The Seven Wonders of West Virginia

The world has its seven wonders. So why not West Virginia? After all the State is called “Wild, Wonderful West Virginia,” and rightly so. West Virginia, The Mountain State, abounds in scenic wonders. Nestled among more urban and populated eastern states, West Virginia is an island of mountains, forests, rivers, and plateaus. Indeed, choosing just seven natural wonders to highlight proved daunting. But subjective as it is, from north to south here is my list: 

1. Dolly Sods
2. Canaan Valley
3. Seneca Rocks
4. The Cranberry Glades 
5. The Falls of Hills Creek
6. The New River Gorge 
7. Sandstone Falls

Dolly Sods

Credentials of the Seven

To make the list, the seven wonders had to fit certain criteria. For instance, they all had to be well-known landmarks, if not nationally, certainly state-wide. They had to be “on the map,” that is, located and identified on a West Virginia State Highway Map. Furthermore, I felt the north, central and southern regions of West Virginia all had to be represented. And the seven wonders had to be on public lands either Federal or State allowing all visitors free access. Being locations of special importance, all seven have received some measure of National or State recognition, management, and protection.

Dolly Sods

Dolly Sods 

Dolly Sods is nestled in the highlands of Tucker, Grant, and Randolph Counties about 35 miles east of Elkins, WV. It’s a high elevation, upland plateau covering about 32,000 acres and is famous for its rocky plains, bogs, and sweeping vistas.  Due to elevations ranging from 2,600 to 4,000 feet, the climate and vegetation resemble those of northern Canada. In 1975 Congress set aside more than 10,000 acres of Dolly Sods to be managed by the U.S. Forest Service as a Wilderness Area. The U.S. Forest Service calls Dolly Sods, “a unique ‘island’ of wild country.” In 2009, Congress expanded the Dolly Sods Wilderness to more than 17,000 acres by adding 7,156 acres from an area previously known as Dolly Sods North.

Canaan Valley

Canaan Valley

Immediately west of Dolly Sods lies Canaan Valley. Sitting about 3,200 feet above sea level and covering 32,000 acres in Tucker County, Canaan Valley is the largest high elevation valley east of the Rockies. Nestled in the valley floor is one of the largest shrub swamp environments in the East. Canaan Valley also holds the largest wetland complex in West Virginia, containing about 9,500 acres of bogs, shrub swamps, and wet meadows. Besides a haven for wildlife, Canaan Valley is one of the most pristine and picturesque spots in all of West Virginia. Everywhere beauty abounds, and so much of it is accessible to the public. Between Canaan Valley Resort State Park and Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge more than half of the valley is public land (22,500 acres). 

Seneca Rocks

Seneca Rocks

Located in Pendleton County in northeastern West Virginia, Seneca Rocks, an imposing nine hundred foot high wall of quartzite, is considered the top climbing spot on the East Coast. During World War II members of the Tenth Mountain Division trained at Seneca Rocks so they could scale Mediterranean cliffs. In 1965, Congress established the 100,000-acre Spruce Knob Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area.

Cranberry Glades

Cranberry Glades

At 750 acres, the Cranberry Glades Botanical Area of Pocahontas County in central West Virginia protects the largest area of bogs in West Virginia. In 1974, the Cranberry Glades Botanical Area was named a National Natural Landmark. The Cranberry Glades is managed and protected by the U.S. Forest Service, which maintains a ½ mile boardwalk for visitors to access the glades without harming the delicate environment.

Falls of Hills Creek

Falls of Hills Creek

Tucked in a narrow gorge in Pocahontas County just eight miles from the Cranberry Glades are the Falls of Hills Creek. Managed by the U.S. Forest Service as the Falls of Hills Creek Scenic Area, this 114-acre tract sports three waterfalls in a row of 25, 45, and 65 feet in height. The last waterfall is considered the second tallest in West Virginia. A 1700-foot long handicap accessible boardwalk allows everyone to see the first waterfall.

New River Gorge

New River Gorge

In November 1978, parts of the New River Gorge located in Fayette, Raleigh, and Summers Counties in southern West Virginia became the New River Gorge National River managed by the National Park Service. The New River was also designated an American Heritage River on July 30, 1998, one of fourteen such rivers in the country. The New River is reputed to be the second oldest river in the world. In 2015, USA Today readers voted the Endless Wall Trail of the New River Gorge National River as the #1 National Park day hike.

Sandstone Falls

Sandstone Falls

Located on the New River about 8 miles north of Hinton in Summers County, Sandstone Falls is one of the most visited landmarks within the New River Gorge National River. A 1/4 mile boardwalk provides fully accessible views of the falls. Not just a Wonder of West Virginia, Sandstone Falls is globally recognized. On a worldwide database of waterfalls, Sandstone Falls was ranked 30th by volume of water and 17th by width.

