Back to the Blackwater River Trail: Canaan Valley

Where to you go hiking in Canaan Valley if you only have half a day? That was the question facing Phyllis and me last Thursday (Aug. 18, 2016). The answer was easy: the Blackwater River Trail of Canaan Valley State Park. As I wrote in an earlier post (Aug. 4^th), in my opinion this is the most scenic trail in Canaan Valley.

Instead of parking at the trailhead, we drove beyond it on a gravel road leading out of the golf course parking lot. The gravel road took us to a filtration plant and the location of our first photo op (GPS: Lat. 39.038629, Long. -79.456564). Here the Blackwater makes a lazy meander through the valley. Some teasel grows along the bank of the river making some lovely foreground for a landscape photo.

Blackwater Teasel

Blackwater Teasel

Next, we hiked west to join the trail. After hiking on the trail about 30 yards, we took a side trail down to the river’s edge. Here the Blackwater makes a sweeping “S” turn just about where a lone tree stands in stark contrast to flat, grassy meadows. It’s a picturesque scene worthy of many photos.

Blackwater River

Then we hiked about 1000 feet on a relatively straight stretch of river until we came to another sweeping bend. On this day we were fortunate; wildflowers were blooming in abundance along the river bank. Vervain, sneezeweed, St. John’s wort, and butterfly bush added colorful foreground accents to all the river shots.

 Blackwater in Bloom

Sneezeweed

To add to the beauty the cloud action was brilliant. All in all the Blackwater River Trail did not disappoint.  

The Second Most Popular Waterfall at Blackwater Falls State Park

Almost everyone knows about Blackwater Falls. But did you know there are at least a dozen other waterfalls at Blackwater Falls State Park? Tributaries to the Blackwater River such as Pendleton Run, Shay Run, and Falls Run tumble down the steep slopes of the Blackwater Canyon creating waterfall after waterfall. To be sure, they don’t match the 63 foot drop of the river wide Blackwater Falls. And they don’t have boardwalks built to them either. Nonetheless, they are charming and picturesque in their own right and are well worth a trek off the beaten path.

Elakala Falls

One of those waterfalls is Elakala Falls, which is probably the second most visited waterfall in the Park. To see Elakala Falls start at the Blackwater Lodge. The trailhead to the falls is at the western end of the Lodge parking lot (GPS: Lat. 39.107630, Long. -79.497965). The trail to the falls isn’t more than 500 feet and leads to a bridge that spans Shay Run right at the falls. From the bridge, you get a great overhead view of the falls.

Elakala Falls

But the view from the bridge doesn’t do this waterfall justice. To fully fathom its beauty some off-trail scrambling is required. Continue on the Elakala trail for another 50 feet or so. Then look to your right for paths that scramble down to creek level. I can’t say it’s an easy scramble. There are lots of tree roots and rocks. But it’s sure worth the effort if you can do it.

Elakala Falls

From creek level you can better appreciate the flow of the water as it cascades over the main fall and then diverges into multiple flows.  You can also get a clearer view of the brilliant green moss covering the rocks near the falls. The honey-colored water from which Blackwater gets its name is unique and beautiful as well. All in all, there’s much to admire about this waterfall, and it keeps photographers happy for hours.

More about the other waterfalls in future blogs, but for now I hope you plan a side trip to Elakala Falls.     Waterfalls at Camp Creek    5 Waterfalls of the New River Gorge     Brush Creek Falls     Sandstone Falls