Dolly Sods Wilderness - North Day Loop

Adventure begins with the drive to the trailhead itself on a winding dirt road through seemingly endless pine forest. Depending upon which side of Dolly Sods you are coming from, this may be 45 minutes or longer on unpaved roads. Finally, just before the trailhead, the road wanders uphill to a wide open, and extremely wind driven, expanse. It's mesmerizing your first time, and the hike starts here at Bear Rocks trailhead.First up is Bear Rocks Trail, a 2.4-mile easy to moderate trail that wets the appetite for what is to come. The start itself probably has the best views, but the rest of the trail is also unique. Red Creek needs to be crossed at the 1.25-mile mark and immediately after is the only difficult elevation gain of the entire route, about 250 feet in half a mile, so doable for most. There is also a section with very dense ferns and even three-foot tall ant hills.At 2.4 miles, the trail intersects with Raven Ridge Trail. Here head west by bearing right. Raven Ridge Trail is one of this Featured Hike's highlights, it crosses through several long and wide open meadows with only spotted trees to break the views of the larger surrounding mountainsides. It is a great sight to see the singletrack trail carve its way though these meadows below as you crest a hill. Before the trail terminates, it also enters dense pine groves for a great change of pace.Rocky Ridge Trail is up next and begins at mile 3.9. Bear left and head south along the ridge line. There are wide and uninterrupted views along the trail of the valley to the west, and while the trail is correctly named, the rocks are bearable along the path. There are a few side excursions you can take and look for the unmarked spur around mile 4.1 that can take you to the ridge's westernmost point for a great view of the valley.Soon, Rocky Ridge Trail takes you further east away from the ridge line through an amazing section of sandstone rock formations. These curving and pitted rocks have been carved away by the almost constant high winds along the plateau. You can see evidence of this geology at work as the stone itself is turned to sand at your feet along the trail. The more adventurous can also do some minor rock scrambling in this area, too.Dobbin Grade Trail heads east starting at mile 6. Here, bear left to descend into a valley with the route taking you along what appears to be a stream bed. Getting onto this section of trail is the only confusing portion of the hike. From mile 5.8 on, there are a few unmarked trails bearing the same direction as Dobbin Grade Trail, don't take these, as eventually you'll run across proper signage marking the correct path. This section of the hike is all downhill, which is nice, but the bottom comes at a price as it can be very wet. There are a few nice opportunities to rest in this section, especially around the 7.75-mile mark as there is much more shade than earlier sections of Dobbin Grade Trail.At 8.9 miles, the hiker has a choice to either continue through the muddy sphagnum bogs, or head north (left) onto a new section of Raven Ridge Trail. Raven Ridge heads back uphill constantly for about 1.5 miles. It's not as steep as the earlier climb, but much longer and can be exhausting if you are not used to hikes of this duration. Continuing on Dobbin Grade Trail has its own challenges however, as one truly has to navigate muddy bogs where sections of the trail disappear entirely.Assuming you choose Raven Ridge Trail, the route opens up a bit again where the hiker can enjoy more open meadow expanses that really don't get old. At the crest of the hill, bear right onto Bear Rocks Trail and re-trace your last 2.4 miles to the trailhead.

The area used to contain giant White Oak trees, almost as large as a giant Sequoia, but all were cut down during the period when logging was permitted.During WWII, the US Army used the area to practice artillery and mortar ranging. Signs warn visitors not to touch any found ordinance as it may still be live.Wikipedia has more information on this truly fascinating tract of land here.