Roan Mountain
On exceptionally clear days, you might be able to make out a broad, high series of peaks sticking out far away on the southern horizon. These peaks belong to the Roan Mountain Massif, named this way since a "massif" refers to a large mountain mass with multiple peaks. Although local residents may think of just Tennessee's state park bearing Roan Mountain's name, this massif is actually much larger and lives up to its name: the Roan Mountain highlands stretch for nearly 15 miles and host multiple high summits, including those on Roan Mountain itself.
The reason we're able to see such a far-off series of summits here (Roan Mountain is some 60 air miles from High Knob) is that the peaks on the Roan Mountain Massif are huge. Three peaks on the massif surpass 6,000 feet above sea level in elevation, with most of the massif's other peaks easily soaring above one mile in elevation, or 5,280 feet. The Appalachian Trail runs the length of the massif on its way from Georgia to Maine, and the Roan Massif is actually one of the few places on the AT where one can catch a (very distant and hard-to-distinguish) view of High Knob.
If visiting Roan Mountain up close, you begin to see that the massif is much more than just a collection of high mountain summits. As the photo included with this page shows, the Roan is also home to some of Appalachia's rarest high-elevation ecosystems: spruce-fir forests and grassy balds. Grassy balds, in fact, stretch for nearly 7 incredible miles atop the Roan and form one of the longest (and easily most scenic) stretches of balds anywhere along the Appalachian chain. (For more on balds, spruce-fir, and their fascinating history, check out the Mount Rogers and Whitetop guides elsewhere on this website.)
Recently, the Roan Highlands have also become home to some groundbreaking initiatives designed to conserve the region's incredible habitats and wildlife. Conservation groups are working with state and federal governments and private landowners to set particularly important lands within the massif aside, protecting them in perpetuity. On the balds themselves, land managers have recently implemented unique programs where goats are periodcially allowed to graze on some of the balds, keeping encroachment of the surrounding forest at bay and preserving the balds' incredible views and distinctive flora and fauna. Beyond these traits, Roan Mountain also makes the view from here on High Knob unique: the Roan is one of the few places from the Knob where one can look into North Carolina, since the Roan Highlands straddle the border between North Carolina and Tennessee.