There you have it--a bucket list of places to visit in West Virginia. I know there are many other places worthy of the list such as Blackwater Falls, but I limited myself to seven wonders. But don’t limit yourself to these seven, for West Virginia is loaded with scenic wonders. 

Video: Dolly Sods in the Fall

I've put together a Video compilation of images taken at Dolly Sods in the Fall from 2007 to 2016. The images are not just from Bear Rocks, but south along the eastern of rim of the Sods.

Here's a YouTube link to the Video Dolly Sods in the Fall.

Colors Galore at Dolly Sods

Fall foliage colors are coming on slowly this year, and in some places without their usual brilliance. But at Dolly Sods colors abound as Phyllis and I discovered last Wednesday (10-5-2016) on a foggy, cloudy day in the high country. 

Dolly Sods

Ferns are Great this Year

Although the trees leaves are struggling for color, ferns are having a banner year. Without killing frosts, the ferns have been able to grow old gracefully gradually adopting a breathtaking spectrum of earth tones. Bright yellow, gold, light green, beige, and brown all adorn patches of ferns like a painter’s palette. 

Dolly Sods

In Dolly Sods across the road from the South Overlook on Forest Road 75, we found a stand of ferns literally glowing despite the slate gray sky. The golden ferns contrasted beautifully with the deep green spruce trees. The golden ferns also contrasted nicely with the red leaves of the blueberry plants. 

Dolly Sods

Goldenrod Still Going Strong

We also found goldenrod lighting up some patches here and there. The goldenrod accented autumn scenes with bright yellow stalks. Although the fall colors at Spruce Knob Lake were muted, there was a fine patch of goldenrod.
Even an occasional Spruce tree branch varied in color from dark green to light green to greenish yellow to light brown. 

Dolly Sods

Though tree foliage colors were just beginning to show, there was plenty of awe inspiring colors to be found at that beautiful place we call Dolly Sods.

Dolly Sods

And yes, it looks like tree color is arriving, too.

Dolly Sods

The Grass Bald: Dolly Sods

In my mind one of the prettiest areas in Dolly Sods doesn’t have stunning rock outcrops or crimson colored heath like Bear Rocks. Don’t get me wrong. I love that part of the Sods. But I also love an area called the “Grass Bald.” 

The Grass Bald is a sweeping terrain covered with grass and dotted with a few trees. The grass, known as mountain oat grass, has a subtle silver to white cast that is soothing to the eye. The grass is also called Allegheny fly-back due to the way the lightweight stems “fly back” from the scythe in mowing. Perhaps this is why the grass undulates so gently in the wind. Whatever the reason, the sight of this grass softly swaying in the breeze is mesmerizing. 

Grass Bald on the Bear Rocks Trail

The grass balds cover flat, drier areas of the Sods. No one is quite sure why trees don’t occupy the grass balds. Most think the areas were naturally open prior to logging. Thomas Lewis, a surveyor writing in 1746, reported such an area during his explorations. Some think the climate might be too harsh and the grass too competitive with tree seedlings.

Grass Bald on the Bear Rocks Trail

There are a couple of trails that will take you to grass balds. The easiest way is the Bear Rocks Trail (TR522). About 1.5 miles from the trailhead, the trail breaks out of a forested slope and onto a flat meadow covered in grass. The grass bald continues along the trail for some distance. 

On the Bear Rocks Trail

Another grass bald is located north of Dobbin Slashing. To find this area take the Bear Rocks Trail one mile to its junction with the Dobbin Grade Trail (TR526). Turn right and follow an old railroad grade for about 3000 feet. Then look for an old road heading up a slight grade to the right. A grass bald covers the ridge top. 

North of Dobbin Slashing

With a sea of grass and a limitless sky of blue, a grass bald can capture your imagination. Like so many Dolly Sod landscapes, it’s a scene unlike any other in West Virginia. 

Bear Rocks: Dolly Sods’ Sculpture

To me, the rocks that rim Dolly Sods have been sculpted into exquisite forms that resemble everything from humans and animals to abstract art. In a pamphlet about Dolly Sods published by the West Virginia University Extension Service, Norma Jean Venable wrote: “The boulders at Bear Rocks project from the stony earth as if placed by the hands of some ancient race of neolithic people.” This apparent element of intention or art in the rocks of Dolly Sods is intriguing and has led me to explain their origin in geologic terms. 

Among the interesting shapes at Bear Rocks are rounded, often water-filled, depressions of varying diameters and depths carved into the stone. These depressions are called weathering pits or gnammas (nam uhs), the latter a term borrowed from the Aborigines of Australia, who depend on the water trapped in natural rock bowls for survival.

