Shining Rock is a mountain in western

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, United States. The mountain is one of the

Great Balsam Mountains The Great Balsam Mountains, or Balsam Mountains, are in the Western North Carolina, mountain region of western North Carolina, United States. The Great Balsams are a subrange of the Blue Ridge Mountains, which in turn are a part of the Appalachi ...

which are a part of the

Blue Ridge Mountains The Blue Ridge Mountains are a Physiographic regions of the United States, physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Highlands range. The mountain range is located in the Eastern United States and extends 550 miles southwest from southern ...

within the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, are a mountain range in eastern to northeastern North America. The term "Appalachian" refers to several different regions associated with the mountain range, and its surrounding terrain ...

. It is the 38th tallest mountain in the eastern

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Shining Rock is in the Shining Rock Wilderness near milepost 420 of the

Blue Ridge Parkway The Blue Ridge Parkway is a National Parkway and National Scenic Byway, All-American Road in the United States, noted for its scenic beauty. The parkway, which is the longest linear park in the U.S., runs for through 29 counties in Virginia and ...

. The Art Loeb Trail passes just below the summit. Shining Rock is named for the large white quartzite rock outcropping near its summit.

Cherokee lore

According to the

Cherokee The Cherokee (; , or ) people are one of the Indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, they were concentrated in their homelands, in towns along river valleys of what is now southwestern ...

anthropologist

James Mooney James Mooney (February 10, 1861 – December 22, 1921) was an American ethnographer who lived for several years among the Cherokee. Known as "The Indian Man", he conducted major studies of Southeastern Indians, as well as of tribes on the Great ...

, the

name for Shining Rock, Datsu'nălâsgûñ'yĭ, translates to "where their tracks are this way" and refers to a rock that is said to have tracks of Tsul 'Kalu and his children. p 480 This is distinct from Judaculla Rock which is discussed with Tsul 'Kalu, is south of the

and contains petroglyphs. Confusion arises because Judaculla (or Jutaculla) is a European corruption of the name Tsul 'Kalu; hence there appear to be two rocks of Cherokee lore named with variations of the name.

References

{{coord, 35, 22, 05, N, 82, 51, 44, W, region:US, format=dms, display=title Protected areas of Haywood County, North Carolina Mountains of North Carolina Southern Sixers Landmarks in North Carolina Mountains of Haywood County, North Carolina Religious places of the Indigenous peoples of North America Sacred mountains of the United States

Cherokee lore

See also

References