Kids and fall foliage (North Fork Mountain, WV - Oct/25/'15)
Oct 26, 2015 9:35:04 GMT -5
Post by GaliWalker on Oct 26, 2015 9:35:04 GMT -5
The third time's the charm
How does a father get his kids into hiking? My approach was simple: don't force them, because that will most likely drive them away. Unfortunately, until a couple of years back it didn't look like I was making any progress. The hikes I was taking them on - mostly featuring waterfalls and forests - weren't doing it for them. I had two options: stay the course and hope they came around, or take them into more impressive terrain. Last year, I decided to try the latter option, even though that involved venturing further afield from Pittsburgh. Slowly, they started to come around and began to show excitement. Yesterday's hike to the spectacular crags and spires of North Fork Mountain's Chimney Top, in West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest, was the emphatic success I was craving.
This would be my third trip(!) to North Fork Mountain this year, basically selected with the kids in mind. My previous hike up, a few weeks back, had been to catch the foliage in autumnal bloom, but I had been too early. Thinking that fall colors would be past peak by now, I was surprised to see them prime. Wow! Not only would I be able to show the kids a good time, I would be able to get the fall foliage photos I'd missed out on previously.
We were at the north trailhead for the North Fork Mountain trail by 9:00am and on our way 10min later. The trail was a carpet of psychedelic leaves and it was a lot of fun to swish our way up the trail. We made good time up to the ridge and the first viewpoint, despite my stopping the kids periodically to take pictures.
After hitting the ridge, the grade steepened but we continued to make nice progress. The final ~0.2mi to Chimney Top is pretty steep, but the kids went up it as if it was nothing. The skies were overcast, but it wasn't raining and was only a touch on the cool side. Pretty close to perfect. We were able to scramble around the entire area, before other hikers started to arrive. The kids had lunch while I took a few photos. We generally just took our time, enjoying the place and companionship.
The fun continued on the way down. The skies had begun to clear and filtered sunshine had made the colorful forest a little more cheerful. Photographing the kids, as they frolicked their way down the trail, had me as happy as a dad can be.
High five!
Hiking/photography stats: 5.75mi, 2000ft gain, 4.5hrs
How does a father get his kids into hiking? My approach was simple: don't force them, because that will most likely drive them away. Unfortunately, until a couple of years back it didn't look like I was making any progress. The hikes I was taking them on - mostly featuring waterfalls and forests - weren't doing it for them. I had two options: stay the course and hope they came around, or take them into more impressive terrain. Last year, I decided to try the latter option, even though that involved venturing further afield from Pittsburgh. Slowly, they started to come around and began to show excitement. Yesterday's hike to the spectacular crags and spires of North Fork Mountain's Chimney Top, in West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest, was the emphatic success I was craving.
This would be my third trip(!) to North Fork Mountain this year, basically selected with the kids in mind. My previous hike up, a few weeks back, had been to catch the foliage in autumnal bloom, but I had been too early. Thinking that fall colors would be past peak by now, I was surprised to see them prime. Wow! Not only would I be able to show the kids a good time, I would be able to get the fall foliage photos I'd missed out on previously.
We were at the north trailhead for the North Fork Mountain trail by 9:00am and on our way 10min later. The trail was a carpet of psychedelic leaves and it was a lot of fun to swish our way up the trail. We made good time up to the ridge and the first viewpoint, despite my stopping the kids periodically to take pictures.
After hitting the ridge, the grade steepened but we continued to make nice progress. The final ~0.2mi to Chimney Top is pretty steep, but the kids went up it as if it was nothing. The skies were overcast, but it wasn't raining and was only a touch on the cool side. Pretty close to perfect. We were able to scramble around the entire area, before other hikers started to arrive. The kids had lunch while I took a few photos. We generally just took our time, enjoying the place and companionship.
The fun continued on the way down. The skies had begun to clear and filtered sunshine had made the colorful forest a little more cheerful. Photographing the kids, as they frolicked their way down the trail, had me as happy as a dad can be.
High five!
Hiking/photography stats: 5.75mi, 2000ft gain, 4.5hrs
