Seneca Rocks | |
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Location | Pendleton County, West Virginia |
Nearest city | Seneca Rocks, West Virginia |
Range | Appalachians |
Coordinates | 38°50′05″N79°21′58″W / 38.83472°N 79.36611°W |
Climbing type | traditional crag |
Height | 900 feet above stream level [1] |
Pitches | 4 |
Ratings | 5.0-5.13 with most routes in 5.7-5.11 range |
Grades | I and II |
Rock type | Tuscarora quartzite |
Quantity of rock | months worth (over 375 routes) |
Development | well developed |
Cliff aspect | east and west |
Season | spring to fall |
Ownership | National Forest |
Camping | Seneca Shadows [2] & 2 private campsites in town (all paid) |
Classic climbs |
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Stars |
Seneca Rocks is a large crag and local landmark in Pendleton County in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia, United States. The south peak is the only peak inaccessible except by technical rock climbing techniques on the East Coast of the United States. One of the best-known scenic attractions in West Virginia, the sheer rock faces are a popular challenge for rock climbers.
Seneca Rocks is easily visible from, and accessible by way of, West Virginia Route 28, West Virginia Route 55 and U.S. Route 33 in the Spruce Knob–Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area of the Monongahela National Forest. The three highways converge in the hamlet of Seneca Rocks, which is named for the cliffs nearby.
Seneca Rocks is at the north end of the River Knobs, which contain several other similar "razorback" ridges or "fins" such as Judy Rocks and Nelson Rocks, all on the western flank of North Fork Mountain. Seneca Rocks is a prominent and visually striking formation rising nearly 900 feet above the confluence of Seneca Creek with the North Fork of the South Branch of the Potomac River. It overlooks the community of Seneca Rocks, formerly known as "Mouth of Seneca". The Rocks consist of a North and a South Peak, with a central notch between. Formerly, a prominent pinnacle – "the Gendarme" – occupied the notch.
The west flank of the Wills Mountain Anticline in the area of Seneca Rocks consists of geological strata that have been upended and rotated 90 degrees to form the impressive crag as well as other prominent outcroppings of the erosion-resistant white/gray Tuscarora quartzite, including nearby Champe Rocks. The Anticline is a gigantic upward bulge formed more than 200 million years ago at the end of the Paleozoic Era. [3] The quartzite is approximately 250 feet thick here, located primarily on exposed ridges as caprock or exposed crags. The rock is composed of fine grains of sand that were laid down in the Silurian Period some 440 million years ago, in an extensive sand shoal at the edge of the ancient Iapetus Ocean. Eons of geologic activity followed, as the ocean slowly closed and the underlying rock uplifted and folded. Millions of years of erosion stripped away the overlying rock and left remnants of the arching folds in the form of these landmark outcrops.
Evidence suggests that the Native Americans of the Archaic Period may have camped frequently at the mouth of nearby Seneca Creek at the foot of the Rocks. The famous Great Indian Warpath, known locally as the "Seneca Trail", followed the Potomac River, allowing the Algonquian, Tuscarora, and Seneca nations to transit the area for purposes of trade and war. Excavation for the building of the present Seneca Rocks Visitor Center uncovered evidence of two villages, [4] the more recent of which thrived about 700 years ago. About a dozen dwellings were found.[ citation needed ]
The first European visitors to see the region were surveyors who passed through around 1746, and the first settlers arrived at Mouth of Seneca fifteen years later. At that time, West Virginia (or western Virginia as it was then) was the edge of the great wilderness. The Rocks were visited and sketched by the well-known writer and magazine illustrator David Hunter Strother (known by his pseudonym "Porte Crayon") around 1853. His sketches were reworked and published two decades later as a popular wood engraving in an 1872 issue of Harpers New Monthly Magazine . (see image left).
It is unknown who the first person was to climb Seneca Rocks. Undoubtedly Native Americans scaled the rocks prior to European settlers reaching the area, but there is no record of their ascents. The historic ascent of Paul Bradt, Don Hubbard, and Sam Moore in 1939 found an inscription of "D.B. September 16, 1908." This has been attributed to a surveyor named Bittenger who was known to be working in the area. [5]
The documented climbing history of the Rocks begins in 1935 with a roped descent - the ascent was a steep hike – of the North Peak by Paul Bradt and Florence Perry. [5] In the 1930s and 1940s only a few climbers, mostly from the Washington, D.C., and Pittsburgh areas, attempted to climb Seneca Rocks.
In 1943 and 1944, as part of the West Virginia Maneuver Area, 10th Mountain Division [6] of the U.S. Army used Seneca, Nelson and Champe Rocks to train mountain troops in assault climbing in preparation for action in the Apennines of Italy. [7] They left behind an estimated 75,000 soft iron pitons, some of which can still be found on the rocks, [6] and which inspired one of the faces to be named "The Face of a Thousand Pitons". Many of those pitons were retrieved and reused by local climbers in the following years, [8] but many remained in the rock for decades.
