Bald Knob
Bald Knob as seen from Snowshoe Mountain, WV
Elevation	4,842 feet (1476 metres)
Location	West Virginia, USA
Range	Allegheny Mountains
Prominence	880 ft (268 m)
Coordinates	38°26′52″N, 79°55′52″W
Topo map	USGS Cass 38079-D8
Easiest route	rail

Bald Knob is the highest point on Back Allegheny Mountain in Pocahontas County, West Virginia and is part of Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. At 4,842 feet above sea level, it is the third highest point in the state and also the third highest in the Allegheny Mountains. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (2576x1932, 1107 KB) I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Snowshoe Mountain is a ski resort located in Snowshoe, West Virginia, in the Allegheny Mountains. ... A topographical summit is a point on a surface which is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. ... Official language(s) English Capital Charleston Largest city Charleston Area  Ranked 41st  - Total 24,244 sq mi (62,809 km²)  - Width 130 miles (210 km)  - Length 240 miles (385 km)  - % water 0. ... The Himalaya as seen from the International Space Station A mountain range is a group of mountains bordered by lowlands or separated from other mountain ranges by passes or rivers. ... The Allegheny Mountain Range (also spelled Alleghany and Allegany) -- informally, the Alleghenies -- is part of the Appalachian Mountain Range of the eastern United States. ... In topography, prominence, also known as autonomous height, relative height or shoulder drop (in America) or prime factor (in Europe), is a concept used in the categorization of hills and mountains, also known as peaks. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ... Example of a topographic map with contour lines Part of the same map in a perspective shaded relief view illustrates how the contour lines of the original follow the terrain Topographic maps are a variety of map characterized by large-scale detail and quantitative representation of relief, usually using contour... The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is a scientific agency of the United States government. ... Southern and northern Mount Everest climbing routes as seen from the International Space Station. ... A railway yard in Portland, Oregon. ... Pocahontas County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. ... Official language(s) English Capital Charleston Largest city Charleston Area  Ranked 41st  - Total 24,244 sq mi (62,809 km²)  - Width 130 miles (210 km)  - Length 240 miles (385 km)  - % water 0. ... Cass Scenic Railroad, located in Cass, Pocahontas County, West Virginia, is a West Virginia State Park heritage railway consisting of the town of Cass, eleven miles of railway, and a portion of the summit of Bald Knob. ... The Allegheny Mountain Range (also spelled Alleghany and Allegany) -- informally, the Alleghenies -- is part of the Appalachian Mountain Range of the eastern United States. ...

General Information

The mountaintop can be reached by hiking but is more commonly reached by riding the Cass Scenic Railroad, which terminates just below the summit. Its lofty elevation (only 21 feet lower than the highest point in the state, Spruce Knob), gives Bald Knob a unique and often inhospitable climate. Unlike the surrounding lower elevations which are populated by oak, hickory, birch, beech and maple, the summit dome is dominated by Red Spruce. Rowan, Eastern Hemlock, and Balsam Fir also occur at this altitude, though they are not as common as the spruce. The region was extensively logged from 1900 to 1960. Red Spruce, being a valuable natural resource, lured the timber companies into the area. By 1940, the mountain was virtually barren. The last harvest of Red Spruce and Eastern Hemlock on Bald Knob was in 1960. The summit was one of the last places logged by the Mower Lumber Company. Today, Red Spruce and other high elevation flora are making a comeback on the mountain, however, it will take many years for the area to fully recover. This era of West Virginia logging has been well documented in books such as "Tumult on the Mountain" and "On Beyond Leatherbark: The Cass Saga". Cass Scenic Railroad State Park, in Cass, Pocahontas County, West Virginia, is a West Virginia State Park heritage railway consisting of the town of Cass, eleven miles of railway, and a portion of the summit of Bald Knob. ... Spruce Knob, at 4,863 feet (1482 m), is the highest point in the state of West Virginia, U.S., and the tallest mountain in the Allegheny Mountains. ... Species See List of Quercus species The term oak can be used as part of the common name of any of several hundred species of trees and shrubs in the genus Quercus, and some related genera, notably Cyclobalanopsis and Lithocarpus. ... Species See text Comparison of Carya nuts Ripe hickory nuts ready to fall, Andrews, SC Hickory is a tree of the genus Carya, including 17-19 species of deciduous trees with pinnately compound leaves and large nuts. ... Species Many species; see text and classification Birch is the name of any tree of the genus Betula, in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. ... Species Fagus crenata - Japanese Beech Fagus engleriana - Chinese Beech Fagus grandifolia - American Beech Fagus hayatae - Taiwan Beech Fagus japonica - Japanese Blue Beech Fagus longipetiolata - South Chinese Beech Fagus lucida - Shining Beech Fagus mexicana - Mexican Beech or Haya Fagus orientalis - Oriental Beech Fagus sylvatica - European Beech Beech (Fagus) is a genus... Range of Maples Species See List of Acer species Maples are trees or shrubs of the genus Acer. ... Binomial name Picea rubens Sarg. ... Species Sorbus subgenus Sorbus Sorbus aucuparia - European Rowan Sorbus americana - American mountain ash Sorbus cashmeriana - Kashmir Rowan Sorbus commixta - Japanese Rowan Sorbus decora - Showy mountain ash Sorbus glabrescens - White-fruited Rowan Sorbus hupehensis - Hubei Rowan Sorbus matsumurana Sorbus sargentiana - Sargents Rowan Sorbus scalaris - Ladder Rowan Sorbus sitchensis - Sitka mountain... Binomial name Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr. ... Binomial name Abies balsamea (L.) Mill. ... 1900 (MCM) was an exceptional common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, but a leap year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. ... 1960 (MCMLX) was a leap year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1960 calendar). ... Leatherbark Run is the name of a stream in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, as well as the name of the gap in the Allegheny Mountains carved by the stream as it flows southeastward toward the Greenbrier River. ...

