
Jackson County
Local residents call Jackson County the
"Great Variety Show." Visitors to the area quickly learn
that Jackson County has indeed earned the title. Within the
county's 499 square miles you will find spectacular scenery,
important historical locations, and a large part of the
Cherokee Indian Reservation. Other major points of interest
include the highest point on the Blue Ridge Parkway (Balsam
Mountain) and, on the Jackson and Transylvania County line,
Whitewater Falls, the highest waterfall in Eastern United
States.
Western Carolina University, located in
Cullowhee, began in 1889 as a small school for mountain
children. Today the school is a comprehensive state
university with more than seven thousand students. Located
at the entrance to the University is the Mountain Heritage
Center. This unique museum houses major exhibits which
illustrate the mountain society both past and present. In
addition, a permanent exhibit, "Migration of the
Scotch-Irish People," portrays the history of the
Scotch-Irish as they left their native Scotland to settle in
North Ireland. Later generations came to the New World to
settle in the hollows and valleys of Western North Carolina.
The Center is also home to the Mountain Heritage Day, a
festival that attracts more than 35,000 visitors for
mountain music, food, and crafts on the last Saturday in
September.
In 1880, the Western North Carolina
Railroad completed its track from the Piedmont to Asheville.
The track reached Waynesville by 1882, Bryson City in 1884,
and Murphy in 1891. The Railroad was responsible for much of
the growth of the area. Dillsboro began where the track
ended until a tunnel could be built. Convict laborers using
pickaxes built the 836-foot tunnel. Nineteen laborers died
in its construction.
Unused for several years, the old
Norfolk Southern lines were purchased by the state and
leased to the Great Smoky Mountains Railway. Again the
railroad has been responsible for much of the growth of the
area. Based in Dillsboro, the railway offers trips from
Bryson City to the Nantahala Gorge and from Dillsboro to
Bryson City. The trains are made up of passenger cars, both
open and closed, and pulled by red, yellow, and blue diesel
locomotives or by steam locomotive. Traveling at 15 miles
per hour, you have time to really enjoy the view and the
ride.
Whiteside Mountain, east of Highlands
and west of Cashiers, is one of the most spectacular
mountains you will see in Western North Carolina. The
mountain a part of the Nantahala National Forest rises 2,100
feet with sheer rock walls rising vertically four hundred to
seven hundred feet.
Campgrounds and Cottages
Cottages within the area. |
Campgrounds |
Ash Grove Cabins & Camping 828-885-7216, Brevard, NC |
Timberlake Campground, 3270 Conleys Creek Rd, Whittier, NC 28789, 828-497-7320. |
An Eagle's Landing Campground, |
Flaming Arrow Campground |
Fort Wilderness Campground |
Sassafras Gap Campground |
Savannah Creek RV Resort, Sylva |
Singing Waters Campground |
Cartoogechaye Creek Campground |
Holly Cove
Campground Tuckaseegee RV Resort Cherokee KOA Deep Creek Tube Center Holly Cove RV |