Roan Mountain State Park: Forest Road Trail

This year, to celebrate Thanksgiving Day, my friend Randall and I went hiking in Roan Mountain State Park. Though there are a lot of good trails in the park, we chose the Forest Road Trail. The trail-head is right across the road from the Visitors Center.

We didn't really plan how far we would go - the entire trail from start to finish is about three miles long. We hiked about half of it - from the trailhead above to the place where the path turns back and crosses the highway right before a narrow but well-kept bridge over the Doe River. The trail was challenging - lots of ups and downs. It made me wish I'd had those hiking poles I mentioned a couple of weeks ago!

It's hard to see but the trail actually curves around the side of the hill here. The blazes that mark this path are bright purple and easy to see, although there are a few spots where it takes a bit of time to find the next blaze. It is worth taking the time to make sure you stay on-path - even though the highway is always on your left, you can't always see or hear it, and it isn't worth the risk of getting lost to save a few minutes. There are some other spots where the trail is extremely steep - much easier to climb up than pick your way down. The deep leaves hide knotted tree roots and stones, so be careful walking.

Near the intersection with the highway, the track branches north-west, toward the Miller Homestead and Chestnut Ridge. This is a trail for experienced hikers (according to the sign). I will hike it in the future, but I definitely want to have hiking poles first.

 

The verse I chose to concentrate on this week was from the book of John, 8:31-32: "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." I spent some time thinking about these words as I walked, and before the end of the journey, I learned a very important personal truth about my own emotions. I'm not entirely sure yet where that truth might lead me, but the journey is the destination.

It was one of the best Thanksgiving holidays I've ever experienced. Next time I hike this trail, I'll start at the bridge and walk the rest of the Forest Road Trail - maybe this Saturday. Until next time - happy hiking!

Roan Mountain State Park

Today's journey was to Roan Mountain State Park. I've driven through the park several times on my way to Carver's Gap but this is the first time I stopped to explore. I decided on a couple of short trails instead of a long hike because I had a limited amount of time today. I arrived at the park around 11:30 am after getting a later start than I intended, and I went without Tucker because he had a tummy-ache and needed some rest. Since I had never hiked in the park before, I decided to start by going to the Visitor's Center.

The visitor's center was open, and it has a nice, clean bathroom - always good to know! From there, you can access the two trails I took today. The first was the Peg Leg Mine Trail. The Peg Leg Mine is an old iron ore mine that was active around the turn of the twentieth century. Ore was mined there and smelted at a site on the other side of the highway, then carried away by train. The trail is well kept and an easy walk of less than half a mile. The entry to the mine itself is a bit creepy - a  hole in the earth blocked by thick log posts that look like broken, crooked teeth in a gaping mouth.

Entrance to the Peg Leg Mine - the sign says "Danger - Keep Away"

After enjoying this short trail, I decided to walk the Cloudland Nature Trail, which is to the right of the Visitor's Center. This trail is one mile long, and the first half of it was an easy - though narrow - walk. I was a bit disappointed because it followed the road, and though it was screened by trees, I could still hear traffic. But the trail itself was nice and the sound of the water was soothing. I had lunch on a rock in the river:

Nice place for a picnic!

After a drink of water and a granola bar, I thought about my scripture for the day. I had chosen Psalm 100 from the lectionary reading for this Sunday, and thought about how the psalmist exhorts all the earth to shout to the Lord with joy. The sound of the water seemed to echo God's praises. And after thinking for a while, I remembered that the psalm also says we were made by God and that we are God's people, and I thought about how we are created in God's image - made to be like God. What could be better than that?

After lunch, I walked for a few more moments, and then the trail turned away from the river and became suddenly much more challenging. It was still well marked but more difficult to follow as it climbed straight up the side of the mountain. The traffic noises faded as I climbed. Blue blazes marked the trees and the trail twisted and turned. There were a few spots where it was not apparent which way the trail went - it took me a few minutes to see the blazes and know where I was going. Eventually, the path descended back toward the Visitor's Center. There were several spots where I would have been glad to have those hiking poles I mentioned in my last post!

All in all, it was a great day. After the last half-mile of the Cloudland Trail, I felt pleasantly tired and it was time for me to head home. Next time, I think I'll cross the road and take the Forest Trail to Chestnut Ridge. Roan Mountain State Park has a lot of treasures yet to discover.

Destination Unknown

Today is Friday! I'm glad because that means tomorrow I get to go hiking. Before I go, I have to pick up some appropriate gear. The weather is too cold for jackets and jeans now - that means a short shopping trip is in order. Tonight I may go by Mahoney's or Dick's and pick up some thermals or lined pants. I also need a long jacket with deep pockets, a pair of gloves, and a hat. I hate wearing hats - if you have ever seen my hair, you'll know why. It is long and very curly and makes finding a hat that fits almost impossible. However, after my evening hike to the top of Round Bald last week when I came down with aching ears because of the constant, cold wind, I think I'll put the effort into finding good head-gear.

