How hard is Seneca Creek Trail (FT 515)?

Monongahela National Forest rates it moderate.

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Monongahela National Forest · Potomac Highlands

Seneca Creek Trail (FT 515)

Follows the creek past cascades and pools to the Horton Trail junction. Beyond that the route is unmaintained and runs to posted private land.

Getting to the trailhead

From Seneca Rocks, WV 28/55 south about 10 miles, Briery Gap Run Road 2.4 miles, then Forest Road 112 for about 11.4 miles to the trailhead on the right. FR 112 is a forest road, not a highway.

Worth knowing

The creek is crossed several times without bridges, so spring melt and post-storm flows decide whether the walk works. No potable water.

Part of Spruce Knob and the Seneca Creek backcountry

Roughly 60 miles of trail below and around Spruce Knob, the highest ground in West Virginia at 4,863 feet. The Forest Service runs it as part of the Spruce Knob–Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, 100,000 acres designated by Congress in 1965. Trailheads are on forest roads rather than highways, and Seneca Creek is crossed several times without bridges.

Spruce Knob guide