge" of the
High Knob Landform, it joins with Powell Mountain to form the beautiful and historic Wallen Creek Basin adjacent to The Divide
( North Fork of Clinch River Gap ) and High Knob Massif.
December 7, 2009 Majestic Morning Sky Above Wallen Ridge
Adjacent to this SE Flank is Natural Tunnel State Park featuring the famous Natural Tunnel which was carved out over time along the Glenita Fault System by Stock Creek of the High Knob Massif.
Magnificent Natural Tunnel in Natural Tunnel State Park
This image illustrates how BIG the remnant massifof High Knob is as snow, the white on this image, covers most of its elevated high country except for portions of its northwest, northern & extreme southeastbases( via a significant snow, ice & rime event in December 2002 with a SE air flow component that upsloped across the massif ).
Water Capturing Wonder Northwestern Mountain Wall of High Knob Massif
Note how wide the white area is across the High Knob Massif compared with that capping the adjacent crestlines of Black Mountain, along the Virginia-Kentucky border to the west, and Clinch Mountain to the southeast.
Pine Mountain can be seen farther northwest, stretching southwest from Breaks Gorge on the VA-KY border across SE Kentucky ( with variable amounts of snow cover along its length ).
Looking To Pine Mountain Along The Horizon Autumn Colors On The Tennessee Valley Divide
Observe how The Cedars of Lee County, Va., show up beautifully amid the breached calcareous core of the HKL as the elongated dark green strip eastward of the V-notch appearing white sections marking snow that is capping Cumberland & Brush mountains of Cumberland Gap NHP on the above map ( Martins Fork Basin being less well covered and illuminated by snow in between the high mountain crestlines, to create a darker section amid the V-shaped whiteness laying across northeastern sections of the National Park ).
Tennessee Valley Divide
NW Flank of The High Knob Landform
Brush Mountain-Cumberland Mountain Section
A more general covering of snow is observed north of the massif, across central-northern Wise County and the northwest portion of Dickenson County in Virginia. Note the MANY mountain ridges and hills across this area, and to the west of Pine Mountain, and how small they appear in comparison to the High Knob Massif.
The High Knob Landform ( HKL ) is HUGE, of course, and its remnant massif is very large. In fact, the highcountry of the remnant massif of High Knob is larger than some counties in eastern Virginia and the state of Kentucky!
Elevation 4223 feet
( Looking Down Upon NW Mountain Wall ) Looking Southwest From High Knob Meadow
*The HKL contains the biodiversity hotspot for the entire continental United States for the richness & rarity of limited range species ( as designated by Precious Heritage: The Status of Biodiversity in the United States ).
*The High Knob Massif possesses one of the greatest life range zones of any mountain west of the Eastern Continental Divide, with an effective vertical relief of 4346 feet
( 3083 feet above and 1263 feet below ground ).
High Knob Lake Basin
Big Stony Creek Basin of High Knob Massif Tiger Swallowtails ( Papilio glaucas ) In Summer
*Upper elevations of the High Knob Massif contain types of Northern Hardwood and High Elevation Cove Forest communities that are endemic to the southern Appalachians
( and very rare amid the Cumberland Mountains ).
Lower Elevations are Below 2000 feet
Middle Elevations are 2000 to 3000 feet
Upper Elevations are Above 3000 feet
( Elevations in feet above mean sea level )
The High Knob Massif contains more than 100 square miles above 2400 feet and around 50 square miles above 3000 feet.
Clinch River Watershed of Upper Tennessee River Basin Biodiversity In Little Stony Basin of High Knob Massif
*The Clinch and Powell rivers have been recognized as a national hotspot of aquatic diversity with the Clinch River Basin ranked number one in the United States, out of 2111 watersheds, for the greatest diversity of rare and imperiled aquatic species ( Precious Heritage, 2000 ).
The northwestern slopes of the High Knob Landform, southwest of the Virginia community of Ocoonita, also drain into the Upper Cumberland River Basin to collectively contribute to the greatest assemblage of aquatic rarity on the North American continent.
Clinch River of Upper Tennessee Basin
Endemic Species of Cumberland & Tennessee Basins Cumberland Moccasinshell ( Medionidus conradicus )
Note that species in this section are mostly not arranged in any specific order. They are shown only to illustrate a few examples of the vast diversity of life which has been documented across the High Knob Landform ( Upper Tennessee & Cumberland Basins ).
This is a truly vast and essentially unsampled world within the High Knob Landform.
The High Knob Naturalist Rally is held every autumn to celebrate this wondrous natural world which has been highlighted by only a few photographs above!
October 10, 2009
Bark Camp Lake of High Knob Massif The Annual High Knob Naturalist Rally
All these different species and organisms are part of complex terrestrial and subterranean natural communities, a few of which have been identified in the following list.
