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| By:
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Rating:  |
Date of Hike: Thursday, March 28, 2013 |
| Very nice hike. Trail is mostly well marked. Quite steep at first, but then levels out and starts down hill. Follows amazing, hand stacked stone walls that are 3.5 ft tall in some places. Spooked two deer going in and coming out. To take the cut off for the longer 5.2 mile loop, you must follow the printed directions from the web site carefully it is NOT marked on the trail. But not a problem if you miss it like I did, you just end up taking the well marked shorter loop (2.9 miles). The old homestead and spring house are great photo ops. The wild daffodils were blooming already, in what used to be the front yard.
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| By:
Albattros
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, January 06, 2013 |
| Great hike, close to western Fairfax. Enjoyed the area and how quiet it was. Only saw 3 other hikers during the my time there. The Smith House and the Spring house were fun to see and a decent half way(ish) point. Got a little off trail after the house, but made it back with little to no trouble. Would definitely hike again.
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| By:
Thomas A
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Rating:  |
Date of Hike: Thursday, August 09, 2012 |
One of my boys (9) wanted to go for a hike so we took off for this trail, as I had seen a review in a local publication.
We left the parking lot at 1:20 (only vehicle there) it was around 90 degree, I decided to bring my backpack loaded to about 25 lb for a little training and jr had a camelback w/2 ltr. I quickly picked up a stick to get rid of the spider webs and it obviously it didn't take long for the sweat to pour out, after the intersection it was quite narrow but we made it thru. Glad to see they had already cleared the trail from blowdowns. The Spring/Smith house were the highlights along with the nice stone fence and the rock/mountain formation. We ofcourse had shade the whole time and a nice breeze every now and then. We were back at the p.lot just shy of 2 hrs and we did the short/yellow trail. Didn't see anybody else and surprisingly no ticks. Look foreward to go back in the fall or winter.
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| By:
Marc and Kristen
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, August 05, 2012 |
| This is such a cool hike. I'm glad I did it once and will probably do it again at some point. The climb with switchbacks is pretty tough, but it is an easy stroll after that. We did get lost and ended up on an overgrown service road, but if you pay attention, it's not terribly hard to follow the trail markers. The buildings are totally creepy, but not as much so as the eerie, glowing, green pond next to the house. It's unlike any other body of water I've seen in NOVA. We saw a couple of people coming out as we were entering, but nobody after that. Definately offers solitude. Not the most naturally beautiful place, but a very interesting day hike.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Monday, May 28, 2012 |
This was my me and my son's first hike in the northern Virginia area. Overall we had a blast and enjoyed every bit of it. The pace was great and allowed for some great photo ops. The Smith house was more impressive in person and the sound of the rushing waster near the pond was very refreshing.
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I would highly recommend this hike. Not only was it easy to get to and close to the main highway but it was very quiet. We only saw 1 couple the whole time!
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| By:
CJ
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Rating:  |
Date of Hike: Saturday, May 26, 2012 |
| Great training hike for our Venture crew. Multiple trails with lots of intersections make it a great place to practice field navigation.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, April 21, 2012 |
| I arrived at the parking lot at 9:15 AM the lot was small, maybe 15 cars max, but only had two other cars in the lot. I did not run into any hikers on the entire trip and both cars were gone when I returned to the lot at 12:00. So, as all the other reviews stated, when you reach 0.1 mile there is a four-way intersection with a trail named John Trail directly ahead uphill you want to make a left however there is a down tree over the path it&rsquos hard to see. On the plus side when you see the other trail 10 feet past the left turn you will realize that this is the four-way intersection and just look for the big down tree to climb over. Also I added a part after climbing over the down tree at the four-way intersection in .2 miles they say make a right if you make a left and head down for 10 minutes you come to a very nice overlook. Now this is no SNP overlook but for the area it&rsquos very nice. Then I back tracked back to the original path. When I was done my GPS said it was just less than 6 miles with the added part I did and walking all around the Smith house and going down to the spring house. I also had to pick 7 ticks off my legs and shoes.
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| By:
Rachel H
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Monday, March 05, 2012 |
| This is a nice hike to have up your sleeve, being easy to complete in a short afternoon and so close to the DC area. The views aren't nearly as spectacular as other nearby hikes, but the old homes and long stretches of stone fences certainly hold some appeal. We wished we'd paid closer attention to other reviewers, because we were fooled by the downed trees hiding a left turn, though with so many interconnecting trails it wasn't difficult to get back on the right path.
