I got in my usual weekly hike on Sunday on the Tuscarora Trail through Sleepy Creek. I'm working my way out of Sleepy Creek WMA on the Tuscarora Trail now and building up to a few big section hikes. Sunday's hike started at Sleepy Creek Lake and went north. There are no serious climbs, memorable terrain or great views along this section but it was a pretty awesome area to hike. A lot of the hike was in view or I was at least able to hear Meadow Branch, and the rolling hills along the bottom of Third Hill Mountain were very nice to hike. My next hike in that area will start on WV Rt 9 at Spruce Pine Hollow Park and hike back South all the way to the lake. It looks like about a 15 miler and I'm pretty exited to knock it out.
With spring break in full gear I was able to get out again on Wednesday and hike a section south of Sleepy Creek WMA. It started at Siler Store, a little store at a crossroads in the middle of nowhere. It started out great. A nice kid named Timothy was out working on his tractor and gave me permission to park beside his garage for a few hours so I parked my truck and headed out. The first mile was awesome, right along Brush Creek and a few pretty green meadows. The trail then led onto many pieces of private farm land. I know I crossed more than a dozen fences and hiked across many open fields. Being an AT guy I'm not crazy about hiking near and around peoples homes and crossing their fences. Many of the people in this area are heavily armed and probably aren't too crazy about people poking around on their property. And with all the signage they made it perfectly clear that you had better stay on the trail and not step a single foot on their "private" property. But then I figured, this trail has been here for a while and I can't be the first hiker they've seen, but it still wasn't a comfortable hike. The last mile or so was back in the woods and back in my comfort zone. I hiked all the way to the Basore shelter which is absolutely incredible. It's as nice as a privately owned cabin, really a beautiful spot. I took a break there and had a snack and some water and just lounged in the relaxing atmosphere. I made my way back to truck, shouted a big "Thank You" to Timothy across the road and headed on home. My next hike in that area will get me as far south as Gore, VA.
My third hike of the week was definitely my favorite. It's not too often I get to hike with my wife but when I do it's always a good time. Today we hiked up to High Rock in Sleepy Creek, which is one of my favorite spots. We spent a few minutes there taking in the views and the bright sunshine before hiking over to the shelter on Shockey's Knob for lunch. After a relaxing lunch we headed back down the hill to my truck. It wasn't a long hike but it was nice for the two of us to hike along and enjoy nature together. Tomorrow we're taking our son to the DC Zoo. This has been a fantastic spring break for me. I'm not looking forward to going back to the other zoo (school) where I work every day. I'll post my pictures of this weeks adventures soon.
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