Climate

Bald Knob generally experiences mild summers and cold winters. The summit and west facing slopes of the mountain receive an average of 60 inches of precipitation per year and more than 180 inches of snow. The annual record snowfall is over 300 inches. Temperatures in the area have been known to reach -40 degrees Fahrenheit. One can expect winter conditions anytime between mid October to mid April. Snowfall has been recorded on the summit in every month except July and August. The last freeze usually occurs in mid-May and the first freeze occurs in mid to late September, however, freezing temperatures can occur anytime throughout the year. Current weather conditions for both the summit and base of the mountain at the town of Cass are available below. Fahrenheit is a temperature scale named after the German physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686–1736), who proposed it in 1724. ...

Additional Facts

• A firetower built in the 1930s is located at the summit and an observation deck has been built on the eastern side of the mountain for Cass Scenic Railroad.
• Bald Knob is the site of the headwaters of the Leatherbark, West Virginia's highest stream.
• Until 2001, Bald Knob was thought to be the second highest point in the state, but a survey conducted by Snowshoe Ski Resort using GPS technology concluded that Thorny Flat, the highpoint of Cheat Mountain, roughly five miles south of Bald Knob, was approximately six feet higher. This has not been officially confirmed by the USGS.
• Most of the mountain is owned by the Monongahela National Forest, purchased from Mower Lumber Company in 1960 by the federal government. The summit, however, is owned by Cass Scenic Railroad State Park.
• Hiking to Bald Knob on the railroad tracks is against federal and state law.
• Cass Scenic Railroad State Park is eleven miles long and only sixty feet wide, just enough for the railroad right-of-way.
• Bald Knob is the highest point reached by a standard gauge railroad east of the Mississippi.

The 1930s (years from 1930-1939) were described as an abrupt shift to more radical and conservative lifestyles, as countries were struggling to find a solution to the Great Depression, also known in Europe as the World Depression. ... Leatherbark Run is the name of a stream in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, as well as the name of the gap in the Allegheny Mountains carved by the stream as it flows southeastward toward the Greenbrier River. ... 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Over fifty GPS satellites such as this NAVSTAR have been launched since 1978. ... Cheat Mountain, located in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia, is over fifty miles long from north to south and more than five miles wide. ... The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is a scientific agency of the United States government. ... The Monongahela National Forest is a national forest located in eastern West Virginia, within the portion of the Allegheny Mountains that includes the Allegheny Front and the western portion of the Ridge-and-valley Appalachians. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ...

External links

• Bald Knob - Cass Scenic Railroad Site
• Current conditions at Bald Knob 4,842 ft.
• Current conditions at Cass, WV 2,500 ft. (Bottom of the mountain)
• Maps and aerial photos
  • WikiSatellite view at WikiMapia
  • Topographic map from TopoZone
  • Aerial image from TerraServer-USA
  • Surrounding area map from Google Maps
  • Location in the United States from the Census Bureau