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Coal Heritage Trail - VAAll lookouts
Lookout · Coal Heritage Trail - VA

Pinnacle Rock

OpenStreetMap
Looking north-west from Pinnacle Rock. Terrain at true elevation.
Overview · Assembled from verified data

Pinnacle Rock sits at 1,834 feet along the Coal Heritage Trail in Virginia, facing 300 degrees. The terrain drops 976 feet within 600 meters of the overlook. Pine Mountain Trail State Park is visible to the west-northwest, 1.8 miles away at 874 feet elevation, and Ripley Knob rises to the northwest, 10.6 miles out at 1,806 feet. The facing direction points toward sunset, angled 30 degrees off square with it. Pikeville lies 17.5 miles to the northwest, Richlands is 31.1 miles east-southeast, and Big Stone Gap is 38.8 miles southwest. State Line Overlook precedes this stop on the byway, with Clinchfield Overlook following.

Access
On the byway
Elevation
1,834 ft
View
Northwest · 300°
Light
Best at sunset
Relief
976 ft drop
In view
2 named features
Photos · Real imagery only
A view of Russell Fork in Breaks Interstate Park.
Magnolia677 · CC BY 4.0 · source
View of Earth taken during ISS Expedition 62.
Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, NASA Johnson Space Center · Public domain · source
View of Earth taken during ISS Expedition 62.
Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit, NASA Johnson Space Center · Public domain · source
View of Earth taken during ISS Expedition 42.
Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center · Public domain · source
I used my phone more than my camera on this trip, because of the threat of rain. This was the view from our balcony... I had almost the same view from my bed. We left the door open to the balcony, and the river below put us to sleep. It was gorgeous... and such a deal! :-) EXCEPT, the only restauran
Eli Christman from Richmond, VA, USA · CC BY 2.0 · source
View of the Atlantic Ocean taken during ISS Expedition 9.
Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center · Public domain · source
In view · Named features

What you’re looking at

Named terrain inside the view from this overlook, nearest first.

  • Pine Mountain Trail State Park874 ftwest-northwest · 1.8 mi
  • Ripley Knob1,806 ftnorthwest · 10.6 mi
When to look · Sun at this latitude

Light

This overlook faces sunset — 30° off square to it.

DateSunriseSunsetGolden hour
March equinox07:3419:4119:07
June solstice06:1020:5420:15
September equinox07:1819:2818:54
December solstice07:4017:1616:35

Local time (America/New_York). Computed for this exact position.

Getting there · Position and access

Where it is

  • Pikeville17.5 mi northwest
  • Richlands31.1 mi east-southeast
  • Big Stone Gap38.8 mi southwest
← Before it: State Line OverlookAfter it: Clinchfield Overlook →
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Common questions

How high is Pinnacle Rock?

Pinnacle Rock sits at about 1,834 feet (559 m).

What can you see from Pinnacle Rock?

From Pinnacle Rock: Pine Mountain Trail State Park (WNW, 1.8 mi); Ripley Knob (NW, 11 mi).

Is Pinnacle Rock better at sunrise or sunset?

Sunset. The land falls away from Pinnacle Rock toward the sunset, so at sunrise the light is behind you. Exact times shift through the year; the page shows the current window.

What is the nearest town to Pinnacle Rock?

Pikeville, 18 miles NW of Pinnacle Rock.

What is the next lookout after Pinnacle Rock?

Clinchfield Overlook is the next surfaced lookout along the same route after Pinnacle Rock.

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Community · From people who stood here

Locals make it Verified.

Pinnacle Rock — confirmed, rated, and photographed by people who actually pulled over. A local confirmation is what upgrades a lookout from Discovered to Verified. Zero hallucinations.

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