Trip reports of backpacking adventures I’ve taken over the years. In each report I include maps, gear lists, and a mostly accurate account of what happened when I hit the trails.
After being cooped up in my house for months I saw a break in the clouds and asked my better half for permission to leave our suburban landlocked ship and escape into the woods with my brother-in-law, Ken. Since neither he or I have interacted with humans outside of our own domiciles, I was granted 36-hour leave and began the planning process with a focus on the Uwharrie National Forest.
In the past few months, Uwharrie has been my go to spot for hiking and trail running so I thought I’d elevate its status as a go to backpacking destination. It’s close to home, has lots of nature, and I can sleep there.
The Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia is home to some of the best backpacking options on the east coast. My buddy, Coop, and I had already visited Dolly Sods and Roaring Plains within the forest, but we hadn’t had a chance to check out the 47,815 acre Cranberry Wilderness.
Situated between the Highland Scenic Highway to the east, the Williams River to the north, and the Cranberry River to the south and west, the Cranberry Wilderness includes more than 15 interconnected, unblazed, and well-maintained trails covering over 75 miles with elevations ranging from 2,400 to over 4,600 feet. Black bears are abundant and share the Wilderness with deer, turkeys, rabbits, mink, grouse, bobcats, and foxes.
Sounds awesome, right? Absolutely, that’s why we went.
If you’ve hiked the Appalachian Trail (AT) or seen photos of other people hiking the AT chances are you’ve seen Virginia’s Triple Crown. Located in the Roanoke Valley in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains, the Triple Crown is comprised of three legs: Tinker Cliffs, McAfee Knob, and Dragon’s Tooth. As a loop, the Triple Crown is 35.1 miles long with almost ~8,000′ of gain making for a challenging day hike or a manageable 2- or 3-day trip.
I considered the Triple Crown for a trip back in August, but opted for Linville Gorge due to 100° heat indices and lack of available water sources. With temps on the decline, my buddy, Coop, and I prayed for rain and started planning our trip.
The Linville Gorge Wilderness (LGW) is located within the Pisgah National Forest in the mountains of Western North Carolina. Nicknamed the “Grand Canyon of North Carolina”, it is formed by Jonas Ridge on the east and Linville Mountain on the west and is bisected by the Linville River which drops 2,000 feet into the valleys below. The nearly 12,000 acres of wilderness is unforgivingly steep, incredibly rugged, and is home to black bears, rattlesnakes, copperheads, and 80% of the world’s tick population.
Linville Gorge has been on my bucket list for years. This year, however, was going to be the year I actually went. In the springtime, I researched the area and decided to plan a May trip. As luck would have it, when I called the National Forest Service to secure a permit for my brother-in-law, Ken, and I, I was told there were no available permits. Undeterred, I called back two months later, and was able to reserve a permit for the second weekend in August.
Located in southwest Virginia, the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area (NRA), Grayson Highlands State Park, and surrounding National Forest lands are popular destinations for hikers and backpackers looking to log a few miles, take in breathtaking views, and observe wildlife of all types. In the past year or so, particularly along the Appalachian Trail (AT), the area has also become popular among black bears.
According to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s 2018 Bear Incident report, black bears have successfully retrieved more than 70 food bags hung in trees and damaged packs and tents as far south as Thomas Knob Shelter. As a result, the Forest Service closed the area for a time and, with the help of the Mount Rogers Appalachian Trail club, installed bear boxes at 6 sites: Thomas Knob Shelter, Rhododendron Gap between the AT and the Crest Trail, Wise Shelter, Old Orchard Shelter, Hurricane Mountain Shelter, and Trimpi Shelter.
With this in mind, my brother-in-law, Ken, and I decided to assume the risks and brave the crowds and bears for a Memorial Day weekend backpacking trip to the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area.
The Uwharrie National Forest was the destination for my son’s first two backpacking trips. It’s close to home, the trails are manageable for a young backpacker, and the chances of being eaten by a bear are next to zero. For his third trip, I was thinking of heading up north to Grayson Highlands or west towards Pisgah, but opted to suggest a return to Uwharrie via the Birkhead Mountains Wilderness as we were expecting a couple other people to join us.
Established by the 1984 North Carolina Wilderness Act, the Birkhead Mountains Wilderness includes 5,000+ acres at the northern end of the oldest mountains on the North American Continent, the Uwharrie Mountains. It was used by early Native Americans over 12,000 years ago, explored by Europeans in the late 1600s, settled in 1760, and expanded by John Watson, son of the Birkhead family, in the late 19th century. Today, the Birkhead Mountains Wilderness has over 16 miles of designated hiking trails (i.e. horses, motorized vehicles, and mountain bikes are prohibited) that are enjoyed by hikers, backpackers, and trail runners.
I shared what I knew about the area with my son, broke the news that our two friends had to back out, and let him rethink our destination. In the end he chose Birkhead.
Each year I try to work in a winter backpacking trip. This year, I waited up until the last minute to start asking around and couldn’t get any takers. Determined to still go, I looked into places for a solo overnight trip. To the north, near Mt. Rogers Nat’l Rec Area, the forecasts were calling for temps in the teens, winds between 20 and 30MPH, and 10+ inches of snow. To the south, in the Uwharrie National Forest, temps were forecasted between 50°F and 60°F and rain was a certainty. The latter got me thinking.
Since the weather to the south was forecasted to be mild, I thought maybe, just maybe, my wife would be OK with my son joining me on a winter trip. I asked. She agreed. I asked my son. He agreed. Thank you backpacking gods!
Looking southwest from Wild Oak Trail a mile from Hankey Mountain.
Backpacking in the Southeastern United States in the fall can be challenging on account of unpredictable weather conditions and water availability; two things that get particularly interesting as winter nears. Knowing this, I researched a number of trail options before settling on the Wild Oak National Recreation Trail (TWOT) within the George Washington National Forest just west of Staunton, Virginia.
Designated as a National Recreation Trail in 1979, the Wild Oak Trail is a 27-mile loop offering 7,000′ of elevation gain, sweeping views, and a long, wide river that winds its way through the wilderness. I suggested the route and the nearby Triple Crown to my buddy, Coop, and brother-in-law, Ken, and we agreed to hit up Wild Oak for our next adventure.
Looking out from the Upper Falls off Whiteoak Canyon Trail Photo by Coop
On our most recent trip to the Mt. Rogers National Recreation Area, my buddy, Coop, suggested we hit up Shenandoah National Park. Located 75 miles southwest of Washington, D.C., the park has 196,000 acres of backcountry and wilderness, over 500 miles of interconnected trails, a boatload of waterfalls, and is home to a great deal of wildlife including a pretty dense population of black bears.
Upon returning home, we researched the area and asked around to see if anyone wanted to join us. A month later, we increased the party by one and narrowed our trip to the northern section of the park between Mary’s Rock, Stony Man, and Old Rag.
My seven-year-old son has been camping since he was 18 months and hiking since he was two years old. He spends a lot of time outdoors from fishing to geocaching to running to just playing in the dirt. For years, he’s been asking me when he’d be able to join me on an overnight backpacking adventure. This past weekend, he got his wish.
