Sugar Mountain is a mountain in the North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

 High Country

Western North Carolina

Western North Carolina is the region of North Carolina which includes the Appalachian Mountains, thus it is often known geographically as the state's Mountain Region. It is sometimes included with upstate South Carolina as the "Western Carolinas", which is also counted as a single media market...

 and wholly in the Pisgah National Forest

Pisgah National Forest

Pisgah National Forest is a National Forest in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina. It is administered by the United States Forest Service, part of the United States Department of Agriculture. The Pisgah National Forest is completely contained within the state of North Carolina...

. Its elevation reaches 5,236 feet (1,596 m) and is split along the Eastern Continental Divide

Eastern Continental Divide

The Eastern Continental Divide, in conjunction with other continental divides of North America, demarcates two watersheds of the Atlantic Ocean: the Gulf of Mexico watershed and the Atlantic Seaboard watershed. Prior to 1760, the divide represented the boundary between British and French colonial...

, generating feeder streams for the Linville

Linville River

The Linville River is a river in western North Carolina. The river begins in the slopes of Peak Mountain, Sugar Mountain and Flattop Mountain, in the Linville Gap . As it goes south through Avery County, it passes through the communities of Grandfather, Linville, Pineola, Crossnore and finally at...

, Elk

Elk River (North Carolina)

The Elk River is a large stream in the North Carolina High Country and East Tennessee. The headwaters begin from the Northwestern slopes of Peak Mountain in Avery County, North Carolina and end at the Watauga River in Carter County, Tennessee.-Hydrography:...

, and North Toe

North Toe River

The North Toe River is a large stream in the North Carolina High Country. The headwaters begin between Bald Mountain and Sugar Mountain, what is known as Sugar Gap, in Avery County. The river proceeds to go southwest till it ends with a confluence with the Cane River, forming the Nolichucky River...

 rivers. On its north slope resides the Village of Sugar Mountain

Sugar Mountain, North Carolina

Sugar Mountain is a village in Avery County, North Carolina, United States. The village is located on Sugar Mountain's north slope. The population was 226 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Sugar Mountain is located at ....

.

Attractions

Sugar Mountain has two golf courses, Sugar Mountain Country Club and Linville Ridge Country Club (on adjacent Flattop Mountain), which are open late Spring to early Fall. Walking and mountain bike trails are also open during the Summer months on the mountain. In the Winter, the Sugar Mountain Ski Resort is open, which offers skiing, snowboarding, and tubing.

North Carolina Ridge Law

In 1983, the Citadel was built on what is known as Sugar Top. The condominium complex, which can be seen for miles away, became what many consider an eyesore. Because of many complaints by locals and visitors, the state of North Carolina passed the Mountain Ridge Protection Act of 1983 so that nothing similar can be built again. Many students of nearby Appalachian State University in Boone, NC refer to the building as "The Sugar Cube" because of its unnaturally awkward square shape on the horizon.