The Spruce Knob–Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area (NRA) was established within the Monongahela National Forest by an act of the U.S. Congress on September 28, 1965. The Rocks themselves were purchased by the federal government in 1969 [9] from the heirs of D. C. Harper.[ citation needed ]
The original visitor center was opened in 1978, constructed on a grant of $297,000. [10] A 1985 flood severely damaged the facility. On October 22, 1987, "the Gendarme", an isolated and prominent pinnacle of the Rocks, fell to the ground. [11] [12] On May 26, 1992, the visitor center was destroyed by arson. [13] [14] The current visitor center — known as the Seneca Rocks Discovery Center — was completed in the fall of 1998 on a 5 million dollar grant. [15]
The "Seneca Rock" turnpoint at 38°50′03″N79°22′04″W / 38.83417°N 79.36778°W has been used by glider pilots for gliding competitions and soaring awards because its distinctive appearance in aerial photographs made it suitable for photo documentation of the flight performance. [16] This turnpoint was used on many 500 kilometer out-and-return course flights from Ridge Soaring Gliderport in Julian, Pennsylvania, including an October 15, 1995, flight by Canadian pilot Walter Weir that was recognized as a world record at the time. [17]
Seneca Rocks is a popular location for recreational rock climbing. There are 375 major mapped climbing routes, varying in degree from 5.0 (the easiest) to 5.14b (the hardest). There are two climbing schools located in Seneca Rocks that train prospective climbers in beginning and advanced rock climbing: Seneca Rocks Climbing School and Seneca Rocks Mountain Guides. Other climbing guide services, particularly those located in the surrounding states, also guide and instruct rock climbing at Seneca Rocks.
Both the East and West faces of the North and South Peak offer single and multi-pitch routes up to 300 ft in length. Technical routes also exist on the Lower Slabs, located on the slopes below the west face of the North Peak, and on the Southern Pillar, directly across Roy Gap from the South Peak. Because of the way the rock was uplifted, there are many vertical cracks that offer excellent jamming and good protection. Routes range from 5.0-5.14, nearly all of which require the leader placing protection (traditional climbing). The South Peak is the tallest peak east of Devils Tower in Wyoming that is only accessible by 5th class climbing. [18]
A popular romance of the Rocks — "The Betrothal of Snow Bird, Princess of the Seneca Indians" — was written in 1932 by Harry Malcolm Wade. [19] West Virginia writer J. Lawrence Smith provides the following short summary of the story:
Princess Snow Bird, who had grown to maidenhood in the shadow of the rocks and scaled their heights many times, proposed a contest to her father, [Chief] Bald Eagle. She would climb to the crest of the rocks as prospective suitors followed. The first to take her hand would become her mate. Bald Eagle agreed, and at the end of the climb, of seven suitors, only one remained, the others having turned back from fear or fallen to their deaths. From their lofty perch, Snow Bird and her future mate surveyed the surrounding realm of the Seneca that would be theirs to rule one day. [20]
In reality, the Seneca homeland was in what is now western New York state, and what Seneca tribesmen passed this way were strictly transients. (The historical "Chief Bald Eagle" [d. 1779], also known as Chief Woapalanne, was a Lenape leader of central Pennsylvania, not a Seneca of [West] Virginia.)
Rock climbing is a popular activity in the Peak District; particularly on edges such as Stanage or Froggatt. Generally the climbing style is free climbing and the rock is either gritstone or limestone. Climbing has been practised in the Peak District since the late 19th century; James W. Puttrell is generally credited with starting the sport. The first climbing guidebook to the area was Some Gritstone Climbs, by John Laycock, published in 1913. There are over 10,000 routes in the Peak District. One of the most famous Peak District climbers, and a pioneer of many new routes, is Ron Fawcett. The climb known as "Master's Edge", on Millstone Edge, near Hathersage, is a testament to his skill and strength. The climb is graded E7 6c and rises 19m up the near vertical edge.
The Monongahela National Forest is a national forest located in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It protects over 921,000 acres of federally managed land within a 1,700,000 acres proclamation boundary that includes much of the Potomac Highlands Region and portions of 10 counties.
In rock climbing, redpointing means to free-climb a climbing route from the ground to the top while lead climbing, after having practiced the route or after having failed the first attempt. Climbers will try to redpoint a route after having failed to onsight it, or flash it. The first successful redpoint of a route, in the absence of any prior onsight or flash, is recorded as the first free ascent (FFA) of that route.
Smith Rock State Park is a state park located in central Oregon's High Desert near the communities of Redmond and Terrebonne. The day-use area of the park is open daily from dawn to dusk. The park also has a camping area as well that accommodates tent camping only. Its sheer cliffs of tuff and basalt are ideal for rock climbing of all difficulty levels. Smith Rock is generally considered the birthplace of modern American sport climbing, and is host to cutting-edge climbing routes. It is popular for sport climbing, traditional climbing, multi-pitch climbing, and bouldering.
The Potomac Highlands of West Virginia centers on five West Virginian counties in the upper Potomac River watershed in the western portion of the state's Eastern Panhandle, bordering Maryland and Virginia. Because of geographical proximity, similar topography and landscapes, and shared culture and history, the Potomac Highlands region also includes Pocahontas, Randolph, and Tucker counties, even though they are in the Monongahela River or New River watersheds and not that of the Potomac River.
