Hiking
Dolly Sods Wilderness
Davis, West Virginia
Our first foray into winter backpacking.
05/2001 - by Christopher Burk, Outdoor Travels
Day 1
For this hike I had to find someone who actually wanted to go winter hiking. Something I have always wanted to do but could never find anyone who found sleeping in a tent in 25-degree temperatures fun. But low and behold, I found someone. A co-worker of mine by the name of Paul Ostrowski. Apparently he had the same desire and problems trying to find a fellow winter hiker. So we picked the dates, mapped our hike and set off for Dolly Sods.
We drove up on Friday evening. The plan was to get there around 8:00 and camp at the trailhead that night and set out early the next day. And like every hiking plan I've put together in the past, things didn't go as planned.
The first thing that didn't go as planned was the time we arrived at Dolly Sods. It had been snowing for the last three hours so it wasn't until around 8:30 when we made the turn onto Laneville Road. We were still about an hour away from the trailhead at Red Creek. As we drove down Laneville Road we could see the lights from the ski resort on the other side of the mountain. It made me think back to those days when I would ski all day before retiring to the warm lodge for the evening. Here I was now heading out in the same weather and area but the lodge was being replaced by a tent in the middle of nowhere. What was I thinking?
Anyway, we finally reached the Red Creek Trailhead around 9:30. It was still snowing but now the wind picked up. After maybe thirty seconds of discussion we nixed the tent idea and decided instead to sleep in the car. Being 5' 8", I had no problem sleeping in the back of a Jeep Cherokee. However, Paul is well over six feet tall so obviously, he was a little cramped but the next morning he was no worse for wear.
Day 2
As we got up the next morning we noticed the wind had died down were greeted by a light snow falling. We put on our layers, donned our packs and set out. We hadn't hiked far before coming across a father/son duo that had the same idea we had the previous evening. However, they had a better sense of time. They had arrived early enough last night to hike about 500 yards down the trail to set up their tent. Since there were three other cars in the parking lot besides ours I wondered whom else we would run into out there. Little did I know that the father and son were the last people we would see until tomorrow afternoon.
As we hiked along Red Creek Trail I felt very confident we would have no problems finding the trail. Although the ground was covered in snow, the trail was still visible because it caused a slight depression in the snow. I had also hiked this section before so I already knew where we were going.
Our first real challenge came when we had to cross Red Creek to get to Little Stonecoal Trail. Normally, you would have the choice or rock hopping or wading across but for us it was a question of finding the strongest section of ice. Being the lighter or the two, I got to go first. So, with ski poles in hand to test the ice in front of me, I set out. Now here's an essential thing to keep in mind for those situations where weight is important. Don't forget to add the weight of your gear to your body weight. Fortunately, we both made it across without incident.
Our next big challenge was the hike up Little Stonecoal Trail. According to the guidebooks, Little Stonecoal Trail follows an old railroad grade that runs parallel to Little Stonecoal Run between Coal Knob and Stone Camp Mountain. It's not a very long trail, just over a mile long, but in that short distance, the elevation changes from around 2700 feet to over 3800 feet. I would love to see the workers who built the railroad along this slope. It wasn't long before we started peeling off layers hiking up Little Stonecoal.
What made the trek even more strenuous was the fact that the trail made a nice lip along the side of the hill. It created the perfect spot for the wind to blow all the snow to. There may have only been about four inches of snow in and around the trees, but the trail was covered by more than six inches. But still, we slogged on.
After a slow and at times torturous journey up the mountain, we finally reached the junction with Dunkenbarger Trail. This is where it got very interesting. Our original plan was to take Dunkenbarger Trail over to Big Stonecoal Trail. From there we would see what time it was and decide how far up Big Stonecoal Trail we could make it before having to stop for the night. It was about 11:30 at the time and we figured it would take us about two hours to reach Big Stonecoal Trail. So we thought.
Up to this point, two things had kept us on the trail. First was that I had hiked Red Creek Trail before and knew where we were going. Second, Little Stonecoal Trail is cut into the side of a hill so the trail was obvious. As we started up Dunkenbarger Trail, neither of those factors applied.
I have no idea how far we hiked before officially loosing the trail. It could have been within twenty feet or a couple hundred yards of the junction. All I know is when what we thought was the trail dead-ended into a cluster of pine trees we definitely were not on the right track. But hey, we're guys. We had a trail map, a topo map and compass so we could find the trail again, no problem.
About and hour later we finally decided to stop for lunch. We probably had hiked about another ¼ of a mile along the trail and still were not 100 percent sure we were even close to following the trail. We found a somewhat sheltered spot under some trees and discussed our plan of attack over lunch. We knew about where we were on the map. We also knew the direction the trail ran as well. Based on that and comparing the surrounding terrain to the topo map, we had to be heading the right direction.
So, with a plan in our head, and food in our systems, we once again set off into the great white wilderness, with the same results. Follow what appears to be the trail until it dead-ends into the trees, backtrack to what appears to be a junction and set off again. Granted, it sounds foolhardy, but we did constantly check the compass and the map to make sure we were still heading the general direction.
