Hello there y'all,
First post here - I would have replied sooner but had to wait to get approved.
Almost asked where to send the beer.
I have spent a lot of time on the Monongahela NF. Lots to see and a lot of great Mid Atlantic hiking.
As mentioned Dolly Sods is a fantastic place. In Canaan valley, it has a very unique environment where Southern and Northern forests and wildlife meet. It's not a big area, and best visited during the week rather than on weekends, and absolutely avoid it on holidays. I started hiking there in the '70's when nothing was really marked well and just finding a way around was a bit more of a challenge. It still is can be a challenging area though, particularly with bad weather. It has a tendency to catch any weather coming from the West or the South, and it can get wicked. You'll get the idea when you see all the flagged spruces in an area called Bear Rocks. I have been literally blown off my skis up there in the winter. But then again, I don't claim to have any sense either.
Just to the South of the sods is an area called Roaring Plains that was just recently incorporated as a Wilderness. None of the trails are marked, and and there is one that runs along the rim of a canyon with some of the most spectacular views in all of WV. I can send pics later if they allow them in this forum.
Other places well worth visiting for BP trips:
Otter Creek Wilderness - a really pretty canyon (good trout fishin') with all the trails leading out of it old RR grades. My wife loved this place because of that. It's one of the last areas with big stands of Helmlock still untouched by the wooly Adelgid. (sorry about the spelling)
Tea Creek Wilderness - more fishin'
North fork Mountain (no water - but a trail that runs for miles along an open ridge.)
Canaan Mountain - an interesting mix of old roads and trails. Popular mountain bike area, but hikers can avoid them.
There's a bunch of others.
Best way to start is to come on down and stay at Blackwater Falls State park in the lodge (nothin' fancy) Go down to the town of Davis and visit some of the shops in town and start asking questions. The surrounding area is one of the best mountain bike areas in the country, and Blackwater Bikes is a great place for info. In the winter Whitegrass XC center is the place to go. They have all kinds of maps and info (even on their endless site at Whitegrass dot com) Both Davis and it's sister town to the north Thomas have very very good competing microbrews, and the Purple Fiddle hosts both local and national finger-picking talent. So if you're not hiking, you'll find stuff to do! Google Canaan Valley and you'll find lodging potential.
A good book for the area (yeah - I'm old school) is Monongahela NF Hiking Guide by Allen Dehart, and there is lots on the web as well.
Lastly a great site for maps and trail info is MidAtlanticHikes dot com. You'll find maps and trail info there.
I'll think of more later, and post some pics if I can. Post any questions about MNF and I'll either answer or play dumb.
Now I have to ask some questions elsewhere about West Canada Lakes - a place we visited about 20 years ago and I want to go back.
Cheers!
