It took more than half a billion years to make Chimney Rock Park! The process began during the Earth's distant geologic past, when a portion of its molten interior welled up, cooled and solidified into a huge mass of granite deep below the surface. Jump ahead billions of years, after high temperatures and extreme pressure changed the mass from granite to Henderson Gneiss (pronounced "nice"), the rock that forms our magnificent namesake, the 535-million-year-old Chimney and surrounding cliffs.

Slowly but surely, the winds and waters and extremes of temperature eroded the surface of the earth and carved away exposed portions of the rock weakened by faults and joints, including the area between the cliffs and the Chimney. Eventually, more pieces of the rock were removed by the elements, and the Chimney grew not up, but rather out and down from the side of the cliff. As erosion continues, the Chimney will appear to grow taller and further isolated from the cliff face.

As you walk through the Park, you're sure to notice the oval white "eyes," which somewhat resemble hickory nuts, in the surrounding rock. These eyes are found in much of the rock exposed in the Hickory Nut Gorge, the valley where the Park is located, and according to legend, they gave the gorge its name.

It's not often that you get to see a mountain from the inside, but that's exactly what you can do in the 198-foot long tunnel to our 26-story elevator. Check out the layers and veins of rock and minerals in the year-round comfort of the 55 to 65-degree tunnel. See the white pegmatite veins imbedded in the finely banded matrix of the Gneiss. These illustrate cracks that opened long ago that were subsequently filled with liquid, igneous material that cooled slowly. Note that the coarse-grained veins are outlined by narrow black bands of biotite or black mica. You'll also notice all kinds of joints and fractures and faults, but don't worry. Neither the tunnel nor this mighty mountain will collapse—these ancient fractures are one of the most common features in the crust of the earth.

Weathering and erosion also played an important role in shaping the Park's natural formations, clearing away softer materials to expose proud masses of rock. These processes also gave the spectacular exposure of vertical walls—all the way to Inspiration Point and beyond to the Chimney. While standing on top of the Chimney, look below at the Pulpit Rock and Rock Pile that are connected by a wooden walkway. They too were carved out of the mountain by water along several series of interlacing joints.

Other wonders are the result of breaks and falls. The Opera Box, for instance, provides a splendid view point of Lake Lure and Hickory Nut Gorge thanks to a large block of gneiss that separated and fell. Where'd it go? Right under your feet (and the concrete used to level things out). Further along, Devil's Head is a piece of a huge sheet of rock that snapped off somewhere above, slid onto the ledge, and broke into several pieces. (The rest fell into the woods below the cliffs.) And our Moonshiner's Cave is an example of a "talus," or fallen rock, cave that formed when a huge slab of rock "exfoliated" or cast off from the main mountain wall and slid to the cliff base. It formed the small cave by leaning back against the mountain and creating an opening.

The geological story is, of course, much more complex than this. It includes theories of Plate Tectonics, plate subductions and series of orogenies that make a fascinating story explained in our brochure covering the geologic history of the Appalachian Mountains, within which Chimney Rock Park lies. The brochure is available in the Park or your can call the Park office at 1-800-277-9611 or e-mail us with your request. The stations in this guide are points of geological interest. The sequence of stops begins at the entrance tunnel to the elevator, continues on the bridge outside the Sky Lounge and on to the top of the Chimney, and then follows the Skyline Trail to Hickory Nut Falls, returning via the Cliff Trail.

Interpretive trail guides for the Skyline-Cliff Trail Loop and the Forest Stroll walking trail are also available. Also available are pamphlets on the Birds of Chimney Rock Park keyed to Peterson's Field Guide/Eastern Birds and Wildflowers of Chimney Rock Park keyed to Newcombe's Wildflower Guide.

Page Tools