Natural Communities of The High Knob Landform
Southern Appalachian Northern Hardwoods
( Upper elevations of High Knob Massif )
High Elevation Cove Forests
( e.g., High Knob Lake Basin )
Mixed Mesophytic Northern Hardwoods
( Cold air drainage corridors of massif )
Rich Cove-Slope Forest
( Exemplifies Mixed Mesophytic Forest )
Canadian Hemlock Forest
( Endangered by Adelges tsugae )
Acidic Cove Forest
( Mesic but more infertile mountain slopes )
Mountain Acidic Woodland
( Edaphically stressed, oligotrophic soils )
Mountain Acidic Cliff
( e.g., precipitous quartz-arenite sandstones )
Xeric Sandstone Cliff Communities
( NW Flank of High Knob Landform )
Little Stone-Pickem Mountain
Xeric Sandstone Cliff Community of High Knob Massif
This is a mountain region of dramatic seasonal weather changes with amazing transformations between Autumn, Winter, Spring, and Summer that impact all aspects of its natural world.
These seasonal weather variations are enhanced in the High Knob Massif where higher elevations, atypically wide base to base widths, and excellent air flow exposures work to make it the wettest area in Virginia ( High Knob Massif - Black Mountain being the wettest in both Virginia & Kentucky over the longer term ).
*The HKL generates an orographically enhanced upslope flow on southwesterly airflow trajectories that is unique to Virginia, and the southern-central Appalachians, in its enhancement of both rainfall and snowfall ( especially strong in the orographic forcing season of November-May across the High Knob Massif ).
An analogous enhancement occurs on rainfall across southern portions of the Appalachian chain, and along outward projecting portions of the Virginia Blue Ridge, but rarely ever includes significant snowfall like occurs in the High Knob Massif area.
*The High Knob Massif generates a major enhancement of precipitation on southeasterly air flow trajectories during the cold season, under specific conditions, that appears to be indigenous to the massif ( thermally indirect mesoscale or TIM circulation ).
*The City of Norton is the wettest town or city in Virginia on an annual basis ( over decades ) as verified by data scans at the UVA Climatology Office in Charlottesville, the Southeastern Regional Climate Center, and the North Carolina State Climate Office's Regional Database.
This is due to Norton's location within the orographic lifting zone of the High Knob Massif, and to the other unique weather features forced by the atypically wide base to base expanse of the massif.
Autumn Color 2011
Benges Basin of High Knob Massif Norton-Wise From Flag Rock Recreation Area
*The High Knob Massif is the wettest area in Virginia for which there are available records and has crushed ( i.e., unofficially broken ) every snowfall record in the state one or more times.
( February 2015 ) Greatest Monthly Snowfall Total 73.0"
( February 13-March 14, 1993 )
Greatest 30-day Snowfall Total 83.0"
( 1995-96 )
Greatest Seasonal Snowfall Total 200.5"
( December 2009 to January 2011 ) Greatest 14-Month Snowfall Total 276.0"
Elevation 4200 feet
( 23 Winters from 1992-93 to 2014-15 )
Greatest Average Seasonal Snowfall 108.4"
Elevation 3300 feet
( January 1993 to March 2015 )
High Chaparral of High Knob Massif
Greatest Annual Community Snowfall 77.0"
Elevation 3300 feet
( December 2009 to January 2011 )
High Chaparral of High Knob Massif Greatest 14-Month Community Snow Total 212.0" Greatest Consecutive 3-Season Snowfall Averages 143.3"
1995-96 to 1997-98
138.2"
2008-09 to 2010-11
112.3"
2002-03 to 2004-05
Greatest Consecutive 7-Season Snowfall Average 121.1"
2008-09 to 2014-15
**( March 1993 )
Greatest Mean Single Storm Snow Depth 58"
( Late 1970's Winter Snowpack )
Greatest Non-Storm Related Depth 42" to 48"+
( February 2015 ) Greatest Non-Storm Related Depth 40" to 50"+
***( Superstorm Sandy - October 2012 ) Greatest Early Season Snowfall & Depth 30"
**Snow Drifts of 15-25 FEET ( VDOT Verified )
Resident accounts suggest the March 1942 blizzard
may have produced a greater MEAN snow depth.
***Snow Drifts of 4-8 FEET
February 16, 2014
Photographer Bill Harris Standing In 2 Feet Of Snow On High Knob
Another notable cold season aspect is the number of days with 1" or more of snow depth, with a mean of 83 days observed during the 8 winter seasons from 2003-04 to 2010-11 across northern slopes of High Knob Lake Basin
( mean of 11.9 weeks per season ).
March 17, 2007
Head of Big Stony Creek
Broad U-Shaped Topographic Basin High Knob Lake Basin of High Knob Massif
The number of days with 1" or more of snow depth dropped
to just 49 days ( 7 weeks ) during the 2011-12 season before
surging back to 91 days ( 13 weeks ) during 2012-13.