Seneca Rocks is an unincorporated community located in Pendleton County, West Virginia, United States. The community of Seneca Rocks — formerly known as Mouth of Seneca — lies at the junction of US 33, WV 28 and WV 55 near the confluence of Seneca Creek and the North Fork South Branch Potomac River. The community also lies near Seneca Rocks, the crag from which it takes its name. Both lie within the Spruce Knob–Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area of the Monongahela National Forest.
Spruce Knob–Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area is a national recreation area in the Monongahela National Forest of eastern West Virginia.
North Fork Mountain is a quartzite-capped mountain ridge in the Ridge and Valley physiographic province of the Allegheny Mountains, also known as the High Alleghenies or Potomac Highlands, of eastern West Virginia. Kile Knob, at 4,588 feet, is the mountain's highest point, and Panther Knob and Pike Knob are nearly as high.
The Aiguille du Dru is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif in the French Alps. It is situated to the east of the village of Les Praz in the Chamonix valley. "Aiguille" means "needle" in French.
The Silurian Tuscarora Formation — also known as Tuscarora Sandstone or Tuscarora Quartzite — is a mapped bedrock unit in Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia, US.
Eldorado Canyon State Park is part of the Colorado State Park system. It was established in 1978 and is located in Boulder County near the city of Boulder. The park consists of two areas, the Inner Canyon and Crescent Meadows. The park encompasses 885 acres (3.6 km2) with a variety of recreation opportunities available. Eldorado Canyon is home to one of the world's most accessible and comprehensive rock climbing areas. This state park is open during daylight hours only, visitors are expected to leave before dusk.
For other "River Knobs", see River Knobs (disambiguation).
Smoke Hole Canyon — traditionally called The Smoke Holes and later simply Smoke Hole — is a rugged 20 miles (32 km) long gorge carved by the South Branch Potomac River in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, United States. The area is rather isolated and remote with parts accessible only by boat or on foot.
U.S. Route 33 (US 33) in the U.S. state of West Virginia extends 248 miles (399 km) from the Ohio River at Ravenswood to the Virginia state line atop Shenandoah Mountain west of Harrisonburg, Virginia.
The Sites Homestead, also known as the Wayside Inn or the Sites Inn, is located near Seneca Rocks, West Virginia. The log house was built by Jacob Sites circa 1839 below the Seneca Rocks ridge. The house was expanded in the mid-1870s with a frame addition, remaining in the Sites family until it was acquired by the U.S. Forest Service in 1968 as part of Spruce Knob–Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area in Monongahela National Forest. The house had been used as a storage shed for some time and was in poor condition. It was restored by the Forest Service in the 1980s and became a temporary visitor center in 1992 after the Seneca Rocks visitor center burned. It is now part of the Seneca Rocks Discovery Center facility, operated by the Forest Service.
Champe Rocks are a pair of large crags in Pendleton County in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. Easily visible from West Virginia Route 28, they are situated within the Spruce Knob–Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area. They are — along with the nearby and more celebrated Seneca Rocks — the most imposing examples in eastern West Virginia of several formations of the white/gray Tuscarora quartzite and are a popular challenge for rock climbers.
Nelson Rocks is a large privately owned rock formation located in the North Fork Valley of Pendleton County, West Virginia, United States. The area is operated under the name of NROCKS Outdoor Adventures, and was previously known as Nelson Rocks Outdoor Center (NROC).
Spruce Mountain, located in eastern West Virginia, is the highest ridge of the Allegheny Mountains. The whale-backed ridge extends for only 16 miles (26 km) from northeast to southwest, but several of its peaks exceed 4,500 feet (1,400 m) in elevation. The summit, Spruce Knob, is the highest Allegheny Mountain point both in the state and the entire range, which spans four states.
Paul Jay Bradt (1904–1978) has been called the father of rock climbing in the Washington, D.C., area. He was instrumental in developing interest in the sport, was a founding member and first chair of the rock climbing branch of the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club, and pioneered historic climbs and cave explorations in the 1930s and 1940s. Bradt was introduced to rock climbing by Gustave Gambs (1868-1958) who had learned the sport in Europe. He soon became an active proponent of rock climbing, introducing many people to the sport, some of whom became leaders in the field, such as Don Hubbard, Arnold Wexler, and Herb and Jan Conn. Bradt and his colleagues explored and developed early climbing routes at Great Falls, VA, Carderock, MD, Seneca Rocks, WV, Old Rag Mountain in Shenandoah National Park, VA, and in the Teton Range.
Jan H. Conn and Herbert William Conn were climbing and caving pioneers. They are credited with establishing many classic climbs in areas like Carderock in Maryland, Seneca Rocks in West Virginia, Cannon Cliff in New Hampshire and Black Hills of South Dakota. They are also well known as cave explorers who in the 1960s and 1970s discovered and mapped over 60 miles of Jewel Cave, making it the world’s third-longest cave system.