This is my personal website. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. The blue blazes are really light at the parking spot. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Overall, this was a great hike, but the first three miles till you get up to the ridge was just OK. Camping: Burd Run Shelter (40.053,-77.888), PATC Silberman Trail Center (by reservation only), Cowans Gap State Park. Please respect the landowner's decision. before you embark upon your trip. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. To an extent, the Tuscarora is largely what I expected: remote, isolated, and with few people. Section Update, Camping:Licking Creek Campground (39.651, -78.048). FTC Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission for purchases made through some of my links. I noted other comments about the decent from the shelter being hard on knees. Still warm. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". Reese Hollow Shelter in Pennsylvania had a beautiful crystal-clear spring flowing just off to the side from the shelter. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Proudly created with Wix.com, **All GPS coordinates given on this site use the WGS-84 datum**. Despite the 90+ degree day, the temps at the top and along the hike were manageable. The information available on this site, including without limitation, overviews, opinions,directions, GPS data, photographs, (collectively "Content") may contain information relating to a hazardous activity. You drive up and up and up to reach Timber Ridge Trail. A hiking destination in its own right, the Tuscarora Trail leaves the AT near Mathews Arm Campground in Shenandoah National Park making its way west and north to rejoin the AT atop Blue Mountain, 10 miles south of Duncannon, Pa. Coupling the experience of remote wilderness, green pastures, small towns, rugged tread-way and country back roads, the Tuscarora offers a truly unique hiking adventure. Highlights: Pinnacle overlook, Laurel Run Falls Access: The trail can be accessed from the northern terminus of section 15: US Route 50, limited shoulder parking (39.268, -78.314). Re-trace your steps to the trail, then turn left to continue on. The Tuscarora Trail continues north for another 167 miles before ending at an intersection with the Appalachian Trail, according to the sign at the shelter trail. Hike itself was great, with plenty of sweat and breaks. Trail conditions and routes may be subject to frequent and unannounced change. This means that hikers generally must hike shelter-to-shelter, which in a couple of cases forces some relatively long days. We have never seen other hikers on this route. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. I never made it to the Shelter and decided to turn back -- I was probably within a half mile. Primitive camping is allowed throughout Buchanan State Forest with free permit. At the ridge, the trail flattens out somewhat to a much more gradual ascent and is anoutstanding walk. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. The 7th edition (2020) of The Tuscarora Trail: A Guide to the North Half in Maryland and Pennsylvania incorporates recent trail changes or relocations into the detailed trail descriptions of the 10 sections comprising the north half. Reservations can be made online at the Pennsylvania State Parks and Forests Reservation website at any time, or by calling 888-PA-PARKS (888-727-2757), Monday through Saturday, 7:00 A.M. until 5:00 P.M. except on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day. Get to know this 8.5-mile loop trail near Newville, Pennsylvania. There are three ways to complete the challenge: hiking, doing volunteer trail maintenance with the PATC, or completing a combination of both hiking and trail maintenance that adds up to 60. At the trailhead, youll be in full sun, but not to worry. Full GPS track data, including campsites, etc, for this trip, Potable Aqua Water Purification Tablets with PA Plus, Search for evidence of the 2017 Cessna 150J Incident, Approximate location via the NTSB report is 39.039722,-78.555831, Bushwhack through accident site coordinates directly towards VCC Trail (optional of course). Wednesday, September 2, 2020 8:25 pm. This is not on the white trail leading down. You should verify critical information such as directions, park hours, gate closings, blaze colors and specific regulations (pet policies, firearm/hunting regulations, etc.) Advisory: Note, the Basore's Ridge portion of Section 14 is currently closed. Day 1 Mileage: 4.7 miles The information available on this site, including without limitation, overviews, opinions,directions, GPS data, photographs, (collectively "Content") may contain information relating to a hazardous activity. Also, I have in mind a thru-hike of the 71-mile Massanutten Trail, which circles the ridge of Massanutten Mountain. I plan to go back at some point and hike from the Northern terminus back to this