Peach Mountain Road.
K. Fix
Welcome to one of the most remote sections of the trail. Facilities near the trail are very sparse. The terrain is unglaciated, highly dissected plateau which is generally wooded. The highest points that the trail will visit are in this section. The trail begins at the entrance to Davis Memorial State Nature Preserve, located near Peebles in Adams County, at an elevation of 738 ft. After meandering through this Preserve, the trail returns to roads that meander up Peach Mountain past the GE Jet Engine Test Station, visit Mineral Springs and Wamsley in the drainage of the Scioto Brush Creek. The trail makes a brief visit on footpath to property that is mostly within the BTA Ballinger Preserve. Back on roads, the trail enters Scioto County. There, it enters Shawnee State Forest where it leaves road and joins the Shawnee Backpack Trail that crosses not only Shawnee State Forest but also Shawnee State Park. In time, the trail joins the Shawnee Wilderness Trail to visit the only designated wilderness within Ohio. Within the wilderness, the trail returns to Adams County. The trail leaves the wilderness on an equestrian trail which ends on road. The final treat is several miles of footpath on properties owned by The Nature Conservancy. The section ends at the intersection of that footpath and West Fork Rd, located between Lynx and Rome in Adams County, at an elevation of 904 ft. Between these points, the trail climbs over 9800 ft and descends a similar amount.
CW | CCW | Pt | |
---|---|---|---|
41.4 N |
4.1 SE |
25 | Buckhorn Ridge Bridle Trail at Sunshine Ridge Rd (F17/T202B) Note: The Bypass Trail from Wamsley rejoins the BT here. Join Sunshine Ridge Rd that climbs N. After just 350', the trail reaches, arguably, the highest point it reaches anywhere in the state - 1276'. Continue to meander generally NW on Sunshine Ridge Rd. |
43.6 SW |
1.9 SE |
26 | Sunshine Ridge Rd (F17/T202B) at Carter Run Rd (T173) A cemetery is located at this intersection. Meander generally W on Sunshine Ridge Rd (now T202A); after 0.9 mi, pass a cemetery. The churches that were associated with the cemeteries seem to be gone. |
45.1 W |
0.4 N |
27 | Sunshine Ridge Rd (T202) at Lower Twin Creek Rd (C4) Meander generally W on Sunshine Ridge Rd that now seems to be C4. |
45.5 W |
0.0 N |
28 | Sunshine Ridge Rd (C4/T156) at Slate Fork Rd (C4) Continue generally W on Sunshine Ridge Rd, now designated T156D. After 0.26 mi (Location: 38.71612°N, -83.33181°W), exit Sunshine Ridge Rd onto a footpath; head generally W on a gradual descent. Soon, pass through a Mountain Laurel patch. After 0.35 mi, join an old road briefly (75’). Continue descent. After 0.12 mi, ford a stream. (Bad water. Do not consume!) Almost immediately, ford a second stream (potable after purification); soon turn NW. After 0.12 mi, join Johnson Run Rd in the middle of a turn marked with a wide spot on the E side of the road. Head SW briefly (60'). Exit the road W across a bridge over Johnson Run; begin a gradual ascent. After 0.7 mi, cross primitive Reel Ridge Rd (T289, Location: 38.721658°N, 83.342169°W). Very soon, turn parallel to road. For the next 0.5 mi or so, climb slightly to a high ridge. After 1.1 mi, ford an intermittent stream; begin steeper descent. |
3.2 W |
66.3 SE |
A | Footpath at Moon Hollow Trailhead (C, P) Location: N 38.73361, W 83.35263. If you liked cowboy western music during the late 40's through the early 60's, you probably have heard of Cowboy Copas, Oklahoma Cowboy or The Waltz King of the Grand Ole Opry. Those sobriquets were adopted by a Lloyd Estel Copas who was born in this hollow on July 15, 1913. Among other accomplishments, he was the first to record and popularize Tennessee Waltz. NOTE: Parking at any time is restricted to 4 vehicles. In addition, any vehicle left overnight must display a valid parking permit in the windshield. Exit the trailhead W onto Moon Hollow Rd (T415, 100'). Follow the road S for about 50'. Exit the road W across a bridge over a tributary to Blue Creek. Follow footpath SW across field behind barn and through a fence (Location: N 38.73269, W 83.35341, 350'). Continue generally W on footpath upslope. Ford a stream after 0.14 mi. After 0.6 mi on a ridge, pass a Carsonite Marker (Location: N 38.73390, W 83.35715) that marks the spur trail to the Moon Hollow campsite. Continue along the ridge with occasional views. After 0.8 mi, join Sunshine Ridge Rd (T156C, Location: N 38.72616, W 83.36442) and head W. |
4.9 NW |
64.6 E |
B | Sunshine Ridge Rd (T156C) at Blue Creek Rd (C18) Continue on Sunshine Ridge Rd, now NW, with a new designation, T156B. |
5.5 S |
64.0 E |
2 | Sunshine Ridge Rd at Morel Hollow Rd (T312A) This is Point 2 of West Union. Continue with the map updates on the West Union Section page. |
CW | CCW | Pt | |
---|---|---|---|
12.3 SE |
34.3 NW |
9 | SR 348 at Mt Unger Rd (T160) in Wamsley Wamsley was founded in 1864 by the Rev William Wamsley. Exit SR 348 SSE onto Mt Unger Rd (opposite C. U. Chapel). After 0.3 mi, pass Bracken Ridge Rd (T161) that diverges E up hill. Continue SE into Groundhog Hollow. Later, climb more steeply on this very primitive Mt Unger Rd as it continues on its meandering way SE. After 0.8 mi at a driveway (38.81572°N, 83.27246°W), exit road S onto a footpath located between the road and the driveway. Climb gradually through Groundhog Hollow on this meandering path. After 0.3 mi, change direction from NW to SE at a switchback. After 0.2 mi, pass a small, brown shed (C) that is marked with a BTA decal. Turn E across an open field. |
14.0 E |
32.6 W |
10 | Two-Track at Mt Unger Rd (T160) and an unsigned Dirt Road (T163
Follow the unsigned, dirt road. |