A few weeks ago, with the weekend approaching, I sent a message to my little brother Zane, and also my cousin Trenton. I simply asked, who wants to come to the mountains of West Virginia for the weekend? Being the awesome people they are, they accepted, packed up, and hit the road. This was all ‘planned’ in the same day we had to drive (6.5 hours for me, 3 for them).

The campsite where we went only Zane had been to previously, so I had no clue where it was. I typed in a close by lodge ‘Alpine Lodge‘ and drove there to that location. Zane said he would meet me there at 10:15, and sure enough there he was waiting for me. We then proceeded to grab some firewood on our way in and then set up camp along the river.

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A camp fire, good conversation and odd noises you hear while in nature set the tone of the trip and we eventually settled down and slept. I love catching sunrises, so I was up at 5:45 AM pushing on the guys to get in the car and get some awesome drone footage of Seneca Rocks as the sun rose in the East. We ended up making it and being surprised at the spectacle we were able to be a part of. We then jumped in the car and headed back to camp (Trenton asleep in the back).

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A quick egg, bacon and toast breakfast fired up our engines and we set out to explore the unique rock outcropping. We arrive to the lot that was once empty, to find only one spot left. We took it, and the Adventure Jeep made its own spot. We looked in the adventure center for a bit, and then set out to climb the short ascent to the top. A quick hike later, we were up at the top, scaling rocks and exploring.

Taking a drone shot up there is extremely tough, especially when you are getting blasted by heavy sustained winds. Also, added difficulty came from the fairly narrow rock ledge we were using as our platform. I was able to launch into the sky and my Mavic Air kept stable and took some incredible footage. (Check out the video below!).

After getting the shots I set out to get, and climbing around and taking in the fresh air, we went down the mountain. Afterwards we had the park rangers give us ideas of where to go next, off we went to Dolly Sods. But first, a little non camp food at Front Porch Restaurant. I totally forgot it was my little bro’s birthday, so we celebrated and I of course bought his lunch. After we all pitched in to get a fox pelt that he had his eye on.

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With full bellies we set out to Bear Rocks and the Dolly Sods Wilderness. We we able to get some awesome footage while up on the high plateau as well. The fall colors were amazing, but with any influx of tourists it sort of detracted from the beauty. While I love that all can venture out, I wish there was a way to make it still feel secluded and truly wild. Surprising we were smiling here, the wind was blasting us and it was in the 20s, great memories!!

Zane and Trenton hiked off the main route to find our camp spot for the night, to say the least, it was amazing! We spent the evening there, telling stories and enjoying each others company. We cooked some food, relaxed in the hammocks and chilled by the campfire. The next fay we found another spot that was equally as nice, we now have a pin marking our favorite sot in the Sods.

I hope everyone has the chance to get to Seneca Rocks and the Dolly Sods Wilderness to explore and take in the wonderful sites and sounds. It is such an awesome place to explore with many areas where you feel like the only one out on the trail. The backcountry is extensive and makes for a relaxing yet challenging jaunt through nature.

Thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed!