Breaks Interstate Park

Thursday, 19 September and Friday, 20 September 2019

We took a short (3-day, 2-night) camping trip to southwest Virginia. Our first stop was Breaks Interstate Park that is jointly managed by Virginia and Kentucky. It features a 1000-ft deep canyon on the Russell Fork River that was a significant part of the economic (coal and timber) and cultural history of the area.

The main feature of the park is a set of canyon overlooks. The Breaks area is sometimes called the "Grand Canyon of the South", but I personally think that the New River Gorge in West Virginia is just as deep, but much longer. This view of Tower Rock and the Russell Fork River is from the Lover's Leap Overlook.

This railroad tunnel, visible from the Tower Tunnel Overlook goes under the "saddle" between Tower rock and Chimney Rock.

The rocks at the Lover's Leap Overlook have an interesting torturous pattern.

Lover's Leap Overlook: The rocks have a basically horizontal bedding, but there's an overlay of circular strata that seem totally out of place.

The trail to the Tower Tunnel Overlook went through a rhododendron forest.

On Friday we took the "Chestnut Ridge Trail", which is a loop trail that combines the Geological Trail, the Laurel Branch Trail, and the Ridge Trail, Here the Geological Trail goes in a crevice where the sandstone has fractured.

Geological Trail. The top of a natural arch has fallen. Lon is at the base of the fallen boulder, which is about the size of a typical pioneer log cabin.

Cliffs along the Laurel Branch Trail.