February 15, 2010
High Knob Massif Crest Zone Deep Snow Before 15"+ of New Snowfall
*The High Knob Massif generates distinct snow shadows that change with variations in wind direction ( unique for a mountain of its height with the major forcing of this being again related to its atypically large base to base widths and excellent exposures to air flow of varying trajectories ).
March 1, 2005
High Knob Massif
Dylan Fields Under Tree ( 18.6" of Snowfall ) Snow Bends Red Cedar Horizontal In High Chaparral
It is common for huge snow depth differences to develop during
the cold season between the remnant highcountry of the High Knob Landform and locations leeward ( downstream ) of its sprawling massif and rugged northwestern mountain flank ( this being aided by the Black mountains and Pine Mountain for NW air flow trajectories ).
This shadowing effect contributes to the Tri-Cities of NE Tennessee getting 5 to 15 FEET less snow than the High Knob Massif during any given winter season!
December 22, 2009
Wilderness Road State Park Amid Calcareous Heart Contrast Between Cumberland Mountain & Powell Valley
It is also common for large snow depth differences to develop each winter between the High Knob Massif and its calcareous heart
( e.g., Powell Valley & Powell River Valley ).
Winter Season of 2009-10 Huge Snow Depth Difference Between Massif & Valley
( * ) - Indicates that total was estimated or
partly estimated due to severe winter conditions.
( M ) - Denotes that total precipitation was greater than rain gauge total due to evaporation between hand-measurements and loss in falls of snow too deep for the rain gauge to physically contain
( 4"-diameter NWS rain gauge ).
[ All measurements courtesy of Superintendent Gary Hampton
and Staff of the Big Stone Gap Water Plant in South Fork Gorge ].
*The 6.31" monthly mean for 41 consecutive months measured at Big Cherry Dam of the High Knob Massif is the highest ever observed in Virginia over such an extended period of time ( November 2008 to March 2012 ) despite up to 3.50" or more of loss per year due to evaporation between hand-measurements and falls of snow too deep for the rain gauge to physically hold.
For a few examples please reference the following:
Snow Depths for March 1942 Event
Norton-Wise-Powell Valley Area: 36" to 51"
Kingsport, Tn., NWS: 5" ( Snow Shadow of HKL )
*The High Knob Landform helps force an atypical decrease in annual precipitation amounts traveling UP Basin in the Clinch River watershed on air flows with mean SW components.
Annual Precipitation Difference from Norton to Lebanon
14-Year Annual Mean ( 1990-2003 )
City of Norton: 58.54"
Town of Lebanon: 42.96"
( -15.58" less per year in Lebanon )
Long-term differences are simply amazing as exemplified by Burkes Garden sitting upon the Tennessee Valley Divide at the head of the Clinch River Basin, where despite its high elevation and long record period ( 1896-Present ) there has been only one year ( January-December period ) with more than 60.00"
of total precipitation ( 63.02" in 1972 ).
Differences verses upper elevations are even greater between
the High Knob Massif and head of the Clinch River Basin.
While Big Cherry Dam and Burkes Garden measuring sites are close to the same elevation,
Big Cherry Dam averaged 24.70" more per year than Burkes Garden during the 2009-2011 period
( despite significant precipitation losses totaling up to 3.50"+
per year at Big Cherry Dam that were not included ).
Burkes Garden
2009-2011 Precipitation Totals
2009: 54.68"
2010: 47.73"
2011: 50.69"
3-Year Mean: 51.03" ( M )*
( M )* - Indicates 2 missing days during December 2010.
[ Precipitation is hand-measured daily in Burkes Garden with a
8"-diameter NWS rain gauge and once every 7 days on average
at Big Cherry Dam ( 4"-diameter NWS rain gauge ) ].
*The HKL is a verified and prolific generator of orographic cloud forms above ground, and is likely the most prolific "internal" cloud generator in Virginia ( and perhaps, the Appalachians ).
Rime deposition on trees and fog drip from trees are major secondary moisture sources in the High Knob Landform with upslope flow across its mountain flanks & remnant massif, as well as cold air drainage from its high terrain, being key to condensing moisture out of the air for extraction by vegetation.
This often gives travelers of the famed "Crooked Road" a visual treat along what is by many accounts the most scenic section of the
Country Music Highway ( U.S. Route 23 ).
Powell Valley Overlook Deep Fog Layer Inside The High Knob Massif
Rime deposition on trees and fog drip from trees are major secondary moisture sources across the High Knob Massif, adding greatly to its annual water budget ( making this wettest portion of the High Knob Landform even wetter than rain gauges record ).
*The High Knob Massif contains the most water bodies upon its crest of any singular mountain known in the central-southern Appalachians ( perhaps, in all of the Appalachians, find one with more and it will be listed here on this website ).
December 19, 2016
Clinch River Watershed of Upper Tennessee Basin Little Stony Falls of High Knob Massif
NW Flank Lakes of The High Knob Landform
( Water Elevations Above Mean Sea Level )
Keokee Lake: 2249 feet
Cranks Creek Lake: 1405 feet
Martins Fork Lake: 1283 feet
Fern Lake: 1203 feet
Norris Lake is by far the largest in the High Knob Landform with 800 miles of total shoreline surrounding 34,200 acres of water
( mean elevation 1020 feet ). Norris Lake is formed by union of the Clinch and Powell rivers of the Upper Tennessee River Basin.
