Pocahontas State Park

Last week on Labor Day we went for a short hike.

We wanted to go somewhere close, so we drove half an hour south to Pocahontas State Park. It is pretty big, and has a lot of things to do. There is a lot of parking, and it wasn't full. But the park seemed crowded, I can't imagine what it would be like totally full.

They have an awesome swimming pool with a big splash area for kids. There were tons of big families at the outdoor grills and picnic tables.

There is a river and a lake. So there were paddle boats for rent, and people were fishing, canoeing and kayaking.

There are mountain bike trails. There were bikes on our trail. All the riders were vocal, telling us they were behind us, and how many more cyclists were still behind them. There are also trail specifically for bikes, that have signs asking people not to use them. All in one park!

Then there are hiking trails. They were well marked and obviously used a lot. We did a 2.5 mile loop. There are also longer trails, up to a 14 mile loop.

Some of the trees had signs put up by a local nature group, it had a QR code, so of course Tanner had to stop and try to scan it. Also, his hat

Sandy soil 

This was interesting. A few years ago they had a spate of tornadoes and then a hurricane, and a lot of trees went down. So there are areas packing with these baby pines, and other areas with baby poplar

Major differences and thoughts

It was 84 degrees and above 60% humidity. In the trees there was hardly a breeze. So we were very sweaty, much more than we would have been in Seattle.

Everything hear is just so much older than the west coast. The park has multiple homesteads and farms that have been found by archaeologists. Most were noted and then left alone. But there is one small cemetery left, that is just off the path.

The interpretive sign said this was from the 18th century. It wad dedicated to a woman, Fannie, who died in childbirth and her child.

Otherwise, you know, a state park is a state park. It is really nice that it is so close and we are planning on going back.  We are really excited to go back in the fall when the leaves are turning, it will be even prettier.

This shirt is old and now a "hiking shirt", but man, that looks really unflattering

 Also, the park is called Pocahontas State Park! So far they seem really honest about Pocahontas, that is not her real name, she was a young teenager when she married, and she left for England and then died there before she could come back home. I did not sing any Disney songs while hiking, but I thought about it.