Friday, 9 June
| Destination: Bear Rocks Parking | Today’s Miles: 6.0 |
| Start Location: Red Creek Campsite | Trip Miles: 30.7 |
Bob and I had our warmest night and coolest day of the trip. Overnight low was 40 and it was 48 when we awoke a little before six. It stayed overcast in the low fifties with a stiff breeze making it chilly hiking through the mountain meadows without trees to break the wind.
We started off retracing our steps on Blackbird Knob Trail to Upper Red Creek Trail to Dobbins Grade Trail. The map notes “Dobbins Grade along Red Creek Can be a very wet trail.” Since everything has been very dry and dusty, our decision was to take Dobbins Grade Trail. Things were nice and dry until we came to another crossing of Red Creek. No possible rock hopping here. The water looked knee deep with a sandy bottom for the twenty foot crossing. Bob and backtracked a little to Raven Ridge Trail which took us to Bear Rocks Trail past our first night’s campsite and back to the parking area and our cars. Several day hikers and a few backpackers starting out asked how cold it was in the woods. We reminded them that it would be chilly.
Bob and I spent some time at the vehicles changing shoes and rearranging gear before heading off in search of a real lunch. A quick stop once we had cell service and Google helped us select Beander’s in Elins for lunch. The waitress provided great service and recommendations so it was burgers and a local beer. Elkins had a large county building that looked like a magnificent old church and a big modern federal courthouse. A trip to Kroger provided gas and groceries for our two nights in the cabin at the campground.
Dolly Sods is situated on the Eastern Continental Divide. On one side waster flows into the Mississippi then the Gulf of Mexico. On the other side water flows into the Potomac then Chesapeake Bay. We had very dry nights with no dew or condensation on our tents, low humidity. The views were hazy and once we had cell service we understood that was because of the forest fires and all the air quality warnings back home.
Dinner was hot dogs on the grill with cold iced tea. The cabin has no running water but has a small refrigerator and microwave. There are two sets of bunk-beds, a small table and two chairs. There is also a TV. We stayed up later tonight reading on our Kindles. No reason to get up early tomorrow.
