The state of West Virginia is a place where you will find so many beautiful natural wonders from waterfalls, to stunning mountains, forests and so much more. One such stunning location in West Virginia is Dolly Sods Wilderness. In simple words, it is also called Dolly Sods. Dolly Sods is in the Allegheny Mountains and is part of Monongahela National Forest. In German, Sods means the meadow on top of the mountain and the name came from the German Family named Dahles who used to live and did some small-scale agriculture there. When in Tucker County, West Virginia this wilderness is a must-do.
If you love hiking, there are a ton of trails in Dolly Sods. Dolly Sods complete loop is around 22.5 miles and therefore some people even camp out there, but the views that you get once you reach your point are worth a hike. We didn’t do a loop but I heard that it is great. Some of the trails are Beaver Dam trail, Bear Rocks trail, Red Creek trail, and the list goes on. If you’re not comfortable with hiking, don’t worry there is this point called Bear Rocks Preserve. This is located on the ridge crest and is somewhat the last point on the Dolly Sods Wilderness map. Here the road ends. You can park your car and just within a short walk you will witness some mesmerizing vistas of the mountains. We did Bear Rocks Preserve and I must say it was such a beautiful and incredible experience. I am glad that we did it. This point is even popular for wedding photoshoots. On Bear Rocks Preserve, you will find so many quartz and sandstones on which you can stand and click photos, flagged trees on one side, and if you’re lucky you can even spot Golden eagles.
It is a perfect spot if you love to click pictures. When it comes to season, we went in the summer season but I would recommend you to visit in fall because I heard that fall colors over here are just incredible. To get a proper view of the mountains you have to climb some rocks, so I would recommend you to carry a hiking stick with you. Apart from beautiful views on one side this plateau region also offers some beautiful trees, shrubs such as blueberries and cranberries, and flowers such as Mountain Laurel and so many more on another side. This spot is even popular to watch the sunrise. The only thing which disappointed us was that the route which we took to reach Bear Rocks Preserve was graveled and it took us around 1 hour to cover 20 miles.
After exploring the place and mind capturing some views, you can head to Davis which is a nearby town to Dolly Sods. Here you can get to try a variety of foods. I have mentioned some details about town Davis in my previous blog. Our overall experience was great. If I again get a chance to visit, I will surely go there in fall season to see some beautiful colors.
