Hiking
Spruce Knob National Recreation Area
Monongahela National Forest, West Virginia
Averting distaster at every turn
03/2002 - by Jeff Cobb, Outdoor Travels
Day 1
The plan was to rendevouz with Christopher at the Seneca Creek trailhead on Saturday morning. We were going to leave one car at Seneca Creek Trail (the ending point of our hike) and drive up to the top of Spruce Knob in the other car to begin our 2-day adventure. But, as you know if you've read all the trail diaries leading up to this one, things didn't go as planned.
With a nickname like "Magellan," Christopher naturally plans our hiking routes. Plus, he's got the topo maps. Somewhere in our exchange of emails leading up to the trip, I got the idea that the Seneca Creek trailhead was at Spruce Knob Lake. I guess I must have assumed Seneca Creek emptied into the lake. A logical mistake on my part. Since it was March, it was still early in the season, so upon arrival I was not surprised to discover a locked gate denying access to the lake.
Being accustomed to locked gates, blocked roads, and long waits for my hiking companions to arrive, I turned on my cd player and settled in to wait for Christopher to show up. About 15 minutes later (the shortest wait ever!), I spotted Christopher's car. It slowed at the intersection of the two dirt roads, Christopher looked directly at me, and then began to drive on! I honked my horn and got his attention. I thought he was joking around, but it turns out that the trailhead for Seneca Creek Trail was further down the road. If not for a chance encounter, we both would have been sitting and wondering where the other guy was! Disaster #1 averted!
We left Christopher's car at the Seneca Creek trailhead and drove to the top of Spruce Knob. There are great views along the road to the top of the mountain, but be careful you don't drive off the edge as you gawk your head to the side to take in the vistas.
Another tip: If we would have been smart we would have gotten everything ready at the bottom of the mountain. Instead, there we were, getting our packs ready, changing our shoes, and other pre-hike tasks as the wind whipped around us on the tallest peak in West Virginia (4861 ft). Our hands, nose, and ears got very cold very quickly.
Overall, the weather wasn't bad for March in the highlands of West Virginia. The ground on the upper slopes was snow covered, but the temperature was in the upper 40s. We wore gloves, knit caps, and waterproof boots with insulating socks all essential items if you plan on doing a cold weather hike. After a final check of our packs, we set off on Huckleberry Trail from the top of Spruce Knob.
We quickly learned that tree lines were our best friends due to the lovely way they broke the wind and gave us shelter from the wind chill. Although the temperatures weren't all that cold, the wind really took it's toll. After a few hours of hiking through the 3-4 inch snow, we found a great grassy spot in the sun among a cove of pine trees to take a snack and bathroom break.
As we gradually descended, the ground began to thaw. Snow was still visible in patches, but we started hiking through some soupy, soggy areas as well. The trail is not overly steep and there are only a few sections where you have to worry about toe jams. It's a pleasant, moderate hike. Along the way, we had great views of distant mountains, valleys, and the surrounding hardwood forests. It's interesting the way the vegetation changes from the higher elevations to the lower woods.
Near lunch time we reached the spectacular Seneca Creek Falls. Rain from the week before added to the melting snow to create a spectacular series of waterfalls that were running on full blast. A little ways below the falls we found a great place to sit down and eat. Somebody had built some awesome fire rings complete with slate rock chairs. With it's deep swimming holes and flat ground, I can imagine this would be a very popular summer spot. In early March, though, our only neighbors were the grazing deer.
After lunch, we had to cross the 15-20 foot wide creek to head for our camping site. We looked for a place to rock hop but the creek was too high. Ultimately, we decided to take off our boots, put on our sports sandals, and hike across in what we thought were our waterproof socks. Good idea but it didn't work. Christopher's socks leaked a little, and mine leaked a lot. It turns out that the socks work great inside a waterproof boot, but won't keep your feet completely dry on their own.
The water was super cold and our feet got numb about halfway across. But we survived. As we sat on the opposite bank, dried our feet, and put our extra pair of dry socks and boots on, we joked that we were glad we didn't have to do that again...
HA! How about TWO more creek crossings. Both times the creek was too high for rock hopping. We bushwacked and looked for better places to cross, but both times the best line ended up being where the trail crossed the creek. Grumbling, we took off our packs and sat down to de-shoe ourselves...again. We did wise up and go across in sandals only the last two times. It was no surprise that the water was as cold down creek as it was upstream. A weird side effect of the creek crossings were that your feet got so numb that when you reached the other side, you could walk through the snow basically in bare feet and it actually felt WARM! At least compared to the icy water.
Not far from the final water crossing we came to our camping area along Seneca Creek Trail. There were several fire pits and lots of open ground in a field near the wooden foot bridge. A group of trout fisherman had claimed one side of the creek, so we crossed the bridge and claimed the other side. With all the space, it made no sense to camp right next to the only other people within miles.
After setting up camp, we decided to get a fire going. As I gathered wood, Christopher got out his stove in preparation for dinner. I heard cussing as he discovered that he only had one match. He had forgotten to pack extra matches. Luckily, I always throw an extra box of waterproof matches in my pack just in case. Disaster #2 averted!