Norris Lake extends 73 miles up the Clinch River
and 56 miles up the Powell River.
October 2007
Water Elevation 3120 feet New Dam At Big Cherry Lake of High Knob Massif
*The High Knob Massif is the only known mountain in the central-southern Appalachians where one can drive by five different lakes ( as well as numerous wetlands ) and never drop below 3000 feet in elevation until either the very end, or beginning, of the journey.
There are many wetlands in the High Knob Massif with high valley floors that naturally have low flow gradients prior to plunges through deep mountain gorges which feed into the Clinch & Powell rivers of the famed Upper Tennessee River Basin.
These high valley floors are excellent places for lakes and beaver dams, both of which contribute to wetland formation amid the High Knob Massif. Some of the wetlands are very small, while others are extensive. A few examples will be highlighted.
Wetlands are extremely important in the High Knob Massif since they:
1 ). Increase the diversity of LIFE
2 ). Clean water before it enters lakes & streams
3 ). Reduce & slow down flash flooding
plus do MANY other things important to all life
( including YOURS )!
4 ). *Are Frost Pockets from which cold air drains into and from throughout the year.
*Cold air pools in these high valleys and eventually drains from them to generate and enhance significant cold air drainage corridors in the High Knob Massif that feature Mixed-Mesophytic Northern Hardwoods which finger downward from endemic Southern Appalachian Northern Woods ( at elevations above 3300-3600 feet ).
High Knob Lake Wetland
Mountain Fork of Big Stony Basin
( Clinch River Watershed )
U.S. Forest Service
Special Biological Area
High Knob Lake Recreation Area
A small wetland which beavers often try to make larger, with flooding around the bathhouse facility, is found just above High Knob Lake between the Amphitheater and Lake Shore ( recent zoomed in image below ).
April 12, 2012
Elevation 3535 feet
High Knob Lake Wetland
Big Cherry Basin Wetlands
South Fork of the Powell River
( Powell River Watershed )
April 12, 2012
Water Elevation 3120 feet Big Cherry Lake of High Knob Massif
633 Million Gallons of Water In 250-Acre Lake
October 2012 Big Cherry Lake In Autumn Colorations
April 12, 2012
Elevation Around 3200 feet
Big Cherry Basin of High Knob Massif
Mainstem Valley of South Fork of the Powell River
In contrast to the localized wetland at High Knob Lake are the extensive wetlands of Big Cherry Basin, which occur both near the backwaters of the lake itself and well upstream of its influence on high valley floors that form the headwaters of South Fork of the Powell River.
( The Next Image Series Begins At Lower Right ) Separation Between Lake & Main Wetland Valley
Note backwater wetland of lake in upper left of image. Image Series From SW to NE Along Wetland Valley
( These Wetlands Are Well Above Big Cherry Lake )
April 12, 2012
( Southwest End of Valley ) Meandering Course of Wetland Valley - Image 1
Meandering Course of Wetland Valley - Image 2
Meandering Course of Wetland Valley - Image 3
( Northeast End of Valley )
Meandering Course of Wetland Valley - Image 4
Extensive sphagnum mats, or what some might call muck, fill this long and beautiful wetland valley which starts at Big Cherry Lake and stretches into a thick, mixed evergreen-deciduous forest in the basin head beneath the majestic peaks of High Knob and
Grindstone Ridge Dome.
American Beaver ( Castor canadensis ) Controlled
Zoomed In Section With Beaver Dams & Cut Trees
Another backwater wetland is located in the valley adjacent to the mainstem wetland valley which was followed in above images. The adjacent valley, on the northwestern side of the basin, has a more wooded
( evergreen ) wetland as illustrated by the image below.
( Along The NW Side of Fork Ridge )
Wetland Valley Along Northwest Side of Basin
Big Cherry Basin wetlands are among many jewels of this lofty mountain basin, that rests as a water capturing wonder in the sky!
Glady Fork Wetlands
Big Stony Multi-Gorge Basin
( Clinch River Watershed )
April 12, 2012
Elevation Around 2900 feet
Dual Wetland Valleys of The Glades
Another jewel of the High Knob Massif is formed by the lofty stream valleys of Glady Fork of Big Stony Creek, resting between 2880 and 3000 feet above sea level.
Upper Glady Fork Wetland Valleys ( Western )
Upper Glady Fork Wetland Valleys ( Eastern )
Lower Glady Fork - Confluence of Wetland Valleys
Although drier than Big Cherry Basin over the longer term, with less winter snowfall and rime formation, Glady Fork Wetlands can have excessive summer rains
( 12"+ in a month ) when orographics & feedbacks work together as clouds build vertically above the adjacent chasms of the Big Stony Basin Multi-Gorge Complex.
