Laurel Highlands Trail at Kings Mountain Road

It wasn't easy to find the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail at the high place where Kings Mountain Road peters out into a muddy ATV track.  But the search was scenic and fun.  Oh, the beautiful summer homes up here near the ridge of Laurel Hill!  I just want one so bad...

I got sidetracked by a pleasant snowmobile trail that was nice enough, but not a hiking trail.  A snowmobile trail is built for vehicles, and so it's a small road, not a footpath.  It doesn't seem to penetrate the strange, shady depths of the forest in the same way.  

The road up the mountain was narrow and lovely in the October light.  I did at last find the LHHT but following it further than I'd have expected.  See the stone steps in the lower right corner of this photo.  That's the LHHT.

The golden ferns, the yellowing and browning beech leaves, the golding, and redding, and oranging trees across wide meadows, the glowering and grayling skies.  It was a beautiful day to be alone in the woods at the top of Laurel Ridge.

Again, the map showed a scenic overlook--or at least something photographable--just a short distance from Kings Mountain Road, between mile markers 21 and 22.  And so, I went a-looking for it.  I wish my cell camera, or any camera, could capture the great beauty of this spot in the forest, which is no overlook but truly memorable.  See the strangely majestic beech tree a little to the left and the broad rock floor?  

Here's that same majestic beech from another angle, still insufficient to capture its power and stateliness.  

It looks almost African.

Sometimes I wonder if I shouldn't invest in a decent camera.  If I did, I'd be able to capture the grandeur and perfection of this ancient beech.  I'd also be able to publish a coffee table book about country churches in Western Pennsylvania.

So, just beneath that wondrous tree, there's a rock ledge that overlooks the forest floor below.  See here.  It's got a nice boulder sitting out at the edge to tempt photos and picnics.  I fell into both traps.

It's not an enormous drop to the forest floor below, 20 feet?  But when the leaves are off, there might be a nice view to the hills beyond.