The park is 30 miles 48 km north of Winston-Salem and is located approximately 2 miles 3. The plans fell through when the developers went bankrupt during the initial construction.
After the state acquired the property, the Civilian Conservation Corps built the original facilities between and , including the construction of a acre 4. Another large land purchase in added Flat Shoals Mountain, a smaller summit visible from the top of Hanging Rock, to the park.
Hanging Rock State Park is located in the Sauratown Mountain Range , [ 4 ] one of the most easterly mountain ranges in the state. Often called "the mountains away from the mountains," [ 4 ] the Sauratown range is made up of monadnocks that are separated from the nearby Blue Ridge Mountains. The Sauratown Mountains lie completely within the borders of Stokes and Surry counties. It rises to 2, feet m above sea level. Named for the Saura Native Americans who were early inhabitants of the region, [ 4 ] the rocky tops of the Sauratown Mountains are the remnants of a once-broad layer of rock that covered the region.
Over many years, wind, water and other forces eroded the surrounding blanket of rock. Due to its unique location, the park is home to a number of species of flora that are more commonly found in the westernmost part of the state.
Carolina and Canadian hemlock grow alongside each other, and in the spring visitors can view the colorful displays of rhododendron , mountain laurel , pinxter azalea , and a number of other wildflowers. Much of the park is an oak-hickory forest, with chestnut oak the dominant hardwood.
