Another new adventure and this time we are in West Virginia! West Virginia has so many amazing places I am actually surprised we’ve only been to one so far (Coopers Rock), but we will be checking two more destinations off the list on this weekend trip! Kayla had told me about Seneca Rocks and the amazing view from top so we had to check it out and experience it together.
Seneca Rocks is a natural formation of Tuscarora Sandstone that rises 900 feet above Seneca creek. Even if you don’t plan to hike to the top it is quite the sight to see from the ground. This is not something you would expect to see in West Virginia, but I think that is what makes it so special. One thing that is really interesting about Seneca Rocks is that during World War II the U.S. Army trained soldiers here in low-altitude mountain operations. Seneca Rocks was selected as it was
Getting to Seneca Rocks
Seneca Rocks is located in Pendleton County, West Virginia and can easily be found by just putting in Seneca Rocks into Google Maps. If you are planning to take the trail to the top of Seneca Rocks you are going to want to park in the trail head parking lot, which has GPS coordinates of 38.835871, -79.372562. We drove from Pittsburgh so it took us about 3 and a half hours. Our directions took us down U.S. Route 33, which is one of the most beautiful drives I’ve ever been on. If you have a chance to drive on this road definitely do it!
Exploring Seneca Rocks
You’ll find the Seneca Rocks trail head right off the parking lot. The total hike is around 3-miles total (up and back). You will go up about 900 feet in elevation so be prepared for that. You definitely want comfortable shoes, water, and likely bug spray (more on that in a bit). There are plenty of spots along the trail to rest, we ended up stopping a few times on the way up. I would say it should take you around 40 minutes to an hour to make it to the top.
Once you make it to the top there is a pretty large observation deck. It is the perfect place to take photos of the scenery and just rest after the hike. There are actually benches built into the deck. It can get crowded though, most people went up took there photos and moved along so other could get photos.
Now you do have the option to actually climb higher. PLEASE DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK! There is a large sign that warns that 15 people have died at Seneca Rocks since 1971. If you are not OK with heights or your climbing ability I would not climb up to the top. We did however see many people up at the top so we decided to go for it. The climb up was not all that hard, even with a backpack full of gear and a camera in one hand. At the top you can relax, Kayla and I actually packed a lunch and enjoyed it at the top. When we were there, there was a lot of wasps on the rocks, luckily we had bug spray with us, which kept them away for the most part.
After relaxing on what I call the “easy” section of the rocks Kayla actually wanted to adventure out further. I do not like heights so I elected to stay put, but Kayla made it all the way to the end. This is scary to watch, but she said the climb was very easy. I could only imagine the view she had from over there.
For those who are really adventurous you can actually climb the face of Seneca Rocks. There are many different guided rock climbing adventures and we saw many different climbers when we were there.
After spending over an hour at the top of Seneca Rocks we made our way back down. Our next adventure was a little north so we booked an Airbnb in Davis, West Virginia. We absolutely fell in love with this little town and our Airbnb. Our Airbnb was called Doc’s Guesthouse and is absolutely perfect for a couple. On top of that it is extremely affordable! We snuggled up in our Airbnb and reflected on what an amazing day we had adventuring together.
Things to know About Seneca Rocks
– Be sure to wear comfortable shoes and be prepared for the 900ft increase in elevation.
– If you plan to go up on the rocks, do so at your own risk! 15 people have died here since 1971.
– There were quite a lot of wasps up on the rocks, bring bug spray!
– Take a ride on U.S. Route 33, it is absolutely beautiful
– There are some amazing Airbnb’s in both Davis and Thomas West Virginia
– Sign-up for Airbnb (if you haven’t already!) with our link and get $40 off your first adventure! http://bit.ly/321ZxSs
– The airbnb we stayed at is listed here.
Seneca Rocks Photo Gallery
