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Originally uploaded by ilamhouse

We made our first visit to Bear Rocks after hiking out from the Red Creek Canyon. Wow - stunning views. It’s a bumpy ride to get there - about 10 miles on a pot-holed dirt road from the bridge at the end of (paved) WV 45. The more clearance your car has the better - or the more skill and patience your driver!

The Bear Rocks area is partly a Nature Conservancy preserve.

It’s windswept plateau with rock crags looking down to the valley and peaks to the east. Really dramatic. We’ll be going back to do some longer hikes than we had time for.

[USFS Directions: From Canaan Valley: follow WV 32 south to the Laneville Road (WV 45). Turn left and go approximately 6 miles to the Red Creek bridge, where the road changes from pavement to gravel and is now Forest Road 19. http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/mnf/sp/dolly_sods_wilderness.htm]

Originally uploaded by ilamhouse

We did an overnight hike into the Dolly Sods Wilderness area to camp along Red Creek. Beautiful!

We headed in on the Rohrbaugh Plains Trail - parking at the Dolly Sods Picnic parking lot (map). The hike started as a fairly flat trail through thick woods for about 1.5 hours to a dramatic rock overlook. At that point it started raining (!) I had told the kids - “We’re in Dolly Sods, so it’s going to rain sometime today. No big deal - just put on your raincoat and keep going.” And they were appropriately nonchalant about it. We then headed down the canyon on the Fischer Spring Trial, and got to the roaring Red Creek. We scouted the several campsites on our side of the river and picked one about 300 yards upstream of where the trail had hit the river. Early in the hike we had passed some day hikers, but otherwise saw no other people that day.

Hint of fall color just barely visible in the trees - on August 15!?

Duration: ~5m one way to river; 3 hours with packs.

Difficulty ***

Remarkability **** Canyon overview nice. Canyon nice once down into it, and feels pretty wild.

Kid friendly ** It’s a serious hike down, and with packs, requires some fortitude.

Beautiful falls. This is located about 500 yards upstream of where the Red Creek Trail intersects with the Stone Coal Trail (see map here)

Originally uploaded by ilamhouse

Red Creek 2

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tablerock808

Originally uploaded by ilamhouse

Favorite hikes list:
Table Rock trail, at about mile 10 on Canaan Loop road, starting from Canaan Heights (or Ilam House). Great 2. m round-trip hike with amazing views from the rock promenade over the Red Creek Valley and beyond it to the south the Dry Fork Valley. Getting to the hike takes a little work, though. It’s about 10 miles along Canaan Loop road.

We started at Ilam House and biked there - taking about 1.5 hours. The road (Forest Service Road 13, turn south off of Hwy 32 at Canaan Heights, 3 m. south of Davis, then drive in about 1/2 mile to big rocks and parking area.) is gravel doubletrack and in good condition, but there are rises and dips in the 10 miles that make you work a little. (Road can be and is driven, slowly, by cars/trucks - -probably best to have high clearance.)

The 10 mile ride is really beautiful. It starts going through high mountain bogs and spruce forests. Feels like northern New England! In some places you scream downhill, past the increasingly large and energetic Red Run. Some nice looking campsites along the road/riverbank. The 8th and 9th miles rise from about 3000′ to about 3400′ - not severe, but tiring.

Once at the turnoff for Table Rock, we left the bikes and hiked the flat trail to the lookout - trail was rocky and with some wet spots, but that’s what you’d expect in a rainforest.

At the lookout - wonderful views, as pictured. To the east, the Red Run Valley and on the far side, Mozark Mountain. To the south, long views down towards Dry Fork River Valley, and the mountains beyond. Blueberries on the overlook, as about everywhere this early August.

After Table Rock, we decided to continue the Canaan Loop road circuit out to Blackwater Falls State Park (instead of backtracking the 10 miles.) That section, about 7 miles, is challenging but a lot of fun. The road deteriorates - getting rockier, bigger potholes, more mud, some stream crossings to get your ankles wet - all in all some and moderately technical riding. Our 9 year old is a trooper and enjoyed it, with periodic cheerleading.

Duration - bike 17 miles from top of ridge at Hwy 32 to Blackwater Falls State Park - about 3 hours

Remarkability ****

Kid friendly * - it’s a workout. Our 10 and 13 year olds did great, but have done such rides before The long uphill in the middle was a slog. The downhills where gleeeeful. The streamcrossings fun.

We had a fun time in this contra and square dancing workshop during the Augusta Festival, August 9th 2008 in Elkins WV.  Once we got the kids dancing they had a blast - and everyone was very welcoming and helpful for us beginners.

More pictures of the Festival on Flick

We did a wonderful day hike out and back on the Blackbird Knob Trail, starting at the Red Creek Campground (see on Google map and see trail map below).

We looked for and did not find an obvious trail to the top of Blackbird Knob. So we followed the trail which rounded the hill on the south, and awhen SW of the peak headed uphill, off the trail, into this beautiful field for a break to soak in the view. I think that from there we could have wound our way to the summit, or whatever is at the top of the hill. Next time…

Duration: 3-4 m roundtrip - easy 2-3 hours

Difficulty **

Remarkability **** Wide open views of Dolly Sods to west

Kid friendly ****

Here’s a trail map to help in planning a hike (I think you need a better map to take on a hike - which you can get in Davis at outfitter store.)  Map courtesy of http://www.jtphillips.com

Red Creek Canyon Map

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Originally uploaded by ilamhouse

P8120336

Originally uploaded by ilamhouse