Cross Mountain (Pennsylvania)
Cross Mountain is the highest peak in the Bear Pond Mountains, a sub range of the Appalachian Mountains. This grouping of mountains straddle the Maryland and Pennsylvania border.
| Cross Mountain | |
|---|---|
Cross Mountain (note the tower on the summit) | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 2,062 ft (628 m) |
| Geography | |
| Location | Franklin County, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Parent range | Appalachian Mountains |
| Topo map | USGS Clear Spring (MD, PA) Quadrangle |
Cross Mountain and Hearthstone Mountain 2,021 feet (616 m) which is on the Maryland side, form a unique geologic formation known as the "Punchbowl". This feature was created by the weathered shales of the Ordovician age in the center of a south-plunging anticline, having been eroded to expose a large amphitheater like feature (punchbowl). Cross and Hearthstone Mountain are made of hard resistant quartzite of the Tuscarora Formation of the Silurian age.
Cross Mountain is also the site of a deactivated microwave relay station, that was used during the Cold War. The unit was encased in a 103 ft. tower, and known as the "Cannonball" site 2. The site was closed in 1977. Access to the summit is still restricted.