Linville Gorge Wilderness, coverning more than 12,000 acres, is laced with trails that wind through thickets of mountain laurel and descend to the depths of Linville Gorge - one of eastern America's most rugged and scenic gorges. It is frequently referred to as the "Grand Canyon of the East." From the gorge's rim, you can get an awesome view of the Linville River 2,000 feet below.

Primitive recreation in the wild, isolated terrain includes primitive camping, strenuous hiking, back packing, rock-climbing, and fishing for native trout and smallmouth bass. Stretches of virgin forest in this section of the Pisgah National

Forest are full of rare and endangered plant species, and an assortment of wild game and non-game species. Rock formations such as Sitting Bear, Hawsbill, Table Rock, The Chimneys and Shortoff dot the Blue Ridge landscape. At the top of the gorge, and just off the Blue Ridge Parkway is Linville Falls, a spectacular three-tiered waterfall plunging into the wilderness area.

Besides the official Federal website information, you might find user information at www.linvillegorge.net/ .