Last weekend, August 8-10, I went south to the Monongahela National Forest with my friend Michelle. This is an isolated area in northeastern WV known for obscure swimming holes and waterfalls. I have wanted to go here for quite some time, but could never resist the New River Gorge (for climbing) if I made the 3 hour drive south. My broken finger tendon gave me the perfect excuse to explore. This was also a perfect opportunity for me test out a new camera I found at a yard sale via Craigslist. The camera is a Mamiya 6x7 camera of 70s vintage. I just wanted to know if it worked. More on that later.
To get to our starting location, there was a 25-30 mile drive out of the nearest town, Petersburg, WV. Most of this was on gravel road. Upon parking we began a mostly downhill 4-5 mile hike. Michelle, the geologist extraordinaire, informed me that the large rocks we were walking on the whole time was referred to as glacial till. It was pretty amazing to see the trees and plants growing through such big rocks. Most pieces were at least football sized.
The hike went down into the Red Creek valley. Along this medium-sized stream we encountered many swimming holes and waterfalls, the largest of which was probably 8-10 feet tall. We frolicked in some rapids before finding camp. I attempted to slide down the rapids, but discovered I was too fat. There were a few other parties along the creek, so we went a few hundred yards downstream to a secluded "beach front" camping spot. We set our tent up along the water and relaxed all night.
We explored all day Sunday and found some really cool coves that were off the beaten path. We did a bit of swimming too, but the water was freezing. The weather was mostly overcast. I would have welcomed the blazing sun in hopes that it would have made the swimming better. Our second night we moved camp closer to the main swimming hole so we wouldn't be tortured by menacing animal sounds all night. There was some kind of mean grunting animal outside our tent all night that limited our sleep. Michelle actually said she was "completely terrified right now" at one point. I'm pretty sure I brushed that off though due to sleep deprivation. Oops.
The hike out was super fast and engaging. I welcomed a Sheetz on the way home. If I stay in the area, I will definitely be going back in the fall. The warm color of the rocks will look great with the autumn foliage and a crisp fall sky. The overcast didn't serve my digital pictures very well, so I opted for a black and white treatment. I got my film back and unfortunately discovered a pretty bad light leak in my bargain yard sale camera. Nothing I can't fix. As soon as I get the film scanned I will put some snaps up. In the meantime, I hope you enjoyed these few. They are actually my test shots from my Nikon. I used a digital camera as a meter because the new film camera is 100% mechanical and does not even take meter readings. Fun.
Bonus shot from Michelle of me adjusting the beastly Mamiya RB67.
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