Spruce Knob–Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area is a

national recreation area A national recreation area (NRA) is a protected area in the United States established by an Act of Congress to preserve enhanced recreational opportunities in places with significant natural and scenic resources. There are 40 NRAs, which emphasiz ...

in the

Monongahela National Forest The Monongahela National Forest is a national forest located in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It protects over of federally managed land within a proclamation boundary that includes much of the Potomac Highlands Regi ...

of eastern

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...

. The national recreation area protects three prominent West Virginia landmarks: *

Spruce Knob Spruce Mountain, located in eastern West Virginia, is the highest ridge of the Allegheny Mountains. The whale-backed ridge extends for only from northeast to southwest, but several of its peaks exceed in elevation. The summit, Spruce Knob (4863 ...

, the highest point in West Virginia (and the highest of the

Allegheny Mountains The Allegheny Mountain Range (; also spelled Alleghany or Allegany), informally the Alleghenies, is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the Eastern United States and Canada and posed a significant barrier to land travel in less devel ...

) with a summit elevation of 4,863 feet (1482 m). *

Seneca Rocks Seneca Rocks is a large crag and local landmark in Pendleton County in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia, United States. The south peak is one of a small number of peaks inaccessible except by technical rock climbing techniques on the East ...

, a 900-foot (270 m) high

quartzite Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tec ...

crag popular with

rock climbers Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically an ...

. *

Smoke Hole Canyon Smoke Hole Canyon — traditionally called The Smoke Holes and later simply Smoke Hole — is a rugged long gorge carved by the South Branch Potomac River in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, United States. The area is rather iso ...

, a canyon along the

South Branch Potomac River The South Branch Potomac River has its headwaters in northwestern Highland County, Virginia near Hightown along the eastern edge of the Allegheny Front. After a river distance of ,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolu ...

. Spruce Knob–Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area was established by an act of the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washin ...

on September 28, 1965, as the first national recreation area in a

United States National Forest In the United States, national forest is a classification of protected and managed federal lands. National forests are largely forest and woodland areas owned collectively by the American people through the federal government, and managed by ...

, so it is administered by the U.S. Forest Service.

References

External links

Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area official site
Protected areas of Grant County, West Virginia National Recreation Areas of the United States Protected areas of Pendleton County, West Virginia Protected areas of West Virginia Protected areas established in 1965 1965 establishments in West Virginia {{PotomacHighlandsWV-geo-stub

See also

References

External links