page_title: Holston Mountain
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Holston Mountain / Geography
caption_attribution_description: Panoramic view looking northeast towards Johnson County, Tennessee along spine of Holston Mountain from Holston High Knob. South Holston Lake (Sullivan County, Tennessee) is on the left and the Stoney Creek Community (Northeast Carter County, Tennessee) is on the right side.
context_page_description: Holston Mountain is a mountain ridge in Upper East Tennessee and southwest Virginia, in the United States. It is in the Blue Ridge Mountains part of the Appalachian Mountains. Holston Mountain is a very prominent ridge-type mountain in Tennessee's Ridge and Valley Region, about 28 miles long, running from southwest to northeast, covering about 268 square miles. Its highest summit is Holston High Point, on which a Federal Aviation Administration aircraft navigational beacon is located, at an elevation of 4,280 feet above mean sea level. The second highest point is Rye Patch Knob, at 4,260 feet above mean sea level. The third highest point is Holston High Knob where an old dismantled Cherokee National Forest fire tower marks the elevation at 4,136 feet above mean sea level.
context_section_description: Holston Mountain is located in the Cherokee National Forest.  It is bounded on the northwest by South Holston Lake; on the southeast by Stoney Creek Valley, Shady Valley, and the Iron Mountains; on the northeast by the town of Damascus, Virginia; and on the southwest by the community of Keenburg, near Elizabethton, Tennessee.
  The southern portion of Holston Mountain marks the boundary between Sullivan County and Carter County; the northern portion is between Sullivan and Johnson County.  The small northernmost portion extends into Washington County, Virginia.
  Panhandle Road is located off State Highway 91 in Carter County and ascends Holston Mountain for three miles (5 km) from the eastern side and ends four miles (6.5 km) along the ridge southwest of Holston High Point.  During periods of heavy snow and ice, hunting season, or nesting season, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency closes off Panhandle Road with an iron gate. 
  Located near the Cherokee National Forest boundary and to the left of Panhandle Road is a parking area and foot trail that leads down the slope to the Blue Hole Falls (approximately 45 feet (14 m) high).  The iron gate referred to above is there, owned and maintained by the Cherokee National Forest, Unaka District.  No matter, though.. the last three miles (5 km) of Panhandle Road along the top of the ridge are filled with washouts, steep drop-offs, and no turnarounds.  Vehicle travel on those last three miles (5 km) is at the driver's risk.
  U.S. Route 421 crosses Holston Mountain at Low Gap, connecting the community of Shady Valley, Tennessee, with the city of Bristol, Tennessee.
caption: Panoramic view looking northeast towards Johnson County, TN along spine of Holston Mountain from Holston High Knob. South Holston Lake (Sullivan County, TN) is on the left and the Stony Creek Community (Northeast Carter County, TN) is on the right side.
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