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| By:
Strider
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, January 15, 2012 |
| I was initially concerned the "Fire Roads" on this route would be similar to the road on the back of Old Rag and just be a boring walk in the woods. However, they're essentially just relatively smooth trails wide enough for a 4x4 to get through.
This is a nice quiet hike once you get past people's yards at the parking lot. There are a lot of intersections so I'd recommend bringing a map to help steer clear of the private property surrounding this area.
There are a lot of small creeks that were quite easy to cross. Some sections of the trail were muddy from runoff.
The Smith House area is cool if you like creepy, delapidated houses. The tree in front of the house even has barren claw like branches this time of year. It made for some good pictures.
There are no spectacular views, but there are a few nice ones through the trees after they've shed their leaves.
I parked at about 8:30 a.m. and was the only car in the lot. When I got back to the lot at 10:50 there was one other vehicle parked there. I didn't see another human the entire hike which was a really nice change from NoVa's often crowded trails.
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| By:
HeidiW
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, January 08, 2012 |
| This was a nice hike. As other hikers have remarked, the first .5 miles is the toughest. No spectacular views, LOTS of streams and run offs...make sure you wear waterproof shoes. And definitely print out the directions from this site...even though we had them, we still missed the left turn due to a fallen tree and ended up on private property. (added about a mile and a half to our hike)
The stone walls are really cool, as well as the two abandoned structures.
Only one car in the lot when we arrived and one when we left. Passed one other person, so solitude ranking is right on.
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| By:
Reed
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, January 07, 2012 |
| Once we got to the place, it was a very nice hike. My wife and I went with two young girls (11 and 13) and none of us had any problems with completing the longer 5.2 mile loop. The first .4 miles is tough uphill but it flattens out after that and is a very pleasant hike. We did miss the left turn at the stone wall once off the marked trail and ended up going out onto private property but we eventually made it back to the trails and proceeded to complete the rest of the marked yellow trail. Took us about 2 and a half hours and with the detours, we covered about 6 miles. I recommend stopping at Molly's Irish Pub in Warrenton after the hike and enjoying their good food and great selection of beverages.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, November 05, 2011 |
The hike was very pleasant and went as described with the following observations:
1. I was thankful for the map since the left turn at the four way intersection could have easily been missed with all the fallen trees blocking the way.
2. Early November is most likely not the best time to enjoy the solitude of Wildcat Mountain. There were quite a few people out given that it was a beautiful fall day just past peak color and when you add to that the staccato of not so distant gunfire from all the hunters and the crunch of leaves underfoot it just didn't seem as remote as it could have.
3. Some of the hunters were either in or extremely close to the conservancy boundaries. I definitely recommend high visibility colors when hiking this time of year.
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| By:
Greg
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, November 05, 2011 |
| While there are no views to speak of, the topography is interesting. There was one large tree down across the trail at an intersection, which nearly caused us to miss the turn. It was deer season and we met one hunter right there on the path on conservancy land. He said that there were several more hunters deeper into the 'park.' A little unnerving and made me wish I wasn't wearing solely earth tones. But a very nice short hike.
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| By:
JV
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, October 23, 2011 |
| This should be called the Blair Witch Project hike. This is nice hike which flont-loads the climbing right at the beginning. Then its just a stroll in the woods which, on a clear day in October under the yellowing beach trees, was very pleasant. But then you come to the house which I swear was the inspiration for the Blair Witch Project. A civil war era home in a clearing in the middle of nowhere, so remote it hasn't even been vadalized (much) and giving me chills even at high noon on a beautiful day. There is a smaller storage building nearby that was also interesting, if not as creepy.