Yet another jewel sitting upon this remnant highcountry massif of the High Knob Landform is majestic Bark Camp Lake with another extensive series of wetlands resting in high valleys upstream of the lake.
Wetland Valley Upstream of Lake ( With New Boardwalk )
Note that what looks like a string lying across the wetland above the lake ( from this high altitude ) is actually the new Boardwalk across the wetland valley!
April 12, 2012
Upper Little Stony Creek
New Boardwalk Across Wetland Valley
Extensive Wetlands Amid Upper Little Stony Basin
Again observe extensive wetlands which rest both upstream and downstream from the new boardwalk across the water filled sphagnum and peat fields.
Making this especially nice, of course, is that the boardwalk connects to the Lake Trail and extensive Chief Benge Trail System for a gorgeous hiking experience through a wetland valley.
Bark Camp Wetlands
Chief Benge & Lake Trail System
October 2012
Robinson Fork - Bark Camp Lake Basin
Upper Little Stony Basin Wetlands In Autumn
Wolf Creek Wetlands
Stock Creek Multi-Gorge Basin
( Clinch River Watershed )
January 31, 2007
Elevation Around 3000 feet
Wolf Creek Wetland Valley of High Knob Massif
A wetland-bog system with a long history of existence is located in a remote section of the Powell Mountain Block of the High Knob Massif, contrasting with the small wetland highlighted next.
Stock Creek Wetland
Mainstem of Stock Creek Gorge
( Clinch River Watershed )
April 12, 2012
Elevation Around 2500 feet
Small Wetland Along Mainstem of Stock Creek
A small wetland developing in recent years amid a low flow section of Stock Creek Gorge, via the handiwork of American Beavers ( Castor canadensis ), illustrates how the phrase "working like a beaver" can make a big difference if efforts are correctly applied!
Developing Stock Creek Wetland
Note wetland across the right side of image
A wet, low gradient stream section in Machine Creek Basin of the Guest River has potential to also develop into a more extensive wetland when Beavers get into that remote location ( if they have not already ).
Mountain Sinkhole Pond
Back Stone Mountain-Pine Ridge
( Clinch River Watershed )
April 12, 2012
Elevation 1476 feet Back Stone Mountain-Pine Ridge Sinkhole Pond
Nestled in the southeastern base of the High Knob Massif are many significant natural wonders, with a small pond formed in a natural sinkhole whose bottom is plugged being one such feature ( interesting in a massif where dams are either man or beaver made ).
Clinch River of Upper Tennessee Basin Natural Sinkhole Pond In The Low Elevations
American Copperhead ( Agkistrodon contortrix ) snakes have officially been documented as occupying this sinkhole pond. Beware! Cliff Mountain Ponds
North Fork of The Clinch River
( Clinch River Watershed )
January 31, 2007
Elevation Around 3200 feet Cliff Mountain Ponds of High Knob Massif
The southwestern end of the High Knob Massif is formed by rugged Cliff Mountain, of the Powell Mountain Block, which towers more than 2000 vertical feet above
"The Divide" and North Fork of the Clinch River Gap.
At least a couple of ponds ( man-made or natural ) rest high upon the mountain, with one in particular being large and apparently within a natural depression that shows no signs of recent disturbances by man.
Very interesting and beautiful.
Cliff Mountain of High Knob Massif
Pond In Natural Appearing Depression
There are many other wetlands and man-beaver made ponds across the High Knob Massif. Above images have only highlighted some of the most significant and interesting. *The High Knob Massif possesses the greatest local concentration of advanced to expert skill level whitewater creeks in Virginia, and contains the largest number of American Whitewater rated Class IV-V+ stream segments of any singular mountain in the eastern United States.
December 28, 2016
South Fork of the Powell River South Fork Gorge of High Knob Massif
*The NW Flank of the High Knob Landform generates the most pristine and extreme whitewater creeks in Kentucky with birth of Martins Fork and Shillalah Creek from the lofty backcountry of Cumberland Gap National Historical Park.
The Whitewater potential of this landform is undeveloped and largely unknown outside of the local area, with current conditions of steep creeks making most un-runnable ( see NOTE below ).
High Knob Massif Lower or Big Falls of Little Stony Gorge
It could be the only single mountain in the eastern United States to have five consecutive Class V-V+ whitewater creeks ( at normal to higher flow volumes ) lined up in a row, amid different major gorges, from west to east across its mass.
Credits: Chris Gorman & AutoBoof Productions
January 17, 2013
High Knob Massif During The Fast & Furious Snowstorm One For The Books - Little Stony Creek Gorge
*The HKL is the only major mountain landform which contributes water to the Clinch, Powell, and Cumberland river basins. Collectively, these basins possess the greatest assemblage of aquatic diversity in North America.
