Pilot Mountain, a quartzite monadnock rising to a peak 2,421 feet (738 m) above sea level, is one of the most distinctive natural features in the state of North Carolina. It is a remnant of the ancient chain of Sauratown Mountains. Its original Native American name is Jomeokee, for "great guide" or "pilot." The Saura were the earliest known inhabitants of the region. The distinctive formation guided the Native Americans as well as the early European hunters through the region.
The town of Pilot Mountain, North Carolina is situated near the mountain. The city of Mount Airy, North Carolina, known for its rock quarries and for being the birthplace of actor Andy Griffith, is just a few miles north. Mount Airy was the basis for the fictional town of Mayberry on the TV classic The Andy Griffith Show. The fictional city of Mount Pilot, which was often mentioned on The Andy Griffith Show, was named in honor of Pilot Mountain.
Pilot Mountain has two distinctive pinnacles, named Big and Little Pinnacle. Big Pinnacle (also called "The Knob") has 200 feet (61 m) high bare rock walls, and a rounded top covered in vegetation, reaching a height of approximately 1,400 feet (430 m) above the surrounding terrain. Trails on the mountain (as well as a paved road) allow access to Little Pinnacle, and the Jomeokee Trail leads around the base of Big Pinnacle; Big Pinnacle itself is closed to climbing. The Ledge Spring Trail is named for the ledge whose base it follows, with a series of springs, and is a popular location for rock climbing. Other trails include the Sassafras trail.
The rise to the Little Pinnacle, followed by the down-and-up slope to the Big Pinnacle, make the entire mountain look vaguely like a saddle from a distance.
Pilot Mountain is part of the Pilot Mountain State Park, which also extends to the Yadkin River and is closely associated with the nearby Horne Creek Farm historical site. Other interesting rock formations lie a few miles east, at Hanging Rock State Park.
The mountain was also once called Pilot Knob. U.S. Route 52 passes by this mountain, and also passes nearby another Pilot Knob, near the northern extremity of this highway, in the vicinity of Mendota Heights, Minnesota.
