Geography
Cullowhee Creek flows north through Jackson County in the southwestern
portion of North Carolina. It is a significant water resource
for the county. Cullowhee Creek flows into the Tuckasegee River
which flows into the Tennessee River and finally the Mississippi
River before entering the Gulf of Mexico. the waterhsed runs through
the campus of Western Carolina University. The creek is regarded
as a major educational feature of the campus and provides an excellent
opportunity for research with maximum student involvement. The
main tributaries are Tilley Creek and Long Branch. The watershed,
including its sub-watershed, covers 15,062 acres or 23.53mi2 of
steep, mountainous terrain.
Elevation and Slope
Elevations in the watershed range from ˜ 4600' to ˜
2080' on the floodplains. Slopes near the headwaters of Cullowhee
Creek can reach over 30% and along the stream valleys they average
less than 8%.
Climate, Temperature and Precipitation Averages
The climate is humid subtropical, with mild summers and cold winters.
The average temperature for the year within the watershed if 55.6oF.
Annual precipitation in the basin varies between 1270mm at WCU
to 1780mm in the headwaters. As one would expect, precipitation
generally increase with elevation. Precipitation in the warm seasons
is a combination of convectional (including thunderstroms) and
frontal, whereas in the cold season nearly all precipitation is
frontal. Although precipitation is well distributed throughout
the year, minor peaks occur in late fall to early winter and in
the spring. Snowfall averages 25cm in the lower valleys to 75cm
in the headwaters.
Geology
The Cullowhee Creek watershed lies within the eastern Blue Ridge
Province, which is delineated in the east by the Hayesville Fault
and in the west by the Brevard Fault Zone. This region has been
shaped to varying degrees, by three separate orogenic events,
the Taconic , Acadian and Alleghanian. The rocks of the water
shed consist largely of metamophic gneisses and schists. It is
not uncommon to find some metagraywackes scattered about. Aluminosilicates
are quite common and there is some evidence of migmatitic rocks.
The dominant minerals in this location are quartz, feldspar, muscovite,
biotite and garnet. The soils range from deep to moderately deep
well-drained soils to sand, gravel and cobbles in the floodplains.
Saprolite is common in the low-lying portions of the basin.
Nature American History
Though exact dates are not known, evidence for Native American
occupation in the southern Appalachians could go back as far as
12,000 years. The Cherokee have left a lasting impact in this
area, which is evident in some of the placenames that they have
given. Cullowhee was named for an edible plant that they gathered
during the spring. The Cherokee settled in locations all along
the Tuckaseegee River and its major tributaries. It has been estimated
that the Cherokee culture in this area predates other settlers
by approximately 500 years.
Land Use Past and Present
Environmental Threats
Watershed Characteristics
Stream orders 1st 29, 2nd 7, 3rd 2 Cullowhee Creek is a 4th order
stream
LINKS
North Carolian Geo surver general state map
http://www.geology.enr.state.nc.us/usgs/geomap.htm