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| By:
Dad-and-daughter hike
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Monday, July 04, 2011 |
| Solitary is almost right. My daughter and I were the only humans on this hike, but we were surprised at about 8:15 AM when taking a break approximately 1 mile into the hike. We stopped to rest and eat trail mix, then heard rustling in the undergrowth, and a very big black bear appeared not 30 feet from us! We froze, and then it must have seen us move slightly because it turned tail and ran off in a hurry. What an excellent experience! As for the hike, the first slope is steep but this is mainly a pleasant walk through the woods. The best part is that it is about 35 minutes from home, unlike the more difficult (but enjoyable) hikes that are farther away.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, January 09, 2011 |
| While you won't find any outstanding views, this is a gentle (for the most part), quiet hike in the woods. I hiked this in the winter and enjoyed the experience,
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| By:
N & L
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, October 23, 2010 |
| It was a brisk perfect autumn day, around 65 degrees. We arrived at the parking lot at noon, and completed the 5.2 mile long hike with bumping into only 1 other couple. The first 0.4 mi ascent was the most work but after that was a moderate hike. Foliage was at its golden best, woodpeckers, 2 snakes, a little frog, and moths/butterflies abundant! We followed the hiking directions which were good, and the trails were marked well until we got to the Enon Church Trail turn. We missed that turn (be sure to turn LEFT at the trail sign, then veer right) which made us go off course for about a mile. We read in the other reviews some people did get lost for a few hours, and we can see why. But nevertheless, we got back on track and ended our hike in 3 hours. If you want solitude and tranquility, this is the hike for you.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Friday, September 03, 2010 |
| I agree on a lot of things in prior reviews on this one: 1) You will need to print out a map, I wanted an extra to go along with a map and directions I had from a book at the trailhead but there were none. 2) I did get lost for 2 1/2 hours more than planned but that's okay, it was a pleasant day that wasn't too hot 3) The pond and streams mentioned were completely dry so at times it was hard to discern exactly where I was, but I always get lost!
The hills are steep at times and feel I got a pretty good workout, and I'm in good shape. I hiked the entire thing, including all of the side trails and loops inbetween. There was not another human being on the entire mountain the whole time I was there! Just the solitude I needed and was my whole purpose for choosing this mountain. Lots of scat, of which was either deer or bear, not sure and the only annoyance I had the entire time was about every 50 feet or so I was running into spider webs which I constantly had to wipe off all afternoon (little black and white spiders sometimes too). Interesting... This definately is a trail for the fall or winter, as I didn't see any views described because of the time of year it is. The descent I found more challenging than the initial cilmb. All in all a pleasant day that left me with a good appetitle when I was done.
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| By:
Corrinn
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Rating:  |
Date of Hike: Wednesday, September 01, 2010 |
This place wasn't that impressive. The only interesting thing about was the Spring house and the Smith house. Other than that, you're pretty much wandering around in the woods for three hours.If you're a local and have nothing better to do, then you should check it out. Other than that, don't even bother. It's a decent workout, but you're not going to see anything worthwhile.
The trails, other than the "preferred route", are not marked very well. On our way back from the Smith house, we somehow took a wrong turn and got lost in the north part for two hours (even with a map and a compass!). It was pretty bad. There were trails that just stopped and gates that didn't exist on the map (so we thought we would be close, but we were actually waaay off). We passed a sign that said "John's Trail" but it was no help because it wasn't on the map! So if you do go, print out the instructions listed above. You'll actually need them. Since it's also not maintained regularly, it's suggested that you print out a map at home (which we did) because there might not be any at the bottom.
Honestly, it's just boring. There are plenty of other places to go hiking in the NOVA area, which offer better, well, everything. You won't see anybody out there, but you won't see anything either. Definitely not worth the chigger infestation I had to endure afterward. It's a nice way to kill some time but that's about it.
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| By:
mdyedc
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, August 01, 2010 |
Enjoyed this hike, although at this time of year it was completely enclosed in leaf cover with no views to speak of. It was nice to be out in the cool forest, but there were times when you felt you were just mindlessly following rabbit trails around with no purpose. We did this with moderate exertion in a little over two hours. There were no difficult rock scrambles or anything, but in places it was steep enough that it would have been challenging for kids who are not regular hikers, or anyone who is looking for just a nice stroll in the woods. We did the 5.2 mile loop, which we manually traced on the map before leaving home, and also followed the step-by-step directions to the letter. There were a couple of times when there were debates about which way to go, but we ended up having no wrong turns. One of the first intersections after leaving the yellow marked trail was a little hard to discern because the intersecting trail on the left was somewhat overgrown, so watch out for that. We saw one other small group of hikers and a small frog.