[ The Middlesboro Syncline of the Cumberland Overthrust Block
( deeply dissected Appalachian Plateau ) also contributes water to the Cumberland, Powell, and Clinch ( small amount ) rivers from the ranges of the Black, Little Black, and Log mountains ].
NOTE: All caves in the region are CLOSED due to the White Nose Syndrome Danger.
*The HKL contains the DEEPest cave systemeast of the Rockies, and north of Mexico, on the entire North American continent ( at 1263 vertical feet in depth ). Potential exists for increases in depth, and for two different karst systems to become the deepest in eastern North America to the north of Mexico ).
*The HKL contains the largest cave system in Virginia, and the 66th longest known in the entire world ( as of July 30, 2013 ) out of hundreds of thousands of known caves across earth ( with potential over time for significant advancement in rank ).
*The HKL-Clinch River Valley contains the highest cave density and concentration of significant caves in Virginia, with 50 percent of the significant caves of Virginia within a single hydrologic unit in the High Knob Landform ( HKL ).
Gilley Cave of High Knob Landform Cave Salamander ( Eurycea lucifuga )
*The HKL and adjoining sections of the Clinch River Valley contain some of the most spectacular surface karst in Virginia, with standing solution conduits ( the most famous being The Natural Tunnel ) and sinkholes that reach vertical depths of more than 100 feet and lengths of 500 to 1000+ feet. Karren, karst windows, sinking streams, and unroofed, or open, cave passages are common amid certain stratas.
*The HKL contains the longest continuously traversable subterranean stream passage in Virginia, with the greatest vertical drop in the state along its course.
Calcareous Core of The High Knob Landform
The Daniel Boone Natural Bridge Area of Lee County
*The High Knob Massif can handle more total precipitation without flooding ( rainfall and/or rain + snow melt ) than other locations across western Virginia since most creeks draining its highcountry sink, or partially sink, into the subterranean prior to reaching regional base levels marked by the ecologically renowned Clinch and Powell rivers.
Karst Landscape of High Knob Landform Maple Gap of High Knob Massif In Spring
Since much of the highcountry of the massif is upheld by more resistant stratigraphy, such as quartzarenites, it hides the fact that it is largely a karst landscape with hydrologically complex conduit systems. This being especially true since the High Knob Landform possesses a form of scarp-slope karst that gives little evidence of its presence on the surface ( relative to its calcareous valleys ).
*Drainage from the High Knob Massif has been responsible for formation of the famed Natural Tunnel, amid The Natural Tunnel State Park, and the hydrologically complex conduit system of the Rye Cove Karst Basin ( the largest karst cove in Virginia ).
*The HKL contains dozens of globally rare subterranean species, many found no where else in the world, with connections via hydrologically complex conduit systems to other adjoining
bio-hotspots like the Rye Cove Karst Basin.
Globally Endemic Species In High Knob Landform Unthanks Cave Snail ( Holsingeria unthanksensis )
*The HKL contains one of the most biologically diverse cave systems in all of the Appalachians ( no cave locations or names will be given, so please don't ask ).
*The Cedars Millipede ( Brachoria cedra ), which was thought to be endemic to The Cedars of Lee County, was recently discovered at two different locations on High Knob to reinforce the physical connections between the eroded calcareous core and remnant massif of the HKL ( Brachoria cedra is a globally rare species ).
The Virginia Natural Heritage Karst Program tracks 76 species of rare cave animals within the Upper Tennessee River Basin of southwestern Virginia, most of which are in the High Knob Landform. In addition, many new and undescribed species have been discovered during recent years.
*The High Knob Landform and its Upper Tennessee River Basin is a center of human history and culture in the Southern Appalachians of the United States.
Native Americans were first to occupy this wild landscape with a reverence for both its terrestrial and subterranean vastness!
More than 50 Burial Caves used by Native Americans have been documented in Virginia, the majority being discovered within the Clinch, Powell, and Holston watersheds of the Upper Tennessee River Basin ( Midcontinental Journal of Archaeology ).
( Ron Pinson )
Wilderness Road State Park Hunting In More "Modern" Times
Artifacts discovered within dozens of rock shelters
in the High Knob Landform date from the Early Archaic Period
( ca., 8500-6500 B.C. ) through the Late Woodland Period ( ca., 1000-1650 A.D. ) to cast new light on changing cultures and land use patterns through time ( Journal of Cave and Karst Studies ).
While Daniel Boone is perhaps the most famous explorer and Long Hunter of the region, there were many others who aided discovery and settlement of this rugged mountain country.
Rising against the Appalachian Coalfields, the history and culture of The High Knob Landform corridor has been shaped by an original, rich heritage of music and coal.
The official Outdoor Drama of Virginia, and the longest running in the Commonwealth, gives visitors a colorful glimpse into the rich mountain culture of this landscape.
When combining all the photographs in this section with all the different groups of information nothing can deny that this is a great, continuous mountain landform!
