Morning in the Grayson Highlands

Grayson Highlands State Park is so sweet.  A short hike up the Rhododendron Trail yields some pretty impressive views of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

At the Massie Gap parking area, you start off in a field of scattered trees, but as you ascend, the landscape becomes more and more open.  There are some rock outcroppings that, when climbed, give you a nice perspective of your surroundings. 

The only downside to the Highlands is the wind.  The wind, at times, can be punishing to say the least.  Today was no exception, actually, it was an exception, it was exceptionally STRONG today.

Just getting out of the car in the dark with that strong of wind is daunting.... I really didn't want to:)  But... I did, and it was worth it.  The wind presents multiple challenges.  First of all, everything is moving, A LOT.  Short exposures and high ISO is necessary, and a necessary evil at that.  Even the sweetest, most awesomest cameras suffer at high ISO.

This morning, a beautiful crescent moon was rising into the sky.  During the predawn hours, when the cloudiness is 'partly', the colors are beautiful.  The rich blue sky and rising sun create an awesome darkening gradient.

The wispy clouds wash out the crescent moon.



Big Pinnacle, the point off to the left, is the highest point within the park.  Lens distortion makes the hill to the far left seem higher.  You can see the trail on the bottom right of this scene, this takes you past the horses, and towards the Appalachian Trail.




This HDR(processed in Photoshop) was taken in crazy high winds, I had difficulty shielding the camera from the winds.




I took a break from most of the wind and headed down the hill towards the wild ponies.



A somewhat intimate portrait of a horse(my longest lens is 50mm)

Awesome fall color in the Highlands.  The road to the left of this scene, is the road you would take if going to the Grayson Highlands Visitor Center.  On the way back from the visitor center, you past the only place on a road where you can see Mount Rogers, the highest peak in VA.  It's not much of a spectacle, just a big hill.

After the sunrise, I hiked Big Pinnacle, a short and steep run up to the highest point in the park.


From Big Pinnacle, you can see the edge of Virginia, into North Carolina, and even the beautiful state of Tennessee.



On the way out of the park, I took a few shots of some awesome fall color.  I would highly recommend that all of you take a trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains within the next few weeks:)

Thanks for looking.  :)

Wilson Creek (Grayson Highlands State Park)

There is something about this place...  something totally awesome.   I even feel like a more awesome person when I come here.  I can leave this place and tell people 'I went to the highlands today' and they immediately know that I had a way more badass time then they did.  

Here is a quick double check on what a awesomely awesome park should have, and whether or not Grayson Highlands State Park has what it takes....

EPIC views of the Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee(yes you can see that far) mountains?  Check.

WILD animals, most notably, horses?  Check.

WELL MAINTAINED trails for horses, bikers, and hikers?  Check.

OFF THE CHAIN cascades and waterfalls?  Oh Hell Yes.(our focus for this post)

A classic Virginia view:)

Not too bad of detail for a Pentax k20d + 16-45

As soon as the sun breaks, you are racing it up the creek, trying to get your shots before the rays come in.

Endless cascades on Wilson Creek

Big cascades, watch your step here:)

I'll give you one guess as to how many aperture blades my Sears 135mm has:)  They are painfully straight, as you can see in the bokeh.

Grayson Highlands State Park 3-22-112

Grayson Highlands State Park, located near Mouth of Wilson, VA.

The 'Spring' mentality has hit me.  I'm ready to start getting out into nature again and breathe that fresh mountain air, if you consider a 5,000 ft high hill to be a mountain:)

The winter here was mild and boring, it just wasn't enticing for me to go outside.  I'm not sure why, but I'm glad it's over. 

This park takes me about an hour to get to, it is home to wild ponies(not photographed on this trip), many cool trails and streams, and a trailhead to the highest point in VA, Mount Rogers.  This day I concentrated on hiking the southern park of the park, including Cabin Creek, Big Pinnacle, and Listening Rock trails.  About 7 Miles total, and all accessible from one parking spot.  

I got to the park just before sunrise.  Sunrises over the Blue Ridge Mountains are beautiful to say the least.  Fog fills the valleys and the warm sun slowly rises to give us awesome scenes.  They are nice to just sit and watch:)

First shots of the day(HDR)

Sunrise over the Blue Ridge

After watching the sunrise, I hiked down the Cabin Creek Trail.  It has this name for an old hunting cabin that is along its bank.  Today I was focused mostly on the falls.

I enjoy the lines on the rocks at Cabin Creek Falls

A 'weeping' wall(sort of)

Cabin Creek runs through...

A tighter comp on Cabin Creek

After hiking Cabin Creek and having two very wet feet, I drank a slimfast shake and rang out my socks.  I then set off to hike Big Pinacle, the highest point in the park.  This trail ends at the start of Listening rock, so no driving needed:)

The view from the highest point in the park, Big Pinnacle(looking South)

Looking North from Big Pinnacle

Weathered Trees on the trail

There is a smaller 'Pinnacle', with views that are just as nice.

Add caption

From here, I went to the trail called Listening Rock, I didn't take as many photos on this part of the hike.  And when you hike it, you will know why.  It's a very quiet hike, the only sounds are from birds.  You're walking through a forest that seems to go forever.  With the sun high in the sky, circling turkey vultures' shadows were dancing across the forest floor. I did shoot a photo of some small flowers starting to bloom, and a small overlook.  Thanks for reading:)

Flowers about 1cm in diameter are starting to come out.

A small opening to the horizon.

Trail Markers make it easy to get around.