In the midst of a rather hectic summer, we managed to clear space for Rob, Allison, and me to make a quick jaunt to the West Virginia mountains. Rob and I split the driving for the 790 miles to Elkins on Monday. We even managed a brief stop at the New River Gorge, and enjoyed the spectacular view of the river below and the bridge beside us.
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| The New River and a small bridge from the overlook | The New River Gorge Bridge behind Rob and Allison |
Tuesday morning, we drove to Cass and rode the steam locomotive to the top of Bald Knob. Rob and I have ridden the Cass train before, but this was Allison's first train ride of any kind.
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| At Bald Knob | Rounding a grade crossing with both engines pushing |
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| Another line, high on the mountain | Shay #4, taken from the switchback above |
We stopped at Greenbank and visited the National Radio Telescope site. This picture is of the big scope from a field near Cass -- that barn is far in the foreground. The distant view is really impressive with the naked eye, but the camera doesn't capture the size of the scope. We skipped out on the full tour of Greenbank when even Rob decided, "this has been enough for one day."
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Wednesday, we drove to Seneca Rocks and hiked up to the top. It's only a mile and a half or there-abouts, but that little walk includes over 1000 feet worth of 'up.' I think that works out to climbing a grade that averages around 15%. Rob found it a nice walk -- like I did a few years ago. This time I found it a workout and Allison thought the climb was exhausting.
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| View from the top | And the stream at the bottom |
After the much easier walk down, we took note that there wasn't a single restaurant in sight. We circled back toward Blackwater Falls, figuring we would be more likely to find food as we approached Davis than much of anywhere else in that area. Thus, Blackwater Falls became the final destination of our whirlwind two days.
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| Blackwater Falls | The Usual Suspects |
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| A closer look | A big rock |
The deer was quietly browsing by the roadside in Blackwater Falls State Park. We drove up beside it, I stopped, lowered the window, and began snapping pictures. After a few minutes, it very casually ambled away.
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On the way back to Elkins, we saw a row of windmills on the mountaintop. Seems like a wonderful way to produce energy -- attractive, clean, efficient.
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Thursday, we forced ourselves through the long drive home -- 790 exhausting, traffic-filled miles. I wish we had had more time. So many places we didn't visit, and so many people we didn't have the time to say hello to.