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Situated in between the better-known Southern Appalachian ranges of the Smokies and the Blacks, the Great Balsam Mountains rise to heights well above 6,000 feet in a u-shaped island of high elevation southwest of Asheville. These peaks are varied, too, with Black Balsam offering a classic grassy bald, Shining Rock displaying dazzling outcrops of rock amid heath and spruce-fir forest, and Richland Balsam, the range's high point, showcasing the more traditional, thickly-forested summit common throughout these mountains.
This view from Mount Pisgah showcases the entirety of the range's grandest ridge running from Black Balsam Knob to Cold Mountain, and it includes the high point of Richland Balsam in the distance.
Elevations are shown in feet.
