Blue Ridge Country September/October 2022 - 15

THE GOOD WALK
WHEN YOU
GO
THE WALK: Moderate four-mile trek
beside the lake and into the forest of
Stonewall Jackson Resort State Park.
GETTING THERE: Take I-79 Exit 91
(a few miles south of Weston), drive
US 19 South for 2.7 miles and turn left
into the resort park.
MORE INFORMATION: A trail
map is available from the park's
contact station or on stonewallresort.
com/i/downloads/Get_Outside_
Guide.pdf
.
STONEWALL RESORT FACEBOOK
The rewards continued for us as the day moved on,
and we turned off the Lakeside Nature Trail to gradually
rise amidst the tall and straight trunks of oak and poplar
trees. At irregular intervals along the Cairns Trail, which
follows the hillside's contours, were odd shaped piles of
rock-obviously stacked by human hands.
Consulting the descriptions on the trail map we had
obtained at the park's contact station, we learned that
" approximately 200 cairns have been identified in the
park. Some believe they were created by Native Americans,
while others feel they had some purpose for the European
descendents in the area. " These are definitely not
the trail-marking cairns I've followed on pathways that
rise above treeline, so I hope someone is conducting further
research to solve this interesting mystery.
Descending on the Autumn Laurel Brooke Trail's
switchbacks to turn left on the Chipmunk Point Hike
(hike is its official name, not trail) we came to the point's
small sandy beach. Here we watched an osprey swoop
from the sky moments before motor boaters and jet skiers
zoomed by us at such high rates of speed that the
wake they created washed onto the shore we were standing
upon.
As seemed fitting for the day, there was one more major
reward waiting for us after we returned to the lodge via
the Lakeside Nature Trail: A lunch of crab rangoons and
focaccia bread pizzas accompanied by cold drafts fresh
from the tap. We spent the time discussing what route we
planned on taking tomorrow on the resort park's other
pathways.
On that second day, we again rose early, walked the
Lakeside Nature Trail on Carrion Bay's southern side
(more shaded and lush than its northern counterpart)
and, this time, turned left onto the Cairns Trail, rising
ABOVE LEFT: West Virginia's Stonewall Resort State Park is anchored by
2,630-acre Stonewall Jackson Lake.
ABOVE: An early-day start on the lake-side walk can often offer golden light
filtered through the mist off of the water.
steeply to Hevener's Orchard Trail. A right turn would
have gone close to the golf course, but would necessitate
walking the park road back to the lodge. We took the left
option and descended through a forest of black walnut
trees and maiden hair ferns to meet up with the Lakeside
Nature Trail and return to the lodge-having enjoyed another
four-mile outing.
Find out more about Leonard's walking and hiking adventures
at www.habitualhiker.com.
SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2022 15
http://www.habitualhiker.com
Blue Ridge Country September/October 2022

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