Pine Mountain is a

ridge A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for an extended distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from the narrow top on either side. The line ...

in the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. The ...

running through

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

and

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 36th-largest by ...

. It extends about 125 miles from near Pioneer, Tennessee, to a location near

Elkhorn City, Kentucky Elkhorn City is a home rule-class city in Pike County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 982 at the 2010 census. The city is located in proximity to the Breaks Interstate Park. History Elkhorn City was first settled by William ...

. Birch Knob, the highest point, is above sea level and is located on the Kentucky-Virginia border. It has long been a barrier to transportation, as the

Cumberland River The Cumberland River is a major waterway of the Southern United States. The U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 8, 2011 river drains almost of southern Kentucky and ...

Pineville, Kentucky Pineville () is a home rule-class city in Bell County, Kentucky, United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 1,732 as of the 2010 census. It is located on a small strip of land between the Cumberland River and Pine Mountai ...

is one of only two waterways that pass through the entire ridge. The other is the Clear Fork (Cumberland River tributary) near

Jellico, Tennessee Jellico is a city in Campbell County, Tennessee, United States, on the state border with Kentucky, by road north of Knoxville. The population was 2,355 at the 2010 census. History The name "Jellico" is a local alteration of "angelica", the name ...

. Natural areas located on the mountain includes Pine Mountain State Resort Park and

Kingdom Come State Park Kingdom Come State Park is a part of Kentucky's state park system in Harlan County atop Pine Mountain near the city of Cumberland. It was named after the 1903 best-selling novel '' The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come'' by native Kentuckian John ...

Breaks Interstate Park Breaks Interstate Park is a bi-state state park located partly in southeastern Kentucky and mostly in southwestern Virginia, in the Jefferson National Forest, at the northeastern terminus of Pine Mountain. Rather than their respective state par ...

, Kiwanis Raven Rock Park, Kentenia State Forest, Pine Mountain State Scenic Trail, the

Little Shepherd Trail Little is a synonym for small size and may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Little'' (album), 1990 debut album of Vic Chesnutt * ''Little'' (film), 2019 American comedy film * The Littles, a series of children's novels by American author John ...

, Blanton Forest State Nature Preserve, Bad Branch State Nature Preserve, and several others owned and managed by the Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves. Wildlife is abundant on Pine Mountain. The land is claimed to be the "Black Bear Capital of Kentucky." Black bears, elk,

rattlesnakes Rattlesnakes are venomous snakes that form the genera '' Crotalus'' and '' Sistrurus'' of the subfamily Crotalinae (the pit vipers). All rattlesnakes are vipers. Rattlesnakes are predators that live in a wide array of habitats, hunting small an ...

, and

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

are found on Pine Mountain.

References

{{Mountains of Tennessee Ridges of Kentucky Ridges of Tennessee Ridges of Virginia Landforms of Bell County, Kentucky Landforms of Harlan County, Kentucky Landforms of Letcher County, Kentucky Landforms of Whitley County, Kentucky Landforms of Claiborne County, Tennessee Landforms of Campbell County, Tennessee

See also

References