Our Day Trip to Coopers Rock.

I really do want to write about our vacation to Asheville, NC, but as a direct result of the fabulous time that we had on that trip, we decided to take a one day trip to a local place with sights similar to what we saw on our vacation. Coopers Rock is a State Forest of West Virginia. It's located just south of the PA - WV border on Interstate 68, a fast 2 hour trip from our home in the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. Heading down Interstate 79, we were able to see beautiful green forests as attractive as anything we saw in the Smoky Mountains but with some breaks of view into rolling hills and sometimes farmland.

In addition to the beautiful interstate drive, I found the Washington, PA country music radio station that is unique in this era of satellite-delivered uniform music. WKZV 1110 AM plays old time country music like done by The Bellamy Brothers and The Forester Sisters. As we drove by, where their station signal was strongest, we sang along with our all time favorites and as we entered the park, we finished our 2 hour drive, singing "I Love Beer" with Tom T. Hall.

This picture is of the Cheat River, know for it's whitewater kayaking and rafting. It was taken from the overlook at the park.

We took a picnic cooler and came prepared to do some "easy" bouldering, a novice approach to rock climbing. During our hiking, we met 3 groups of serious climbers who had installed climbing ropes from the tops of the rock formations they intended to climb. We, also, met a couple from the Pittsburgh area who where carrying folded foam pad that they placed at the base of rock that they would free climb, without any ropes, the more intense kind of bouldering.

Although you can pick up a map of all the trails, if you want to see rocks, up close, I recommend taking the Rattlesnake Trail that begins just to the left of the concession stand. It leads to Rock City, a collection of rocks and boulders that you can walk among, stand on, and trip over. Although I had taken my tennis shoes, I insisted on wearing my open toed sandals and stubbed my toes a number of times.

Just want to wet you appetite for this wonderful location. Hope you can make it, and enjoy it as much as we did. If you would like to see more pictures of our adventure, CLICK HERE!