Pine Grove Furnace State Park
Pine Grove Furnace State Park; Michaux State Forest Mountain Creek Campground – Site T9
Another glorious weather report means another weekend to take advantage of being outdoors. We decided to go camping again. After doing some research to find camp grounds with “primitive” sites, I came across Pine Grove Furnace State Park. This is about two hours west of us and seemed like the perfect overnight trip. We packed up, and hit the road late Saturday morning. I had planned to find a site in the campground within the state park, but once we got there, we were sad to find that all of the dog friendly sites were filled. This is the second time I planned something that didn’t quite work out how I anticipated. These adventures are teaching me to be more free spirited and to just go with the flow of where the day takes us.
After a short drive down the main road (Rt. 233) we came to another campground called Mountain Creek Campground. This campground was busy with a pool and lots of RVs from first looks. However, once we found a site map we were able to choose a secluded site tucked between a berm and the woods that provided a lot of privacy.
We set up camp, and went to explore. We headed onto the Appalachian Trail between Fuller Lake and the Pine Grove General Store. This portion of the Appalachian is just about the mid-way point and its common to see thru-hikers and backpackers in this area. I couldn’t help but feel a sense of longing being among people that are able to spend weeks on end out in nature.
Back at camp, we enjoyed the sounds of nearby campers music and a bit of wine we brought along.
The next morning we rose early to get a head start on a popular trail called Pole Steeple Trail.
This trail is short, but steep and the terrain is difficult. The view at the overlook is oh-so worth it though. There’s something really amazing about standing so high above everything else, seeing the world below you so small. It keeps things in perspective and makes you feel elevated at the same time.
We took the longer trail down and around the mountain and back to the car to head home.
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