Thunderstruck Rock & Roaring Plain, WV December 4-6, 1998 The trip started out with the ominous signs of human encroachment on wilderness areas, which in the late 20th century is becoming more and more frequent. It was disturbing to see a large clearcut off of Rt. 55 near Needmore, WV. I figured it was probably for Corridor H which is the final piece of a long term highway project thought up by someone in Washington DC. A hunter that we ran into at our first night camp said he heard that the clearcuts were done for seismic tests for the highway project. That sounded suspicious to me. But, what do I know, anyway? Anyhow . . .I went with a new found friend that uses the trail name Tom Terrific. I met him at a bulletin board called Trail Talk at thebackpacker.com. He already had the agenda figured out, and wanted to hike from the other side of Mt. Porte Crayon to Thunderstruck Rock. We drove out on Friday and took the turn off of Rt. 55 for Dolly Sods. Eventually we wound up on FR70 (off of Rt. 45 I think) near a pipeline right of way. We hiked up Roaring Plains Trail for a few miles and camped out in a stand of spruce trees about a half mile before the stone wind break on the Roaring Plain. The view was stunning, with the valley floor a couple thousand feet below. On Saturday we hiked onto the plain, and past the stone wind break onto Flat Rock Run Trail. The trail breaks right and leads into a valley, but we continued straight ahead on the old rail bed that quickly died out on us. One thing we noticed were quite a few rail beds. Apparently this area was heavily logged in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as was most of the West Virginia Forests. It may have been eighty to one hundred years since a Shay locomotive chugged up these mountains. The wounds may be slowly healing, but the scars of rail beds stitch their way all over these mountains as a reminder of an era of unchecked greed. We resorted to bushwhacking for the remaining distance using map and compass to find Thunderstruck Rock. After a half-mile we rediscovered the rail bed below us about a hundred feet. We used it, until we hit a switchback, just before the shoulder of the mountain. While searching for "The Rock", the weather changes that took place were bizarre and wonderful at the same time. Watching the fog calmly rise up from the valley (north toward Canaan Crossing & Big Run) 1800 feet below and overtake us while rounding the shoulder of the mountain at 4600 feet -- to be hit with 40+ mph winds and rain -- is quite an experience. Deciding to move up the mountain in search of Thunderstruck Rock during a gale-- finding it -- immediately engaging in an argument with my hiking partner over where to pitch camp (to save our lives from the ravages of hypothermia) and have it all clear out within minutes was quite an event to witness and be part of. During our heated debate regarding death, I noticed a break in the weather across the valley, and said, "WoW, did you see that? There was a break in the clouds for a moment." I don't quite remember what my partner said, but then there was another break that lasted a little longer. We decided to hang in at Thunderstruck Rock and witness the clearing that was unfolding before us. We were dumbstruck sitting on that rock ledge. Staring into the soupy grey abyss and have it clear out before us, discovering a vista that ran for a hundred miles. Words really can't do justice to the event. We then wandered through the woods in the general direction of the Thunder Bench Mark and set up camp for the night. The wind was buffeted by the spruce woods we camped in. It rained sporadically during the night. The valley to the south funneled the wind which howled quite severely until morning. After breakfast, we packed up and bushwhacked to Mt. Porte Crayon and found an old unmarked trail that led us back to the stone wind break. We then hiked back to the car along the way marvelling at the vistas. It was an excellent trip. Enjoyed every minute of it. As was the case before the hike, there was some disappointing news at the end of the hike. We ran into a couple of locals that told us there was a private interest petitioning the Forest Service to create a ski resort at Thunderstruck Rock. I suppose that's called progress. As Red Green would say, "We can't help it. We're men." pretty much says it all. Idiot BoB If you are interested, visit Logging the Virgin Forests of West Virginia for a historical view of the affect that the logging industry has had on the state. Take me back to the ECT Main Page This page hosted by Geocities. Get your own Free Home Page |
