Western North Carolina is the region of North Carolina which includes the Appalachian Mountains; it is often known geographically as the state's Mountain Region. It contains the highest mountains in the Eastern United States, with 125 peaks rising to over 5,000 feet in elevation. Mount Mitchell at 6,684 feet, is the highest peak of the Appalachian Mountains and mainland eastern North America. The population of the 23 most commonly associated counties for the region, as measured by the 2020 U.S. Census, is 1,149,405.
The region accounts for approximately 11% of North Carolina's total population.
The Biltmore Estate outside Asheville
View from top of Hibriten Mountain in the Brushy Mountains, showing City of Lenoir below and greater outskirts of Caldwell County
View from Sanford Mall, on campus of Appalachian State University
The Blue Ridge Parkway heading towards Grandfather Mountain
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. Located at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers, it is the most populous city in Western North Carolina, and the state's 11th-most-populous city. According to the 2020 census, the city's population was 94,589, up from 83,393 in the 2010 census. It is the principal city in the three-county Asheville metropolitan area, which had an estimated population of 417,202 in 2023.
Image: Asheville at dusk (cropped)
Image: Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina
Image: Asheville City Hall Asheville, NC
Asheville, 1854