Whether it be called the High Knob Landform, Powell Valley Anticline, or simply by the multitude of individial local names for different sections it is important that it be recognized as a continuous, consolidated, landscape of an ancient mountain landform. Only then does its true greatness and significance become realized for all to see!
Browning, W.W., ( 2013 ). Biodiversity and Climatology of the High Knob Landform: With Special Emphasis on the Clinch and Powell River Watersheds of the Upper Tennessee River Basin. Work in Progress.
Follow-Up Comments By Author:
Why Is It Important To Recognize The HKL?
There are countless reasons to recognize the High Knob Landform ( HKL ) and NOT one has to do with myself being the first to ever name it in such a way ( since the name High Knob was given LONG before I was born ) or the first to document it by bringing together major natural sciences to form a single picture!
Some geologists may say that the HKL is nothing more than the great Powell Valley Anticline, which has been recognized as a geological structure since at least the 1920s and 1930s
( by famous geologists Chester Wentworth, Charles Butts,
and John Rich ).
However, the HKL is MUCH
more than just a geologic structure!
Photographs used throughout this introduction and website are illustrating that for everyone to see with their own eyes.
To say that the High Knob Landform ( HKL ) ONLY equals the Powell Valley Anticline would be analogous to saying that the skeleton alone is equal to the human body.
The skeletal system of the body has no life, no functional use, without the brain, heart, lungs, and all the other organs, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and skin completing the human system!
In the same way, all of these organs and tissues can not function as a unit without a skeletal system to give them structural support.
The two can not be separated.
In like manner, the Powell Valley Anticline can not be separated from the High Knob Landform since it functions as the HKL's structural support.
The HKL would simply not exist as the incredible landform it is without the structural framework which holds it all together.
There is no doubt about that.
However, this structural framework alone, by itself, is not the HKL.
The HKL is the combination & resultant product of an infinite, amazing, assemblege of natural forces working together over a truly great vastness of time, which encompasses more than just its structural framework as defined by geology.
The capabilities, limited as they may be, of the natural sciences of today allow us as scientists to study the products of the intimate and very highly interconnected workings of all these grand natural forces ( allowing, at least, for the generation of a BIG picture ).
Just like the human body can not be adequately described by highlighting only it's skeleton, or heart, so the HKL can not be justly defined, understood, or described without bringing together ALL of the major natural sciences which outline its domain.
And make no mistake, when this phase of my work is done it will only be a mere OUTLINE. Despite being way more than 1,000 pages in length, assembled over more than 20 years of time, it will only be a basic foundation upon which future studies and works will add, update, and modify as needed over time as new information and knowledge becomes available.
My hope in this process is only to make a POSITIVE contribution to the world around me, amid this precious, flicker of time which I am blessed to have in this life.
A positive contribution in this matter is bringing understanding to what the High Knob Landform is, what it contains, and what it truly represents from the foundation of the natural sciences ( generating a BIG picture ).
Not from speculation, or guessing, or fiction, but from reality of what is, documented over time for anyone to prove.
Any new terminology or concept may sound strange at first, but over time when proven to be fact it becomes commonly used and natural. It is in this manner that I work to encourage usage and recognition of the terms "High Knob Massif" and "High Knob Landform," as they apply in scientific works, common writings, or in any usage in which they are valid.
This work is not biased toward anyone or group.
Period!
It is for the United States Forest Service, the National Park Service, the City of Norton, Towns of Appalachia, Big Stone Gap, Coeburn, Dungannon, Duffield, Pennington Gap, Jonesville, and many others, The Clinch Coalition, The Nature Conservancy, ALL private citizens, students, and teachers that live on or adjacent to the HKL, and for all counties and states into which it extends.
This work is simply for EVERYONE in order that all may learn about this great landform for a better, more postive future for it and everything impacted by it.
This work is NOT associated with any environmental group, and has not been funded by any groups.
It is also done to stimulate and encourage future scientific studies, which up until the past decade or two have been blatantly lacking across this great landscape ( ** ).
**That is, outside of the endless search for hydrocarbon resources and extractive entities.
How could a great landform like the HKL
go unrecognized for so long?
The answer to that question rest's largely upon the former, since no one expected to find, or went looking for, a great natural landform amid the Appalachian Coalfields.
My father was a coal miner for 40 long years, and this is no rebuke of that profession, but merely a part of the reality.
How could the deepest cave system east of the Rockies, and north of Mexico, on the entire North American continent go unrecognized for so long?
It's been here all along ( i.e., for a very long time )!
The answer is again part of the reality, that the focus of attention had previously been placed upon other better known karst regions across Virginia and the United States prior to the 1990's.
Such has been the case with EVERY major branch of the natural sciences except for geology, since detailed geological studies were necessary from a hydrocarbon perspective.
And just what was discovered when
the geology was studied in detail?
Only a little thing named the Cumberland Mountain Overthrust Block ( called Pine Mountain Thrust Sheet by some ), a recognized world-class example of "thin-skinned" tectonics, which has been cited in more scientific works, books, and papers than anyone has time to list.