As we settled down next to our quaint little fire, we noticed the blazing inferno the trout fisherman had going. It looked as if pagans were trying to roust the god of the creek. I mean they had entire tree trunks flaming away, hanging half out of the pit. We both agreed that they had carried in some gas or kerosene. No way you could get a fire like that going with mere fire starter sticks. They also had camping chairs. We surmised they had hiked in from where we had parked one of our cars at the Seneca Creek trailhead.
Day 2
As on past hikes, we were up by 7 a.m. and broke camp an hour or so later. The hike out was on Seneca Creek Trail. There were several uphill sections, but for the most part the trail was level and the hiking was easy to moderate. It was fairly soggy and a good pair of waterproof boots would be a necessity anytime the ground wasn't frozen.
We had a few more creek crossings, but we were able to use our walking sticks and rock hop across. We were happy to not have to take off our socks and boots. The worse part of taking off your shoes is taking off your pack. It's just a pain in the butt to put on and take off sometimes. I take mine off only when absolutely necessary.
Shortly into the hike, we came across a mini-lake along Seneca Creek. Upon further inspection, we noticed several dams, along with a dome-shaped beaver hut out in the middle. It was the first time either of us had seen a beaver environment this close up so we spent a few minutes checking it out.
The neatest part was the gnawed off stumps along the trail, as well as the felled trees that the busy little varmints hadn't gotten around to dragging into the water yet. It looked very much like some lumberjacks had been going to town with some very sharp axes. I would not want to meet up with an angry beaver in a dark alley any time soon. After the obligatory Planter's Nuts commercial comments, we continued on our way.
We always leave the shorter part of our route for the second day to leave time for travel so we can arrive home at a decent hour. This hike was no different. After a few hours of hiking, the car came into view. After a brief drive back to the top of Spruce Knob, we happily took off our packs and drank some post-hike beverages.
We decided to walk over to the fire tower to get the ultimate view of the mountains and valleys. The view from the top of the Spruce Knob fire tower is a breathtaking 360 degree vista. But it was also very cold with the wind blowing, so after a few short minutes, we headed back for the cars. Suddenly Christopher patted his pockets. "Oh man," he said. "What's wrong?" I asked. "I think I locked my keys in my car!"
The parking lot at the top of Spruce Knob is not the place you want to be when you need a locksmith. After a few frantic moments, we came up with a solution. Christopher has a Miata convertible. You can unzip the back window. He reached through and began unzipping the window from the outside. The original plan was to try and get the window open enough to climb through and retrieve the keys which laid tantalizingly in view on the front passenger seat.
Wait! Another idea. Christopher grabbed a hiking stick. At first I thought he was going to try and hook his key ring and fish his keys out. Instead, he simply stuck the stick through the window and depressed the door lock. Disaster #3 averted!
Trail Snapshot
Trail(s) Hiked: (loop) In: Huckleberry Trail to Seneca Creek Trail
Distance Covered: 9.8 Miles
Outdoor Travels Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Backpacks
Thumbs Up
- Beautiful vistas from the top of Spruce Knob
- Awesome water falls
- Nice flat, open camping area
- Blue Diamond trail easy to follow
Thumbs Down
- Several creek crossings. High water, cold conditions could make this tricky
Lessons Learned
- Insulating socks aren't necessarily waterproof.
- Do your cold weather pre-hike preparations in the warmest, most sheltered spot
- Always bring extra matches
- Post-hike jubilation can lead to forgetfullness (i.e. locking keys in your car.)
Nuts & Bolts
Location: Grant and Pendleton counties, West Virginia
Of Note: At 4,863 feet above sea level, Spruce Knob is West Virginia's highest peak
Directions: From the north: Take Whitmer Road (CO29) south from US33 (one mile west of Harman) to Whitmer for 8.3 miles. From Whitmer continue south on Whitmer Road for 10.3 miles and turn left on Forest Road 1 for 2.5 miles to the campground and lake. Trailheads are nearby this area.
Trails: Approximately 70 miles of hiking trails offer splendid panoramic views in the Spruce Knob area.
Activities: Hiking, Fishing, Rock Climbing
Contact: Potomac Ranger District, HC 59, Box 240, Petersburg, WV 26847
Facilities:
- Spruce Knob observation tower: A stone and steel observation tower sits atop the Knob, providing visitors with a vantage point from which to enjoy a 360 degree view. The half-mile Whispering Spruce Trail circles the knob and provides panoramic views. Interpretive signs along the gentle, graveled trail describe the high country vegetation, geology and animal life. Vault toilets, picnic tables and vehicle parking complete the facilities available at the tower.
- Tiny Gatewood campground, and Spruce Knob Lake campground: Tiny Gatewood Campground has only six sites, while Spruce Knob Lake Campground contains 43 sites. You may choose to "rough it" and camp away from these designated campgrounds as long as you are careful to leave no trace of your campsite and pack out all garbage. For more information click here.
- Picnic Area: The picnic area lies one and a half miles south of the observation tower. A well, vault toilets, picnic tables and barbecue grills are nestled among a dense stand of spruce trees.
Maps & Stuff
Trail Photos
Lots of great photos to give you a good idea of what the area is like!
