Where does a DCUL backpacking trip begin? Does it start at the trailhead? Does it start at the Vienna (or Grosvenor) metro parking lot? Or does it start at a Sheetz in Moorefield, West Virginia?
The plan was to meet up early on Saturday morning at the Vienna metro, driving West about 3 hours to the parking lot near the top of Spruce Knob, hiking a circuitous route to a campsite near Seneca Falls. Early on Saturday morning, Vince picked up Beth and Saswat from DC and headed directly to the trailhead while Aileen and I got a ride from Darius at the Vienna metro. Abhi and Parag had told me that they’d meet us at the trailhead. Each of us made the 3+ hour drive from the DC area toward the parking lot of Spruce Knob. When Darius, Aileen, and I stopped for a restroom break at the Sheetz in Moorefield, I was delighted to realize Saswat, Beth, and Vince had serendipitously arrived there uncoordinated at the same time. Beth greeted me with “where’s your outfit?” calling back to my psychedelic neon uniform from the prior weekend’s DCUL trip to Otter Creek. After catching up with each other–some of us scarfing down treats or feeding our caffeine addictions–we got back in the cars and continued the long drive westward.
“Windy and foggy up here”
The weather forecast was predicting some light showers Saturday, to clear up in the afternoon. As our cars arrived just before noon near the top of Spruce Knob, we entered a dense fog. It reminded me of ascending the mountain into a cloud. Parag, arriving first, sent me a text, “Windy and foggy up here.” As the group coalesced in the parking lot, most of us began to layer up to fight off the damp gusts. Then we threw on our packs and headed down the trail.
Whether in an attempt to heat back up or thanks to the slight descent, the group of DCUL’ers started out at a fairly fast pace. But Saturday’s hike was scheduled for low miles (in DCUL terms in any case) so the spurts of speed were broken up by extended breaks at trail junctures.
Fourth time’s the charm?
In spite of organizing this DCUL trip, it was my first time hiking in this area. I was impressed by the beautiful trail down off the Knob and dozens of fantastic campsites I saw all day. It was all new to me. By contrast, this was Vince’s fourth time on these trails. He’d tell us things all weekend like, “I made the wrong turn three times in a row.” To be honest, I was not sure this was the greatest way Vince could have communicated his confidence in helping us to navigate but it’s a pretty forgiving trail. In fact, there’s one spot that I believe we may have taken a wrong turn. Shortly just North after the intersection of the Huckleberry Trail and Lumberjack Trail, someone called out behind me that we’d missed our turn. A group of us stood looking at a trail that headed West down off the ridge. There was a log across this route that suggested to some that it might not be the trail, but groupthink set in and we charged along that side path undeterred.
The descending trail was somewhat steep in spots. We cautiously eyed a mud wasp nest just left of us on the trail, hoping to avoid the unwanted attention of its residents. It was unclear up to that point if we were really on the Judy Springs Trail (we probably weren’t) or some side trail (we probably were) but the views of the meadow along this trail were spectacular.
This trip had horses
I shouldn’t have been surprised when we arrived at Seneca Creek and we saw horses tied up around the Judy Springs campground. Let’s just say that there had repeatedly been signs of horses on the trail we’d just come down. Nevertheless, I was delighted. It was a great day for hiking and seemed like it was a great day for riding horses, too.
Rather than heading north at the Judy Springs trail intersection, we headed south along Seneca Creek to do a loop that picked up a couple of miles of the Allegheny Mountain Trail and added some elevation to an otherwise all-day descent. As I hiked, I could hear Aileen and Darius behind me gleefully planning their next “sufferfest”. At the top of the ridge, we saw the horses again this time with their riders mounted and with a couple of dogs trailing behind.
A few of the riders stopped briefly and chatted with us saying they were with a riding club. Abhi inquired if you needed a horse to join which seemed to amuse one of them. I wonder if I might’ve reacted similarly if the horse rider had wanted to join DCUL but didn’t own a backpack? The group was very friendly and clearly having a great time.
Dog-Sitter Drama
At some point Saturday afternoon, Vince shared that his dog-sitter wasn’t responding to his messages from his Garmin inReach and he was trying to figure out a plan if she didn’t get back to him soon. He was considering heading back to his car to drive home to DC, or at the very least heading back up to Spruce Knob where there’s cell coverage he might be able to get a call out.
After our loop brought us back around to the Judy Springs area we took a break to see if he could find a clearing and get through a message to anyone else who could check up. Vince hiked slightly south to one of the Judy Springs campsites with a big fire ring where he waited for a signal while others in the group hung back. After a few minutes, Beth and I went to check on Vince. In spite of a clear view of the sky, neither Vince nor I could get our Garmins to connect to the network. Beth suggested that maybe it was because we were kind of in a “bowl” down there. Ultimately Vince made the hard decision to part ways with us and head back up the trail in the direction of Spruce Knob and the parking lot. It was kind of sad at that point losing him on the trip but I understood he needed to look out for his dog.
Seneca Falls (and so do deer?)