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| By:
Andrew, Liz and Katie
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Tuesday, July 27, 2010 |
| The three of us are in our mid twenties and are in pretty good shape. This was a nice afternoon hike that we did in three hours, including a fifteen minute break. We did the whole circuit which takes you off the trail marked with yellow arrows (yellow on map too) - therefore it was important that we carried a map printed from this site with us!
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Tuesday, June 22, 2010 |
| First, I'm 40 and in pretty good shape (military), my wife is 45 and in decent shape, and we were joined by our youngest son (8 years old). The hike, as probably suspected, was a breeze for our son and he had a really good time. It was a little more challenging for me, and by the end of the hike (in 92+ degree weather) I was pretty well soaked. My wife was pretty tired, and she had taken a small spill on the way down the mountain, but was not hurt or bruised. The steep initial climb, that we thought would be a blessing coming down, was actually seemed more difficult to descend. The Smith House and Spring House were still intact, but the pond and creeks were entirely dry. All in all, it was a very good hike, we saw absolutely no one else on the trails, or even on the road approaching the trails.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, March 07, 2010 |
| This was a really nice hike with a great bunch of old and new friends. The hike itself was short but had a couple of good climbs. The weather was perfect with sunshine and blue blue skies. After the hike, we were lucky to find Claire's at the Depot in Warrenton (http://www.clairesrestaurant.com/). What a great restaurant. One of the nicest I have been to in quite a while. It is open on Sundays from 10:30-2:00. Reservations are recommended but we arrived without having made one. The maitre d' went out of his way to arrange a table to sit the 8 of us. The service was wonderful. The staff had a great attitude. The food was wonderful. I would hike Wildcat Mountain again just to have an excuse to return to Claire's.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, December 12, 2009 |
| Great hike for this time of year. No leaves on the trees so you can see some of the views, plus the ground is frozen rather than muddy. I can image parts of this trail must get pretty soppy in the spring and early fall. Most of the trails are rather wide or are fire roads with the exception of the first and last sections. The map was extremely helpful to avoid wandering onto private property since some of the trails are not marked. Worth noting, no dogs allowed. I didn't realize until AFTER the hike, but I saw one other person with a dog so I'm guessing it's not strictly enforced.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, August 22, 2009 |
| I chose to do this hike because it wasn't too far from Northern VA and I was looking forward to seclusion. This hike was just not fun. The two things going for the hike were the uphill climb at the beginning of the hike and the old houses. The trail was wide but obviously not used. Spider webs were everywhere! I ended up carrying a stick with me to swat them out of the way. Oh and for being a wildlife sanctuary, I saw absolutely no wildlife, not even a squirrel. I would not go here again.
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| By:
Patrick
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, August 16, 2009 |
| We did an afternoon/evening hike on this hot August day. The map and directions on this site are essential as there are turns and intersecting trails. Tall grasses encroach the trail and we picked up a bad case of chigger bites.
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| By:
Melissa Jean
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Tuesday, June 16, 2009 |
| Went hiking with my sibs and Dad. Enjoyed the day. Saw a turtle and a snake skin in a tree. Many ticks. Even so it was a great day. The walk wasn't tough and was a good distance for a bunch of couch potatoes. It took about two and a half hours with several fig newton breaks. No views at all but the spring and Smith houses were nice. The ground was soft and damp and a nice change from foot hurting rock, Won't race back but am glad I went. Kudos to the Conservancy!
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, April 18, 2009 |
I really enjoyed this hike, more than I thought I would. It was just tough enough to make me sweat but not too much to make me not enjoy the time out. At just an hour from where I live, it is perfect. I would recommend this to anyone in NOVA/DC area. You can't beat the proximity that goes along with the remoteness
There are some good views from this hike but nothing spectacular and most likely very little when the leaves are on the trees. There are a lot of interesting stone outcroppings and some creeks that needed crossing but I stayed dry.
There are maybe a half a dozen stone walls along the hike that used to serve as boundaries for a bunch of small farms that existed in the area during the 18th and 19th centuries. You'll also come across both the small "Spring House" and the Smith house which is an old farm house that they have maintained. I didn't know what the rules were for the house so I didn't explore it.
Wildcat Mountain is a great place to be out in nature. I hiked this on a beautiful Saturday and only ran into a couple of people.
The main Wildcat Trail is only about 2.2 miles but you can go off on the longer loop that is recommended and you will enjoy it. The whole area is a labrynth of trails so you could potentially create your own hike.
