The Mountain State

Days 100-101:  As we drove farther and farther east of the Ohio River, we could appreciate why West Virginians call their land the Mountain State.  Long mountain ridges are steep-sided and separated only by narrow stream valleys.  Many of the streams are called runs, with the roads named after them (White’s Run Road, Dog Run Road, and so on).  Mountains and forest predominate here, not the flat farmland we had been seeing in the Midwest.  We biked about 14 miles north from Elkins and back again on the Allegheny Highlands rail trail.  It goes through quiet countryside, along slow streams, past rural homes and small farms, and gently climbs over a ridge in the shadow of tall rhododendrons.  The weather was perfect for a bike ride—bringing the song “Country Roads” to mind as we rolled along.

Day 102:  We camped near Seneca Rocks, a prominent rock formation popular with rock climbers and tourists.

Since we had last been there (in 1982) the U.S. Forest Service has built a nice new visitor center and a campground.  The specific location of the visitor center was relocated to avoid disturbing an area containing Native American artifacts thousands of years old.  There is a nice archaeology exhibit in the visitor center.  We hiked into the forest on the Allegheny Mountain Trail, which ascends by gentle switchbacks to the crest of a long ridge and then follows the sharp ridgetop for several miles.  We were hiking through fairly open forest (mainly hardwoods, with occasional rock ledges, mountain laurel, and rhododendrons), with partial views of the adjacent mountain ridges to either side.

Some 90% of West Virginia’s trees were clearcut back in the late 1800s and early 1900s, resulting in extensive forest fires and erosion, but since the replanting efforts in the 1930s, the forests have recovered nicely.  We would like to return to the Monongahela National Forest and spend more time exploring the many hiking trails.