Bays Mountain



Bays Mountain is a ridge of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, located in East Tennessee. It runs southwest to northeast, from just south of Knoxville to Kingsport.

Geography
The southern segment of Bays Mountain is relatively low in elevation (up to about 1300 ft). In some places it essentially merges with the surrounding plains, especially where it is bisected by the French Broad River and the Nolichucky River. The northern segment of Bays Mountain reaches higher elevations, averaging above 2000 ft with peaks reaching up to 3000 ft. It is not a single ridge but rather a series of closely related ridges, some of which have names of their own (e.g., Fodderstack, Lost, Stone, Browns). The highest peak is Chimneytop Mountain (3117 ft), a spur ridge south of the main Bays Mountain ridge. Bays Mountain runs just south of the Holston River, which flows northeast to southwest. At Kingsport the Holston River curves east and south at the confluence of its three tributary forks that flow from Virginia to the northeast. Bays Mountain ends abruptly at this curve of the Holston River. Kingsport is on the north side of the river, across from the northern terminus of Bays Mountain, where two ridges meet in a "V" with an impounded lake between the ridges.

History
Bays Mountain is named after two Bays brothers who settled in southwest Virginia in Russell and Scott counties around 1780.

Bays Mountain Park is a 3,550 acre nature park located on Bays Mountain in Kingsport. The park includes a planetarium, live native animal displays, a nature center, 19th-century living farm museum and adventure course.