It only revolutionized world-wide thinking about how thrust belts form and function in the creation of mountains!
With such a unique and fascinating structural framework, should it really be so shocking that such a great natural landform has developed upon it, down within it, and across a large portion of it's 3125 square mile expanse?
No, it really should not.
But there is so much more!
Like the human body has a soulwhich can not be seen with the naked eye, or explained by the natural sciences, the High Knob Landform ( HKL ) possesses an ability to alter and change invisible properties.
As I have written many times in the past, occasionally some of these "invisible" forces become visible to our eyes as the HKL, and it's remnant massif, alters the fluid atmosphere such that gravity waves appear ( given sufficient moisture for condensation processes ).
This has been important in my research, and I want to highlight this bit below from a former writing:
"The greatness of the HKL reaches far beyond what can be seen with the naked eye. From a climate perspective, this mountain landform is a force to be reckoned with, and is like a massive boulder in a river, that deforms the water and forces it to change course.
In this case, the High Knob Massif deforms the very air. If it were removed from the landscape, the regional climate would change, natural entities of untold significance would be lost, and lives near and far would forever be different, regardless of whether or not they ever laid eyes upon this massif.
Like many of the taller mountains of the Appalachians, the High Knob Massif excites gravity waves in the atmosphere.
However, unlike typically narrow crested Appalachian ridges, the unusually wide base to base width of the High Knob Massif, coupled with its good airflow exposure, forces much greater orographic impacts than would otherwise be expected from a mountain whose summit stands 1500 vertical feet lower than the highest in Virginia.
[ Analogy: A tall, narrow rock sticking up out of a river will alter the flow, but a wide rock; although lower in height, will deform the flow of the river in a much greater manner ].
The High Knob Massif generates, dissipates, and transfers enormous amounts of energy to places far removed from where it stands, with traces of this energy transfer being followed by the trails of gravity waves that ripple outward away from the massif through the fluid atmosphere in all directions."
Gravity Waves From High Knob Massif to North Carolina
November 10, 2000 at 2001 UTC
That bit of writing hints at some of the great forces at work which we occasionally see revealed, like this incredible NASA visible image above illustrates. A great flowing river of deformed air, orginating amid the High Knob Massif, which transfers energy outward through the fluid atmosphere to places as far away as western North Carolina or beyond.
Remember, a WIDE rock in a river!
There are other things emitted by the High Knob Landform which may not be readily seen or realized, until something "tragic" happens like the burning of the grand old Lookout Tower.
A rash of emotions were then revealed, even though what was really causing them was MUCH MORE than a mere pile of wood. Yes, it was indeed a grand ole tower, but it was the HKL that made it so beloved.
And, of course, there is the great cultural apsect of the HKL which has not even been mentioned. The famous Wilderness Road, grand Cumberland Gap, are only the most famous parts of a long legacy of national history made within this great landform.
One would think that Tourism Authorities would be JUMPing
at the chance to tie all this together into one grand package.
Are you listening out there?
It's called the High Knob Landform ( HKL ), or Powell Valley Anticline ( if you are strictly pushing geology ).
And now, as I also often like to say,
here is the BOTTOM LINE:
I did not wake up one glorious morning with the great realization of the High Knob Landform. I did not go in search of defining the HKL. I stumbled across it more than 20 years ago on the road to discovering some incredible climatic features unique to Virginia.
That is where this scientific study all began for me ( it really started when I was just a kid, the first time I looked upward in amazement at the 2000+ feet of vertical drop off Grindstone Ridge Dome in the Head of Powell Valley )!
But, as I was well taught at the University of Virginia's College in Wise, one can not truly define something without first stepping back to see the BIG PICTURE.
Like a large puzzle that begins as an unsorted pile, pieces were scattered from here to there, and only slowly, over time did they begin to emerge into this GREAT, GRAND picture that is the HKL.
Many greater ones than I have added pieces to this puzzle in years and decades past, and many greater than I will do so in the years and decades to come ( MY HOPE ).
It really does not bother me if my contribution passes away with time, IF the HKL becomes recognized by scientific studies, local, state, and national agencies responsible for it's care, and generally loved and appreciated for what it contains and represents.
A BIG dream?
Not really.
I think the majority who see High Knob sprawled across the great horizon with its lofty basins, gorges, lakes, wetlands, and plunging whitewater creeks, the awesome view of Powell Valley nestled deeply amid its towering mountain walls, tumbling Roaring Branch Gorge, Keokee Lake, the beautifully rolling Clinch & Powell River valleys which finally unite like passionate lovers at its southwestern end, the great Cumberland Gap National Historical Park with its looming "White Rocks," can sense in their hearts that this is no ordinary landscape!
When they learn of all the incredible things not so readily visible and talked about, which have been discovered far above, upon, and far beneath its surface, and that ALL of these are connected to ALL of those above which are so readily visible, amid a SINGLE great landform, there will be no possible way to deny what it is.