site (Section 1 of the Tuscarora Trail). Max Elevation: 990 ft. Min Elevation:600 ft. Access: The trail can be accessed from both the southern and northern termini of section 14: Siler, VA. Va Route 600 and 690 (39.351, -78.240). Tuscarora Treasures Maps. Camping is limited to one night without a permit. Max Elevation: 760 ft. Min Elevation: 380 ft. Access:The trail can be accessed from both the northern and southern termini of section 9: End of Licking Creek Access Road (39.657, -78.055), Camp Harding Park on Pectonville Road (39.670,-78.041), Advisory:Exercise caution in Indian Springs WMA during hunting season. . The trail has been rerouted onto Va 689, Adams Rd. Turn right on the blue blazed trail. To detour this section, please consult the, The Tuscarora Trail 60th Anniversary Challenge, In honor of the 60th anniversary of the Tuscarora Trail, the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club is hosting the TT60Challenge. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Our trusty mountain dog, Boone, also came along. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". , Guide to the North Half of the Tuscarora Trail, C&O Canal NHP Visitor Center, Little Tonoloway Day Use Area. No direct access to northernterminus, but can be accessed from the Lucas Woods side trail with road access at WV 23/2 (39.183,-78.432). Grand Total Gross Elevation Gain: 1,901. Tuscarora State Forest Snowmobile Trail - Northern Division (PDF) It does not store any personal data. It was a small Cessna 150J that went down due to engine power loss and fortunately their were only minimal injuries to one of the two passengers. Welcome to the Tuscarora Trail Established in the 1960's as an alternate route for the Appalachian Trail (AT), the Tuscarora Trail is a 250-mile long trail through the Ridge and Valley Appalachians of Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. The Charlie Irvin Shelter at Waggoner's Gap on the Tuscarora Trail has been a work-in-progress for Pennsylvania volunteers. It will have some family genealogy information as well as my travel journals. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". I would recommend wearing a hat during this hike about 50 percent of the hike is in a field also bring sun block I have a little red to me today. Youll find the hiking trail is mostly dirt and rocks, often way more rocks. The valleys were clear and pleasant. My experience largely matched my expectation: there were relatively few hikers on the trail, and, I only met a handful of other people who were attempting to hike the whole trail (though, no one that was thru-hiking). The Tuscarora is both a less-well-known trail, and somewhat remote, so I didnt expect to see many people on the trail at all. Youll arrive at a platform at the 1.8-mile mark. More recently, sections of the Tuscarora from Mill Mountain in West Virginia to Cove Mountain in Pennsylvania, have been included in the long-distance Great Eastern Trail. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. US Route 50, limited shoulder parking (39.268, -78.314). The trailhead is located in the Shawneeland neighborhood, which is situated on a small mountain. If you start going downward on the FS road you missed the right turn. In a few more steps, you will exit the forest and reach a graffiti-laden powerline clearing with views. The Potomac Appalachian Trail Club, along with other hiking organizations maintains the Tuscarora Trail, and in partnership with REI is promoting the trail as long distance hiking resource in the Midatlantic. I had seen on the map it spelled as Bird Run (trail) though, so I wasn't sure of the correct spelling. White blaze downhill after the Shelter was steep, and pressure on the knees. Also, plan to carry water, as the water at the shelter is cistern based. Please respect the landowner's decision. At the 1.0-mile mark, you will reach the second of several rock scrambles. This trail soon re-connects with the blue-blazed Tuscarora Trail. The sign marking VA and WV was cool. And while both the Tuscaroras northern and southern termini are on the Appalachian Trail, and the Tuscarora goes through the Appalachian Mountains, those two trails could hardly be more different. At the 3.5-mile mark, stay left for the white-blazed Laurel Run Trail. I will comment on the trail head. Additional trail connections in section 15: Gore Connector Trail, Biby WildernessTrail, Laurel Run Trail, Fry Path, Lucas Woods Trail. It's intended to be a western alternative through the Appalachians to the Appalachian Trail. Camping: Basore Ridge Shelter (39.324, -78.255), Gore, VA to West Virginia State Line, 10.4miles. Advisory: Exercise caution in Buchanan State Forest during hunting season. Turn right onto the spur trail to reach the three-sided Pinnacle Shelter. Freeze dried dinners and inside tents by seven to hide from the bugs. Foliage/Fauna: I saw no animals. Turn left for Pinnacle Camp. Sleeping was pleasant and we