After about an hour of the two steps forward, one step back routine, we decided on a different plan. Take a compass reading off a tree and hike towards it. It sounded more reasonable then the guessing game we had been playing. At least it did until we discovered what happens to rhododendron bushes in heavy snow. They become invisible. What appeared to be a small knoll was in fact a rhododendron bush buried in the snow. Of course if your first couple of steps happened to land on branches, you would be fine. But as soon as you missed a branch or slide off of one, you would be waist deep in the bush and snow. That's assuming you didn't topple over and create a lovely imprint of your face in the snow. (I did.)
After about ten minutes of this we stopped and weighed our options. We had three. We could continue on like this and hope we finally reached Big Stonecoal Trail. (Assuming we would recognize it if we found it.) We could find a place to camp nearby. (And hope we could find our way back out tomorrow morning.) Or we could turn around and follow our tracks back to the junction of Dunkenbarger and Little Stonecoal trail. We chose option three.
I had never been so happy to see a big pile of rocks as when we finally got back to the junction. We looked around for a good place to set up our tent and decided the most level area was basically in the middle of the trail. Since we seriously doubted anyone else would be hiking by, we pitched it right there. I made a feeble attempt at starting a fire. But since any piece of wood I could find was either buried in six inches of snow or frozen to the ground, I bagged the idea and climbed in the tent and nestled into my sleeping bag.
With the exception of getting up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, I don't think I left my sleeping bag again. It was probably the longest amount of time I have ever spent in a sleeping bag. And it wasn't all fun. Because my bag is only rated to about 25 degrees, I borrowed a zero-degree bag from a friend. Great idea, however, he is about five inches taller than me so the bag was a little roomy for me. By about three-o'clock in the morning, I was pretty cold.
Day 3
Getting up the next morning wasn't fun either. Although I managed to stay somewhat warm overnight, my feet were still cold and now I had to get up and put on ice-encrusted, frozen pants and cold boots. The next unpleasant chore was taking down the tent. Because I only brought my large gloves, I had to continually take them off to pull the tent poles apart.
We finally got everything packed away and started back down the mountain. From here on out it was pretty simple, definitely much easier then yesterday's excursion. The only part that got interesting was crossing back over Red Creek. Because the sun had come out around two-o'clock the day before and was shining again today, a fair amount of the ice had melted. It was at this point that Paul realized just how wide Red Creek was. He had not realized that when we crossed it yesterday, he was walking on ice and not solid ground.
Anyway, neither of us trusted the ice we walked on yesterday, so we set out for a better spot. After a little mountaineering down the side of the bank, we found a section of thick ice and made our crossing.
As we finally reached the parking lot, we ran into the father/son duo we saw the previous morning. We discussed our trials and tribulations of our hikes. Apparently, they decided to try and build an igloo/ice cave in a large bank of snow. They said it worked well until the heat they generated started to melt the snow. I think I'll stick to the tent method.
Trail Snapshot
Trail(s) Hiked: (loop) In: Red Creek Trail to Little Stone Coal Trail to Dunkenbarger Trail; Out: Little Stone Coal Trail to Red Creek Trail
Distance Covered: 4.9 Miles
Outdoor Travels Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Backpacks
Thumbs Up
- Very pristine with the snow cover and frozen trees.
- Next to no-one out on the trails.
Thumbs Down
- This is a negative only in the winter: Area is remote and wild. Trail signs are nonexistant . Cairns are impossible to find in the snow.
Lessons Learned
- The size of sleeping bag is as important as the temperature rating. You're probably better off with a higher rated bag that fits then a lower rated one that's too big.
- If you can't set up and take down your tent wearing your gloves, bring a lighter pair to wear. Handling cold metal with bare hands is not fun.
- Although cairns are great natural trail markers, they don't work well in the snow unless they're about three feet high.
Nuts & Bolts
Location: West Virginia's Tucker and Randolph counties
Size: 10,215 acres
Directions:
From the East: Take WV 28/55 south out of Petersburg, WV. One mile past Smoke Hole Caverns, look for the brown Forest Service sign on the left side of the road pointing to the turn-off to the Wilderness area onto State Road 4 (also known as Jordan Run Road.) Follow the paved road steeply up a fold in the hills. At the first "S" turn in the road, look for the turn off for FS 19 on your left. It is signed and easily located. This will give you access to the southern part of the Wilderness area at it's intersection with FS 75. Or you can bypass the FS 19 turn off and continue on State Road 4, you'll arrive at the second access into the Wilderness at FS 75 after roughly 7 miles. The turn off is to your left with a church on the corner. This will give you access to the northern part of the Wilderness.
From the West: Take US Route 33 out of Elkins, WV for approximately 25 miles. At Harmon, take a left onto State Route 32. Follow Route 32 north to State Road 45 (Laneville Road.) Turn right and follow SR 45 ten miles to the Dolly Sods Scenic Area. At Laneville and the boundary of the National Forest, SR 45 becomes FR 19. Major parking areas are located at Laneville and Red Creek Campground.
- Forest Roads 75 and 19 are not plowed. Winter travel is not recommended. The Laneville Road (State Route 45) is plowed from State Route 32 to Red Creek.
Activities: hiking, berry picking, hunting and sightseeing
Admission: currently none
Contact: United States Forest Service, Box 1548, Elkins, WV, 26241 (304) 636-1800
Maps & Stuff
Trail Photos
Lots of great photos to give you a good idea of what hiking here is like!