Like any time you go out into the woods, you should always bring a map. It amazes me how many people I've seen on here who complain about the "confusing" trails at various hikes and how they got lost. Always always always have a map with you. While most of the trails in this area are decently marked, some intersections were not either because the sign had fallen down or whatever. If you have a map, you'll do alright.
I can't really say anything bad about this hike. Some might not like it because it doesn't have all that many great views or because its not strenuous. I will definitely make this one of my regular hikes!
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, March 21, 2009 |
Volunteer Preserve Visitation Committee Members NEEDED at Wildcat Mountain!
THE NATURE CONSERVANCY
We need your eyes, ears and muscles! With many preserves to manage around the Commonwealth, it's not always possible to monitor them as often as we'd like. Our goal is to form volunteer visitation committees at our public access preserves to conduct routine surveys of the preserve and note visitor activities. Committee members will also help to remove debris, fallen branches or overgrown vegetation from trails as needed with hand tools. We are looking for long-term committed people to monitor between 4 and 6 times a year.
Please contact Jennifer Rich, volunteer coordinator, at (434) 951-0572 or jrich@tnc.org to receive further information about these committees.
New positions are available at: Wildcat Mountain Preserve.
Positions also available at: Fortune's Cove Preserve (Nelson County), Alexander Berger Preserve (Spotsylvania County), Fraser Preserve (Fairfax County) and Bottom Creek Gorge Preserve (Montgomery County), Voorhees Preserve (Westmoreland County) and Falls Ridge Preserve (Montgomery County).
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, February 08, 2009 |
| Since today was the 2nd day in a row that the temp was in the upper 60's in Feb, we decided it was time to finally venture out and see what VA had to offer. We just moved here in December, so our palate was clean with nothing to compare it to when it came to this hike. Overall, we had a really great time. The trail is very solitude for the most part. Although we saw about 8 or 10 cars at the parking lot when we got there, we only passed maybe a handful of people at best, all of which were extremely friendly and nice. It could have been that the snow was still melting on the mountain, but man was it muddy! Be prepared to get dirty if you go on this hike anytime after it rains, it just seemed like there were many spots that water just didn't drain of the trail at all. We did the 2.9 mile hike probably in around 2 hours with plenty of time to take in some of the sights. Look forward to trying this one out again on a little bit drier day!
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| By:
Dave
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, November 29, 2008 |
| Hiked Wildcat mountain with my nine year old son, Sam, on a cool Saturday afternoon. Was disappointed by the views, but the solitude was amazing. We saw only four other hikers during the entire hike. Completed the 5.2 miles in just over two hours.
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| By:
Vamorley
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Monday, October 13, 2008 |
| Excellent hike for a family, while the inital ascent is pretty steep the switch backs helped (espcially if you have little one in a backback) and once on top of the ridge it was pretty moderate hike. Our kids were able to really stretch their legs and explore some interesting rock formations, also loved idea of hiking with "wildcats". Caution remains on the ticks noted by previous reviewer, so don't forget the bug spray. We certainly will consider this hike again and will look froward to exploring some of the other trail options as we stayed to the main loop described on the site.
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| By:
Meesh
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, July 05, 2008 |
| High on marks for solitude--never saw anyone else; low marks on directions for longer route; TAKE MAP as none were available at trailhead; Because area is not used much--some overgrowth must have obscured view of a stone wall and we made an errror in a turn--ended up adding a great deal of time/distance to planned hike--looped around same area more than once to try and reconnect with original trail--hit private property etc.. as there are many addtional trails that are not marked. On a positive note-very peaceful and beautiful--easy walking. Saw birds, squirrel, chipmunk and LOTS of ticks.
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| By:
jfg
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, June 22, 2008 |
| Great hike! We were the only ones on the trail except for the BEAR! The first 0.4 miles were a bit of a hike but we did 2.4 miles straight up on Hazel Mt.'s Broad Hill trail the week before so Wildcat seemed easy. The directions for the 5 mile hike were great. We will do this again I sure.
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| By:
Soloban
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, May 25, 2008 |
Great day for a hike! Weather was perfect and hike was just the right distance from the NoVA area. The trails were good once you got up on top of the hill. I would highly suggest bringing along a GPS with the trail loaded onto it or a map. There are numerous trails criss-crossing which can get confusing even with a GPS.