Sunset from the slope under Round Bald on the Appalachian Trail, 11-12-11

Earlier this week I purchased a backpack. It's a narrow-frame Real-Tree Camo print with lots of compartments and side holders for the water bottles so they balance. With chest and waist straps to stabilize and balance the load, it should make climbing easier. Until now, I've just brought along a string bag, but I'm getting tired of the bouncing and I'm getting serious about my trips. Another thing I'll probably be investing in soon is a pair of hiking poles. All you friends, take note: you just saw my Christmas list!

Necessities aside - I have yet to decide where I'm going tomorrow. I've hiked along the Carver's Gap trail twice in the past three weeks and though I do plan to go back and get more distance, I want to save that for another time. Tomorrow I want to forge new pathways to unseen destinations! I thought about hiking the low trail to Laurel Falls. That would certainly be different and it is a longer hike than the upper trail. But I have somewhere to be at 4 pm, so that puts a bit of a limit on what I can do.

I think I might visit Buffalo Mountain. It's practically in my backyard. The White-Rock Trail and the Tip-Top trail both sound good, and I can take Tucker along if he's feeling frisky tomorrow. And that reminds me - last time, it wore me out carrying his water and snacks. If he's going to be a good hiker, he needs a backpack...or at least saddle-bags. That way he can be responsible for his own equipment.

Tomorrow evening or Sunday there should be pictures and a new entry about where I went and what I learned on the way, so stay tuned.

Carvers Gap

Today's journey was to Carvers Gap, a stop on the Appalachian Trail. I wish I had gotten out there back during the summer, but better late than never, right? This morning, I packed up a couple of apples, a PB&J, two bottles of water, and some trail mix and then Tucker and I headed out for the day. We took Gap Creek Road to Highway 19, then Highway 143 past Roan Mountain State Park.

This would be a good time  to mention that I actually intended to hike Carvers Gap last weekend. I started up the mountain and the temperature dropped by fifteen degrees by the time I neared the top. That was October 30th - check it out:

It was 31 degrees and snow was beginning to fall again when I decided to turn back. But this weekend, the weather was gorgeous; sunny and a balmy 44 degrees! Tucker and I reached the trail-head at around 10 am.

We hiked to the top of Round Bald. On the way up, we passed through a thicket of fir trees that were planted in the 1940's. They're dying off now, and the forest is gloomy and skeletal. Creepy but nice - my camera was not able to really capture the feeling of that place:

Tucker was convinced that the woods were full of bears. I told him he was just hearing blue-jays, but he didn't believe me. After a few minutes, we came out into full, buttery sunshine. The wind was brisk and cold but the sun was warm. The views from the top of Round Bald, with it's elevation of 5,826 feet, were spectacular.

Since part of the purpose of these hikes and this blog are to promote my own healing, I decided to spend some of the time meditating as I walked, and I brought my journal along so I could take notes. Before beginning the hike, I chose a random scripture from my Bible and wrote it in my journal. It was from 2nd Corinthians 13:8-14, beginning with "...for we cannot do anything against the truth but only for the truth...your restoration is what we pray for." I thought about this as I walked, concentrating on the words truth and restoration. After a while, I felt like a light had clicked on inside me.

Sometimes, I feel as if I am out of balance with God, and when this happens, I become out of step with everything in my life, even myself. I understand now that this is because at my core, I carry the truth, innocence, power, and likeness of the Creator of the Universe. If I am out of balance with God, then I must be out of balance with myself because God's likeness is an intrinsic part of who I am. Conversely, when I feel most at odds with myself is when I am also at odds with God.

Wilderness is healing for this condition because it is in nature that we see the beauty and wonder that resides inside us. Nature - as God created it and without human interference - is an external representation of our internal truth; that the animating spirit inside each of us is the breath of God. Spending time in the wild brings harmony because it helps us reconcile who we are with who it is God intended us to be. The truth we encounter in the wilderness brings us restoration.

Tucker and I really enjoyed our real-time wilderness journey today. It brought me some much-needed serenity, and it gave Tucker a chance to meet new people and new dogs, and to mark territory he'd never marked before. All around, a successful day.

New Beginnings

For a couple of years, I've been blogging at Today's Wilderness Journey about healing after sexual and domestic violence. If you are coming here from my other Journey, then you'll know that spending time in nature is an important part of the healing process for me. I will continue to talk on TWJ about that journey, but this blog is dedicated to a different kind of journey - travels in real-time, in real places, not the wilderness of the heart-mind-soul.

I've always loved hiking, and have intended for a long time to do a lot of it. Unfortunately, I've been dependent on others to go with me so that I did not feel isolated, alone, or unsafe. Well, things change! In my progressive work on healing, I have discovered within myself the ability and desire for self-protection. In other words, I'm not afraid of going on my own anymore. I will be using this space to talk about my time in nature, how it relates to and improves my life, and to show off my pictures. I expect to have companions some of the time, mostly my friend Tucker. He loves hiking, and like me, he sometimes moves a little slow. Our pace is likely to be mutually agreeable.

This weekend's planned hike is to Carver's Gap, above Roan Mountain. Weather permitting, of course. Notes and pictures should follow sometime after Saturday night.