I came down to this area in West Virginia to paddle the lower section of the Greenbrier River because it seemed to have lots of mountains surrounding it. Driving down WV 12, however, was not impressive. WV 12 follows the Greenbrier River much of the way from Alderson down to Hinton. That in itself is not a good thing. I saw lots of houses and campgrounds along the way and the mountains really weren't in evidence.
While looking for a place to stay for the night in that area I passed Bluestone Lake and the New River and they were gorgeous. Then I found Bluestone National Scenic River flows into the New River right there and the New River isn't all rapids like I thought. So I signed on for 3 nights at the Bluestone State Park, right where the Bluestone River flows into the New River, 2 miles or so up from the Bluestone Lake Dam.
There are a lot of deer in this area. Last night I saw a 6 point buck with 2 does and 4 fawns. I watched them for a while but then some kids came along and chased them away. This morning I saw a couple of doe and a fawn that still had its spots. I got a good picture of the fawn during my morning walk.
I launched from one of two boat ramps in the park onto the Bluestone River. While on my morning walk I had gone upriver for 1.5 miles or so. There I saw a set of class II rapids close to 100 yards long. Those would have to be negotiated if I was to go any farther.
The nights have been quite chilly, down in the lower 60's, so there's always fog in the morning. Clouds and mist clung to the nearby peaks but would hopefully burn off before too long.
I watched a doe browsing on plants under the water on the other side of the river for a while. She would duck her head all the way under and come up with a lot of vegetation hanging down from her mouth. I was drifting towards her, hoping to get a picture. She started getting nervous so I backed off and left her alone.
I passed a couple of blue herons all hunched over sleeping off last night's activities, whatever they might have been. Up ahead I saw some white on the far shore. I thought it was some sort of trash but then it moved. An egret? In West Virginia? Sure looked like one to me. Orange bill and black legs.
The water's pretty shallow, 2 feet or so in most places with a muddy bottom. As I paddled forward, many puffs of mud drifted back as some kind of fish would dart off to safety, probably carp.
Looking up, a long, 500 foot ridge could be seen off to the right. The sun was shining brightly on the lower portion while the upper part was still enclosed in fog, making for a pretty view. Some trash littered the shores but I had forgotten the trash bag again and didn't feel like having a lot of cans and bottles rattling around in the cockpit all day. (I just this minute put a trash bag in the boat so I won't have an excuse tomorrow.)
Paddling along I saw this thing just below the surface of the water. Circling around to investigate I discovered the butt of a fishing pole bobbing there. I grabbed it and pulled it up and the reel and line were attached. My first thought was that someone got themselves hooked on a log or something for the last time and threw the gear into the river out of frustration.
I started reeling the line in and felt something on the other end fighting me. Would you believe a 2-3 pound carp? I suppose someone had left the pole to go do something and then the carp hit the bait and pulled the whole rig into the water. I let the carp go and tossed the rod and reel up on the bank at an obvious fishing spot. Someone will find a free rod and reel. Hopefully they won't think the fish fairy left it.
As I approached the rapids I began to notice I was paddling against a 1 knot current. When I got to the rapids I ferried across, ducking into eddies, trying to find a line up the rapids. Everything was either too rocky or too fast. I found a possible line on the far shore but it was too shallow to get the blade in the water for a good stroke. So I had to humiliate myself, get out and pull the kayak up the rapids. At least I had a bowline to pull with and didn't slip and fall.
That was as far as I'd walked this morning so I didn't know what might be ahead. What that turned out to be was a smaller set of rapids a couple hundred yards farther upstream. Here the situation was pretty much the same as below. The water wasn't deep enough for a good power stroke and the blade kept bouncing off of rocks.
I was getting ready to pull the boat up these shoals too when I noticed a third set of rapids up ahead. Figuring much of the river upstream would be the same, I called it quits. At my age it's just not worth the effort.
I had a good time going down the rapids I had walked up. I spent about 20 minutes ferrying back and forth, popping into and out of eddies and surfing. There was some solid class II holes and pillows too. And I didn't embarrass myself by getting soaked either.
By lunchtime I was back at the put in. I kept going and passed by some 20-30 foot sandstone bluffs and then under the WV 20 bridge over the Bluestone River. I don't know where the Bluestone Lake ends and the New River begins. It all looks like river to me. I suppose since they have a dam that they have to call something a lake. I just assume that downstream of the Bluestone River is the Bluestone Lake and the dogleg left from that point is the New River.
I paddled the 2 miles down to the dam. A strong 10-15 knot wind had been swirling every which way. First it was in my face, then on the beam and then pushing me along. Only a few fishermen were out and I only saw one couple in a canoe.
The Bluestone Lake is about 400-500 feet wide and surrounded by knolls or peaks 400-500 feet high. WV 20 passes along one side but is high enough and far enough away to not be an annoying distraction. 20-50 foot sandstone rock faces sit above WV 20 which is about 1/3 of the way up the peaks. The walls extend most of the 2 miles to the dam with just a few breaks where trees grow.
The dam itself is very high. Ridges and hollows can be seen beyond it, making a pretty picture so I took one. After getting yelled at the last time I went near a dam, I didn't go anywhere near this one, even though I didn't see any markers.