Flower show on the Roaring Plains (West Virginia, 6/11/17)
Jun 12, 2017 9:53:31 GMT -5
Post by GaliWalker on Jun 12, 2017 9:53:31 GMT -5
Roaring Plains circuit (West Virginia – June 11, 2017)
The 4000ft+ plateau of Roaring Plains, in West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest, is always a fun place to visit: heath meadows, dark forest, Christmas card style spruce trees, scenic creeks and flowers galore (in season) keep the interest quotient high. About a month ago, I attempted this hike but barely got started since I got balked by a difficult ford of the South Prong of Red Creek, a mere half mile in. It was high time to make a return trip.
Route: South Prong Trail > Hidden Passage Trail > Canyon Rim Trail > Teepee Trail > Roaring Plains Trail > Boar's Nest Trail
Hiking/photography stats: 13mi, 2400ft gain, 9.5hrs
Total trip time: 16.25hrs
I began my hike at 6am, from the South Prong trailhead. The crossing of the South Prong of Red Creek was a simple rock hop, no need to even take off the boots. It was amazing that this was what had stymied me just a month ago. Unfortunately, the extremely low water level meant that Red Creek wasn't its usual scenic self; I did not even stop for a photo.
The South Prong Trail made a gradual ascent towards the plateau's top. Just shy of the top, it made one more trivial crossing of Red Creek. This time I did stop to take a photo.
As I transitioned from the South Prong Trail to the Hidden Passage Trail, the scenery on the hike began to be dominated by colorful mountain laurel thickets. Most of the flowers were about a week from blooming, but the color was still pretty amazing.
The Hidden Passage dumped me out onto the gas pipeline swath that cuts it way down the middle of the plains. I took a left onto the grassy path and ambled down to the start of the Canyon Rim Trail. At this time the mountain laurel extravaganza had been supplanted by the azalea show. These kept my mind off the increasingly more rugged terrain.
Eventually I reached one of my favorite viewpoints in Monongahela National Forest: The Point. I had fun clambering about the rocks and taking pictures, including a 'selfie' or two.
It had become quite hot by now, so I decided to cut off the hike by a couple of miles by taking the Teepee Trail connector. I had worn pants for this hike, just for this very eventuality; this was a wise choice, since my legs would have been shredded otherwise, by the woody shrubbery that I had to force my way past.
Progress was much swifter once I was on the Roaring Plains Trail. This took me via a short stint on FR70 to the Boar's Nest Trail. The first half of this was mostly flat and led to a nice view of the nearby Dolly Sods plateau. The second half was a rapid descent back down to Red Creek and my waiting car.
The 4000ft+ plateau of Roaring Plains, in West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest, is always a fun place to visit: heath meadows, dark forest, Christmas card style spruce trees, scenic creeks and flowers galore (in season) keep the interest quotient high. About a month ago, I attempted this hike but barely got started since I got balked by a difficult ford of the South Prong of Red Creek, a mere half mile in. It was high time to make a return trip.
Route: South Prong Trail > Hidden Passage Trail > Canyon Rim Trail > Teepee Trail > Roaring Plains Trail > Boar's Nest Trail
Hiking/photography stats: 13mi, 2400ft gain, 9.5hrs
Total trip time: 16.25hrs
I began my hike at 6am, from the South Prong trailhead. The crossing of the South Prong of Red Creek was a simple rock hop, no need to even take off the boots. It was amazing that this was what had stymied me just a month ago. Unfortunately, the extremely low water level meant that Red Creek wasn't its usual scenic self; I did not even stop for a photo.
The South Prong Trail made a gradual ascent towards the plateau's top. Just shy of the top, it made one more trivial crossing of Red Creek. This time I did stop to take a photo.
As I transitioned from the South Prong Trail to the Hidden Passage Trail, the scenery on the hike began to be dominated by colorful mountain laurel thickets. Most of the flowers were about a week from blooming, but the color was still pretty amazing.
The Hidden Passage dumped me out onto the gas pipeline swath that cuts it way down the middle of the plains. I took a left onto the grassy path and ambled down to the start of the Canyon Rim Trail. At this time the mountain laurel extravaganza had been supplanted by the azalea show. These kept my mind off the increasingly more rugged terrain.
Eventually I reached one of my favorite viewpoints in Monongahela National Forest: The Point. I had fun clambering about the rocks and taking pictures, including a 'selfie' or two.
It had become quite hot by now, so I decided to cut off the hike by a couple of miles by taking the Teepee Trail connector. I had worn pants for this hike, just for this very eventuality; this was a wise choice, since my legs would have been shredded otherwise, by the woody shrubbery that I had to force my way past.
Progress was much swifter once I was on the Roaring Plains Trail. This took me via a short stint on FR70 to the Boar's Nest Trail. The first half of this was mostly flat and led to a nice view of the nearby Dolly Sods plateau. The second half was a rapid descent back down to Red Creek and my waiting car.
