Fork Mountain and surrounds (Central District)

Ice lace at top of Laurel Prong Trail

Yesterday Feb. 7 the Skyline Drive was miraculously open again so I did a hike I'd been planning for a while around Fork Mt. (the Central District Fork Mountain).  I parked at Bootens Gap and hiked north on the AT for 0.4 miles to the Laurel Prong Trail.  Toward the top of the ridge, all the tree branches had ice crystals growing on them.  It looked lovely (but I was afraid driving down that it was precipitating). 

The Laurel Fork Trail from the AT to Cat Knob Trail is a lovely one.  It slabs down gently along the hillside with beautiful winter views to the east and south.  Some neat rocks along the way too. 

Descending Laurel Prong Trail

I was worried there might be snow and ice on the trail but it turned out there were only icicles on the rocks and a thin veneer of snow at the top of the ridge.  When I got to the Cat Knob Trail I decided to ascend then rather than waiting until the end of the day to do the loop the other way around.  This turned out to be a lucky choice as you'll see later.  The trail up to Cat Knob gains altitude steadily and climbs over rocks.  Good views from various outcroppings along the way.  When I got to the top there was a small amount of snow. 

Descending from Cat Knob on Jones Mt. Tr.

The descent from Cat Knob to The Sag took me through snow covered trail but it wasn't deep.  At The Sag I took the Fork Mt. Road up to the top of the mountain where the radar towers are.  Since it's a well-used road the going was easy.  The entire top is cluttered with installations but I was able to sneak around them to get some views to the north and west. 

Approaching top of Fork Mt.

View northwest from top of Fork Mt.

The temperature was hovering around freezing and it was quite overcast.  From time to time an anemic sun tried to burn through the clouds but there was never any direct sunlight.  As I descended from the top, it was clear that the western slopes of nearby ridges had snow on them. 

View east while descending Fork Mt. note snow on distant slope

I got back to The Sag quickly and began my trot to the very bottom of Fork Mountain Rd.  I had a bit of trouble with temperature control.  Because it was winter, there were decent views east through the leafless trees.  Unfortunately clouds and fog in the valleys made the views rather bleak.  The road is well graded and only occasionally has steep sections.  Toward the bottom of the road I was struck by a stand of young, thick trees (below) which was quite distinct from the forest elsewhere along the road.  I wondered whether this was caused by some none-to-recent clearcutting or a forest fire. 

Oddly dense woods approaching Rapidan on Fork Mt. Rd.

I got to the bottom (the Rapidan Fire Road) and saw the gorgeous Rapidan River.  Plenty of places to take dips there.  The road in look very good but open to car travel.  In fact, I saw two large SUVs drive down as I approached.  After gulping down my PB&J, I started up the road again.  I had dressed in t-shirt, long sleeve t shirt, overshirt, and wind/rain jacket plus mittens, neck gaiter, and ear warmer headband.  Going down the road I was fine but once I started ascending, I had to take the two outer layers off and remove the neck gaiter and ear warmer. 

Good swimming holes along Rapidan

The road passes over two forks of the Staunton River, both of which were full.  After passing the Staunton River Trail junction I spied a small animal scurrying up the road ahead of me.  If I didn't know better, I'd have said it was a marmot but marmots don't live around here.  I wonder if it might have been a woodchuck or a weasel (but I don't think weasels are that rotund). 

Staunton River from top of Fork Mt. Rd.

I made good time back to The Sag (third time of the day) and took the Fork Mountain TRAIL downhill from there.  It is a yellow-blazed trail which means horses can use it and it shows.  Lots of loose rocks.  I had the odd sensation as I started down that I was breaking through the crust but there was no snow.  Then I noticed ice crystals and grown under the surface of the dirt.  My breaking through was actually crushing these icy columns.  The breakthrough problem continued back on the Laurel Prong trail until it met the Cat Knob Trail again.  At the bottom of the Fork Mountain Trail is a crossing of the Laurel Prong.  Water was high and there was no way I could find to cross without getting my feet wet. Because I only had 3 miles back to the car, I decided just to wade through.  The day was getting late and the sun was definitely behind the clouds so it started getting cold.  The Laurel Prong from the Fork Mt. Trail junction goes steadily up, at first along the Laurel Prong, then it leaves the brook and ascends more steeply to the junction with the Cat Knob Trail.  I was able to stay warm (especially because of the breaking through the crust) but when I stopped to take a drink at the trail junction I got cold.  I put on my neck and head gear and started up the last mile of trail.  When I got to the ridge a cold wind was blowing (natch!) so I put back on the rest of my clothes and hustled back to the car. 

Total for the day:  15.7 miles, 4 trails completed plus another small section of the AT.