North/middle fork trail ends at two really cool dispersed campsites! Rolling hills and access to a small creek at the camps! These trails are primitive so expect mud and if it’s been rainy a few creek crossings…otherwise a nice little hike.
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North/middle fork trail ends at two really cool dispersed campsites! Rolling hills and access to a small creek at the camps! These trails are primitive so expect mud and if it’s been rainy a few creek crossings…otherwise a nice little hike.
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Beautiful hike. Took us about 5.5hrs with a dog. We had a stop at the top for lunch with a view!
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Great local roads, good restaurants in Lewisburg, especially Stardust Cafe.
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First solo backpacking trip. Couldn’t have asked for better weather in the Sods. The dregs of the hurricane made things extra muddy but that’s par for the course. Everyone starts at Bear Rocks but I began at Red Creek. This means more gnarly climbing right away but less of a mass of people to content with. The cherry on top is jumping in the creek right before the end!
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The northwest section of this route is very rugged, muddy, and difficult to traverse...even for ATVs or off-road vehicles. Be prepared to get stuck in mud or to bottom out on the rock climb sections. It's insane to get through, but so much fun!
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There's a couple of 3ft deep river crossings at the back end of the loop. Plenty of places to resupply water along the trail. Lots of elevation gain. Beautiful views.
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The best 360 degree view when you get to the top. They say it’s Almost Heaven but up there it is Heaven.
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Mostly through the woods on decent but not terribly exciting trails. Breathed Mt trails has some small meadows that are nice. Totally in the woods on Red Creek trail (the creek itself is a few hundred feet below and audible but rarely visible. Rocky Point trail is named appropriately; not one you d ever hike for itself but just to get access to Lions Head. Several informal access trails to get up to Lions Head; take one of the ones closer to Big Stonecoal intersection. the eastern most one is a boulder scramble. Very good views on LH but i prefer the views across the valley from Rohrbaugh Cliffs. Very nice waterfall on Big Stonecoal just west of intersection with Rocky Point trail. Big Stonecoal trail is nicer woods trail with an unexpected beaver pond enveloping the trail near the summmit. Accessed via former FS80 on the west side in canaan valley wildlife refuge.
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Dolly Sods never fails to amaze. We hiked Red Creek Trail from the SW trailhead with a loop that included Big and Little Stonecoal in mind. It was a little bit too early in the season for the loop. When we saw the creek crossing we decided to proceed upstream on Red Creek Trail to its intersection with Fisher Spring Creek trail. Beautiful views and nobody on the trail all day! We had lunch near the confluence of Red and Fisher creeks and returned via the same route. The dogs got a bit wet crossing the tributaries, but we stayed mostly dry. A wonderful 7-ish miler.
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Muddy and beautiful! The view on the west side over Red Creek is amazing.
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Awesome!!! So much different terrain, perfect overnight length. Plenty of water and minimal to no bugs. What more can you ask for?
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Difficult hike with no apparent fresh water source. Amazing views and light traffic make the steep climbs and sketchy overgrown sections of the trail worth it. I did this as an out and back so total distance would have been a little over 15 miles in two days.
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Great day hike sandwiched between backpacking into Judy Springs camping area at Spruce Knob National Recreation Area. Hike up to highest point in the state of WV for lunch and then down to Seneca Falls before returning to the campsite.
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Really hard! Really muddy! If it’s rainy bring rain gear and expect high water. Camp sites are amazing, especially near the river. You go through >10 different and distinct ecosystems which could truly exist in multiple counties giving you the feeing of transporting to different places.
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Beautiful run - very technical though mostly flat. Very wet!
From valley view trail:
Harmon 525 -> left on blackbird knob 511-> left upper red creek trail 509 -> left dobbin grade trail 526 -> left rocky ridge trail 524 path to valley view trail
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Overall a really fun hike. Some parts are a bit overgrown and muddy.
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Beautiful area for hiking and backpacking. We did the 20 mile loop starting from bear rock and back. I had an amazing experience. Picturesque landscape, well marked trails. Perfect camp spots mostly along the creeks. Will go back again to explore more.
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4x4 off-road trail. Most stock 4x4 should be able to make it through.
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Dobbin grade is deep mud. It cannot be hiked fast and the mud can get 2+ feet deep. The mud is consistent throughout the eastern 3 miles and tapers off toward the northern end.
I believe the USFS has written this trail off as there is almost no way to maintain it.
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Harmon is a narrow watershed that is mostly creek stones. It’s not a path you can hike fast. There are no views and it’s mostly just brush. It’s a connector to blackbird knob trail.
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Wonderful hike, puddles beware. Waterproof shoes will make life easier, other than that get ready for a beauty of a hike deep in the mountains of West Virginia
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We hiled this backward according to this listing, as we started our trip at the top of the mountain. Pretty nice hike for our final leg of a 3 day trip. Not too difficult, mostly downhill (again, because we came from the opposite direction), and still enough beautiful scenery to keep you happy along the way. Soggy, muddy, and wet in a lot of places. But that is to be expected this time of year. Take your time hopping from rock to rick and you'll be fine. Trekking poles definitely help.
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