Mount Rogers -- October 25, 2003
At 3:15 am, Bill Urbanski (WCU) and Ed Urbanski (EEU) met me at the Charlotte, North Carolina Amtrak station. We drove to Grayson Highlands State Park to climb Mount Rogers. We arrived just before dawn on a beautiful day, with temperatures in the high thirties. When we arrived at the Massie Gap parking lot it was still dark, and we had to search a bit to find the trailhead. In the daylight hours, you can't miss it.
Mount Rogers is a nice hike. You should see a lot of wild ponies along the way. They were friendly, but for the most part, kept their distance. We met a lot of campers on the way up and a lot of hikers on the way down. The views along the trail are excellent. The last half mile or so goes from open field into forest. There is no view from the summit.
Steve Urbanski, November 11, 2003
001 Sunrise on the
Rhododendron trail
002 Approaching one of the
many wild
ponies on the trail
003 SKU looking for a ride up to
the summit
004 SKU registering for the
hike
005 The trail register box
006 Welcome to Mount Rogers
National Forrest
007 Virginia State Parks
boundary marker
008 Our friend Ricky camping
along the trail
009 The shortest 1/4 mile on
the trail
010 Sign post about a mile
from the trailhead
011 EEU at the second
registry box
012 The register
013 EEU encounters another
wild pony
014 The ponies are friendly,
but don't feed them
015 The Hilburn Ridge spur
Main trail (easier) right
Hilburn Ridge (harder) left
016 Sunrise along the trail
017 Hiking along the trail
about 1.5 miles
from the trailhead
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