were up early since we knew we had nearly seven and a half miles of road walking to start the day. Take it slow on this white-blazed trail. This is a popular trail for hiking and running, but you can still enjoy some solitude during quieter times of day. Cowans Gap State Park to PA 16, 9.6 miles, PATC Map K, Guide to the North Half of the Tuscarora Trail. You dont want to miss the Allegheny View. Admittedly, I keep on the move to keep my heart rate up, so I am not too focused on smelling the roses, that being noted, I would place this one at a 3, instead of a four, except that the trail does go along the ridge for a good mile, more if you walk some from the trail, and views can be had on both sides of the mountain as you go along the ridge for a nice distance. Keep your eyes open, it is easy to walk on by (I missed it the first time). This is a popular trail for birding, hiking, and walking, but you can still enjoy some solitude during quieter times of day. It was definitely worth a quick diversion. Highlights:Great Eastern Trail joins/leaves the TT from/on Standing Stone Trail in Cowans Gap State Park. This does give a nice experience, but then to balance my comments, the views weren't over the top. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. As far as resupply in PA, Spring Run is a good spot for resupply/town food (the hoagies from Path Valley Market . Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. Most likely, Covid restrictions in the first half of 2020 caused the shortfall of maintenance in Pennsylvania. The AT sections of my loop hike went largely as I expected, and I dont really have much to add I didnt already cover in my hike journal. Roadwalks do have the benefit that its generally easy to keep a fast pace, but they are typically also quite boring, and pavement and asphalt are much harder on the legs and knees than dirt. The club also built several shelters along the route as well. Camping: Big Mountain Shelter (39.952, -77.943), Cowans Gap State Park. The Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC) maintains and manages the approximate 250 mile Tuscarora Trail that is located in Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia. Photos from previous days were youll uploaded but you have to go to the bottom of each days post to see that days photos. Generally considered a challenging route. Bob and I did not put the flies on our tents last night since we knew it works be warm and almost no chance of rain in the HR forecast. So yeah, it was a nice day but not much to look at other than service roads for the majority of the hike. I've been thinking about planning a thru hike or section hike of the Tuscarora Trail sometime next year. It didnt help that these areas of low maintenance also coincided with some of the most rugged areas on the trail, and there were places in Pennsylvania where I struggled to maintain one mile per hour. In a few more steps, you will reach the Pinnacle Shelter. All uphill though, a shorter day and the trail guide promises a waterfall near the shelter. The information available on this site, including without limitation, overviews, opinions,directions, GPS data, photographs, (collectively "Content") may contain information relating to a hazardous activity. Va Route 698, Basore Ridge Shelter access (39.323, -78.258). Re-trace your steps to the Biby Wilderness Trail, then turn left to continue along the switchback trail until you reach the Tuscarora Trail. Tuscarora and Warner Trail Loop. But it's a gradual ascent - in fact, I never thought this hike was ever difficult. It is worth doing, please don't take my points as negative, simply trying to round out my opinion. Tuscarora Trail: Biby Trail to Pinnacle Shelter Hard 4.5 (395) High View, West Virginia Photos (538) Directions Print/PDF map Length 5.6 miElevation gain 1,322 ftRoute type Out & back Check out this 5.6-mile out-and-back trail near High View, West Virginia. In the 1990's the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club took over responsibility for reopening it. I don't think you'd have too serious of issues doing this one after a large rain, although you would definitely get your feet a bit wet in a couple of places. Also, the blue trail that leads off this initial trail/road can be located by two green blazes circling a tree, not too mention that the fire road begins to descend as per the instructions. Where it existed, water quality on the trail was wildly inconsistent. Turn right on the unblazed forestry road. The views are excellent. It looks like a zipline platform, but to be clear, there is no zipline. Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI) has provided PATC with a generous grant to raise awareness of the 250-mile Tuscarora Trail. Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), 2021 Tuscarora Trail Day Two Basor Ridge Shelter, 2021 Tuscarora Trail Day Four Pinnacle Camp.
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