For those geocachers out there, there are at least two caches right off the trail.
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| By:
Bohnfire
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, February 24, 2008 |
No complaints with this hike. If you're looking for a relaxing stroll through the woods with limited physical exertion Wildcat Mountain is the hike for you. The hike does seem to have grown in popularity however following its Hiking Upward debut. We were excited over the 6 for solitude, but found the parking lot full. We hiked in the opposite direction from the suggested route to avoid overtaking the groups in front of us.
Word the the wise- If you're looking for a dog friendly hike, as we were, please note that dogs are not allowed on the trial. We had no choice but to bring our dog along on the hike, but we kept the leash handy. We encountered others on the trial who faced the same predicament- after an hour long drive from DC we could not leave the dog in the car.
All of that aside, Wildcat Mountain is a lovely hike.
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| By:
martz
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, February 09, 2008 |
| We thought this hike was great. We printed off the directions and did the 5.2 mile loop. The directions were very clear and the trails well marked. We saw no one on the hike - agreeing with the 6 rating of solitude. The beginning of the hike was up hill but after that the trail was pretty flat. Our favorite part was exploring the Smith & Spring houses!
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, February 03, 2008 |
I did this hike on a beautiful early super bowl Sunday early afternoon. I met a couple who one on there way up to fix a sign that apparently had fallen. I believe they were from the Nature Conservancy group. The initial hike is all up hill and you will get quite a work out. If you doing the shorter 2.9 hike the trail is very well marked. Probably one of the best I been on. The longer hike you will need to rely on the information given on this web site. I really enjoyed this hike. I did get lost when I took the longer route. As I headed up from the four way intersection I ran into a father and son who was looking for the turn-off for the John Trail. He did not have a map and I did so we decide to look for it together. Well after about 45 minutes of hiking around up there we decide to back track and head back. Eventually we found are way to Smith and Spring house and parted ways. I later figured out that I did not make a left at the four way intersections instead I went straight. Overall it was a very nice hike and highly recommended it. And yes it does deserve a  for solitude. Another plus is that it is on 50 minutes from the Northern Virginia Area.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, January 26, 2008 |
| Did this one with Mr. and Mrs. Hiking Upward. Overall it is a nice hike that is high on solitude. The initial ascent of 500 feet happens over a mere 0.5 miles so your heart is pumping pretty good by the time you reach the top. The rest of the E.G. is easy to handle as you hike the gradual grades of the old woods roads. You can get ocassional views of what we think are Little and Big Cobbler Mountains in the first valley to the west.
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| By:
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Rating: |
Date of Hike: Monday, August 19, 1912 |
Sunday Morning.
Solitude.
It certainly deserves the high rating of 6. Myself and 2 co-hikers arrived by 1 car at 09:35 AM. There were O cars parked in the lot. After hiking for 3.78 hrs and seeing 0 hikers, we left the lot at 01:45 PM. There were no other cars in the lot. Last week, I hiked at another trail and I marveled at how I hiked for over 2 hrs without seeing another hiker. Today's experience exceeded that.
Wildlife
Maybe it was the drought or the time of the year, but I really expected to see and hear more sounds and movement. On the contrary, it was mostly insects, spiders stringing webs across the paths, an occasional butterfly, and a surprise as we started the last 0.4 miles to the parking lot, 2 turtles. The bird sounds were heard only in a few areas and they were low in intensity.
Contrast this to last week's Cacapon State Park, the woods there seemed alive. Deer, chipmunks, squirrels etc. I didn't experience this on today's hike.
Sounds
Always checking and comparing sound. In the valley, my unofficial measurement was 38 dbls. That's a low reading and compares favorably to other quiet trails. Interestingly, sounds of some grass cutting equipment in the area followed us as we started the hike on the initial 0.4 miles. A reading there fluctuated between 55-60 dbls. It ended as we started on the ridge.
Signs
The warnings here are correct. You have to be very careful. It would be nice to have better signs, but I can appreciate there may be restrictions that apply.
Views
Missed good panoramic views but I plan to return in winter to appreciate better views.
Cleanliness
Clean. No trash
Compliments to the Nature Conservancy for overlooking the property and to the creators of this website. Without it, I'm not sure I would have found this nice hiking trail.
Personal experience. Weekly HIker, > 100 miles so far in 2012.
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