One of the cool things about it being so high is that the plants are not like those you’d see in nearby lower elevations. According to a sign I read, there was “…flag-formed red spruce, heath barrens, and wildflowers typical of a more-northern climate.” There’s a nearby place — the Dolly Sods Wilderness — I’d visited in 2016, which is also within the Monongahela National Forest. If you’d like to read more about the flora and fauna of the region, please visit that post. Ironically, I took that trip after accepting the job offer from the employer that just laid me off.
Not only is it beautiful in that area, it’s usually cooler, and the roads are pretty awesome, too. Win-win, right?
Lucky for me, it was open!
I realize 4,863 feet (~1,482 meters) isn’t, like, the highest mountain on the planet, or even in North America, but, relatively speaking, it’s a nice-sized hill. And, most important, I REALLY enjoyed getting there and being there, finally. Plus, I was not at all rushed, so I got to enjoy the scenery and capture some pics to share here.
The road to and from Spruce Knob is way nicer than the road to and from Dolly Sods.
After taking my good, sweet time enjoying the place, I continued west toward Buckhannon. It actually started getting dark sooner than I anticipated, so I stopped in Elkins, West Virginia for the night. The bugs get really big at night in the mountains, not to mention the fact that the deer and bears tend to wander around a bit, too.
All in all, it was a good first day.