As we continued on North toward Seneca Falls, having lost Vince, I could sense that we were losing some daylight and the dense woods only amplified the sense of impending dusk. Nearly to Seneca Falls, we arrived at a creek crossing adjacent to a cascade. Some like Beth attempted the challenge to rock hop further upstream, while others got their feet wet. I noticed that the creek was deeper than I expected, and Saswat seemed to have identified a shallower path I will try next time.
As we waited for the group to finish crossing the creek, some of us noticed that a quirky deer was walking leisurely down the trail toward us. And then, without slowing, the deer started to adjust course to its right then leaping into Seneca Creek below. The deer briefly and awkwardly ambled/swam around. Then it stopped in the water, standing completely still with its tail extended out and back. Some wondered aloud if the deer was hurt from the fall. Others speculated that it was using Seneca Creek as its toilet. Eventually it swam up out of the river and headed off.
Only a short walk further, and we were at the spectacular Seneca Falls. We took lots of photos of the falls, including obligatory selfies then marched on toward camp.
On the map I had seen that there were three campsites north of Seneca Falls. I got a little worried when we found that the two campsites closest to the falls were already occupied with other backpacking groups, but luckily the last campsite was open. (If we hadn’t found campsites, there were many empty sites back the way we had come, but it would have meant re-crossing the Creek).
The campsite is long and skinny and we were able to find a few nice spots to set up tents and a hammock but it was a little crammed for the group of us. And although it was beginning to get really cold, we didn’t end up making a fire because the tents were so close to the fire ring.
While we prepared our dinners, we were greeted by a familiar voice from the trail. It was Vince! He was back! Apparently his dog sitter finally got a message over to his Garmin. She/he had taken care of Vince’s dog as promised but had fallen asleep. Aileen speculated that Vince’s leaving chocolate and wine as a gift for the dog-sitter may have played a role.
As people finished up their dinners, the darkness and cold drove most into their shelters for the night. A few stayed up late to debate politics.
A Chilly Sunday Morning and a Hike Back to Spruce Knob
On Sunday we woke up to temperatures in the low 40s, with a chill in the high 30s. We hit the trail at 8am and started up the northern section on our way back to Spruce Knob’s parking lot.
Hiking south on the Lumberjack trail, there’s a short side trail that leads to the wreckage of a plane crash. Only a few elected to check it out. Two markers served as solemn reminders of the lives lost.
A little further down the trail, we made the turn back onto Huckleberry trail taking the southernmost path this time since we’d taken the north on the way in. Vince said something about the southern trail being haunted to which Beth cheerfully replied, “Oh, this trail’s haunted? Cool!” Only minutes later I heard Beth screaming in the distance. Apparently Abhi thought it was a good opportunity to jump out and scare her. Once back at the parking lot, we dropped our packs, checked out the Spruce Knob observation tower and then hit the road.
Victory Meal at Cheetah B’s
On the drive home we stopped for lunch at Cheetah B’s in Petersburg. Among our musings at the table were Abhi’s desire for DCUL to buy up some land and create a kind of hiker’s refuge somewhere out in the mountains. Saswat suggested there should be massage chairs and Abhi used the AI on his phone to write the following song about it:
*(Verse 1)*
Shashwat's out on the trail, walking free,
With a pack on his back, chasing the breeze.
Climbing up mountains, touching the sky,
But he’s dreaming of a massage chair by his side.
*(Chorus)*
Oh, Shashwat, you’re hiking so high,
But you’re thinking of comfort with a sigh.
When your legs grow tired and your feet feel sore,
That massage chair’s what you're yearning for.
*(Verse 2)*
He loves the quiet of nature’s embrace,
But nothing beats that cushioned place.
After the hike, when the sun’s gone low,
It's to the massage chair he’ll go, go, go!
*(Chorus)*
Oh, Shashwat, you’re hiking so high,
But you’re thinking of comfort with a sigh.
When your legs grow tired and your feet feel sore,
That massage chair’s what you're yearning for.
*(Bridge)*
From the peaks to the valleys, he finds his way,
But deep down, he’s waiting for that chair every day.
Adventure is great, but rest is the key,
A hiker’s life balanced in harmony.
*(Chorus)*
Oh, Shashwat, you’re hiking so high,
But you’re thinking of comfort with a sigh.
When your legs grow tired and your feet feel sore,
That massage chair’s what you're yearning for.
Epilogue: 19 Miles?
This trip was scheduled with splits of 11 miles Saturday and 8 miles on Sunday based on the route I plotted on CalTopo.
But I would characterize the mileage as “disputed.” I’ve been told by some on the trip that they think the trip miles were longer than I calculated on CalTopo. As someone who occasionally struggles with innumeracy, I neither adopt or disavow the claims that this trip may have had higher mileage than advertised. Since I think we took a wrong turn at one point, essentially taking a short-cut, I could even argue we may have done fewer miles than planned.
I heard Vince remark that there are so many different paths to the Spruce Knob/Seneca Creek you could turn this hike from a 12 mile trip to a 30 mile trip. So I think that’s what I’ll stick with as official mileage: the trip was somewhere between 12 and 30 miles. – James
DC UL Backpacking 
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