Sunday, April 09, 2006

Pinnacles of the Dan


Length: One days
Crew: Three adults, one Scouts
Trip Sheet
More Pictures
Day Zero
Originally, we were to go on Saturday, but the weather forecast was horrible, so we moved the trap back to Sunday
Day One
After parking at the powerplant, we all went into the power plant to get a permit. The operator's office is on the second level, so we climbed through the plan to get there. The operator told us that the trail to the resevoir is closed permanently, but you can hike up to the Pinnacles, but no farther. He also suggested hiking up the Dan to a new beaver dam. So, we planned to climb the Pinnacles in the morning and go out to the beaver dam in the afternoon.

A couple of hundred feet up the Pinnacles trail, one of the adults was having some trouble climbing. We came back down and decided to head out to the beaver dam instead. The route to the beaver dam is quite strenuous. Much of the trail is overgrown. You need to cross the Dan at least once. We crossed the river three times on the way out to beaver dam and once on the way back.

One of the scouts saw a wild turkey crossing the river. We all saw a pair of hawks flying over the beaver pond. After lunch at the beaver dam, we bushwhacked the trail back to the base of the Pinnacles trail. The one adult returned to the powerplant, while the rest of us climbed the Pinnacles trail. Climbing to very top of the Pinnacle meant leaving packs and trekking poles at the base of the peak and scambling up on hands and knees.

From the Pinnacles trail, we could see the aqueduct, which has been modernized, replacing the old wood aqueduct with fiberglass. The Scoutmaster was looking around for the waterslide.

Rip Rap Trail, Shenandoah National Park

Length: Two days
Crew: Two adults, four Scouts
Trip Sheet
Day One
After shuffling cars at the Skyline drive parking lots, the group backpacked down the Rip Rap Trail. We camped in the same campsite as the previous trip. We worked on Wilderness Survival merit badge.
Day Two
After packing up camp, we backpacked back to the cars.