A Large Gnamma at Dolly Sods

Gnammas are formed by a geologic process called differential weathering. For example, should just a slight rock weakness cause a small depression to form on a horizontal rock surface, water, seeking the lowest spot, will preferentially flow into it. Should the temperature drop below freezing, the water will turn to ice, expand, and break up the rock particles next to it, thus making the small depression just a little larger. The enlarged depression will attract more water, which, when turned to ice, will further expand the hole. In this way the process feeds on itself, and after repeated cycles of freezing and thawing, what was once a small depression will have grown into a full-fledged gnamma.

A Large Gnamma at Dolly Sods

Gnammas deepen and expand outward, which eventually limits their growth. If the outer circle of a gnamma reaches the edge of a boulder or rock outcrop, the bowl will be partially breached. Further expansion carves a larger breach in the side of the bowl. Eventually the bowl is destroyed leaving, U shaped openings and rounded columns. 

Breached Gnammas

Geologic studies show that gnammas can take thousands to tens of thousands of years to form. A study of gnammas in Portugal by David Dominguez Villar and others showed that, in general, the relative age of gnammas was best indicated not by width or even volume but by depth ratios. Without getting more technical, we can say that generally, the deeper the gnamma, the older it is.

Indeed, time is another key factor in nature's sculpting of rocks. Dr. Greg Hancock, professor of geology at the College of William & Mary, has studied the age of the outcrops on the east and west rims of Dolly Sods. He found that these rocks have been exposed at the surface for 60,000 to 240,000 years. That means that differential weathering has been gradually picking away at them for tens and even hundreds of millennia.

Above all, time is a fine hand. Over millennia, every subtle weakness in the rock, each small variation in rock composition, and even the slightest difference in natural openings are delicately but persistently magnified and accentuated. In the hands of time, weathering is a powerful tool, having carved the rocks of Dolly Sods into the intricate forms we see today.

Gnamma at Bear Rocks

Dolly Sods: An Island in the Sky

“If you truly love Nature, you will find beauty everywhere” (Vincent Van Gogh). This explains why people find beauty all over the world. Indeed, if you asked, “What is the most beautiful place in the world?” the answers would vary. Some might say the sandy beaches of Hawaii, the Mediterranean, or the Carribean. Others might prefer the grandeur of our National Parks such as Yosemite, Yellowstone, or the Grand Canyon. To my wife Phyllis and me, the most beautiful place in the world is close to home–right here in this gorgeous Mountain State. It’s Dolly Sods–the home of our aesthetic soul, the place where beauty is most abundant.

Dolly Sods: Grass Balds

Sitting atop the Potomac Highlands of Tucker, Randolph, and Grant counties, Dolly Sods is a high-elevation, upland plateau covering about 32,000 acres. It’s probably best known for the 17,000 acre Dolly Sods Wilderness Area–a haven for backpackers and overnight hikers. The trails in the Wilderness area are meant for the hale and hearty. Anyone venturing into the Wilderness Area with a pack on their backs should be ready for a rugged adventure.

Dolly Sods

In addition to the wilderness experience offered, Dolly Sods’ great appeal is its landscape. It’s unlike any other in West Virginia. Driving north on Forest Road 75 (FR 75), which runs the length of the eastern side of the Dolly Sods Wilderness, the terrain changes from the familiar to the phenomenal. The south end begins in northern hardwood forest. But as you progress north, groves of trees become smaller and less common; rocky outcrops pop up; undulating grassy meadows widen; the heath lands swell; and the sky seems to slowly open like a flower.

Dolly Sods Sky

FR 75, for the most part flat and straight as an arrow, serves as a runway lifting you up to an island in the sky. By the time you reach the northern end of the road at Bear Rocks, you’re sitting on top of an exotic new world. The heath barrens stretch out on three sides blanketing the gently rolling hills with low-lying shrubs of berries and blooms. The rock outcrops’ strange yet alluring shapes seem sculpted by some unknown but intelligent hand.

Dolly Sods in Pink Azalea

The steep, craggy escarpment of Bear Rocks severs the heath and draws a line where land quickly falls away to horizons lined with row after row of mountain ridges as far as the eye can see. Trees are endowed with majesty. Pines are bowed, but not broken by the unrelenting west winds. Flag-form spruce stand straight and tall but stripped of branches on the windward side. To West Virginians not used to unbroken horizons, the suddenly expansive sky is breathtaking. Clouds, swirling and dancing above you, seem close enough to touch. To me, Dolly Sods is an island in the sky, and its lure is its rocks and plants and sky. They are striking, exotic, and rare.

Dolly Sods: Turtle Rock

Dolly Sods: In Fall