Hammock Camping with my Dog – Seneca Creek Hiking & Backpacking Trip

Join my dog Denali and I for some Hiking, Backpacking, and Hammock Camping in the Seneca Creek Backcountry.

For this hiking adventure, my pup and I will be visiting the Spruce Knob-Seneca Creek National Recreation area, within West Virginia’s greater Monongahela National Forest. Our route will be a “lollipop”style hike – meaning we’ll use an “out and back” section of trail from the Spruce Knob trailhead parking area to connect with a series of other trails that form a loop. After completing the loop portion of the hike, we’ll backtrack out using the same section of trail from day one.

The Spruce Knob-Seneca Creek Backcountry offers around 60 miles of trails (marked with blue blazes) with an elevation range of 3,000 to 4,800 feet above sea level. The beginning of this particular loop is actually the highest point in all of West Virginia – Spruce Knob – standing at and elevation of 4,861 feet. Below is a list of trails for each day, along with stats for elevation gain and mileage.

Trailhead Parking: Spruce Knob Parking area (right by the observation tower).

Parking Notes:  No parking fees or overnight permits are required.  There are restrooms and bear-proof trash bins available for use.

GPS Track Data for this trip can be found on my Trip Data Page.

Trails used, Day 1

  • Huckleberry Trail
  • Hornton Trail (just for a short bit)
  • Judy Springs Trail
  • Seneca Creek Trail
  • Hammock Camp along Seneca Creek.

Day 1 – Seneca Creek Loop elevation Profile – Sintax77

Day 1 Mileage: 6.5 miles
Day 1 Gross Elevation Gain:  221 feet (pretty much down hill all day)

Trails used, Day 2

  • Seneca Creek Trail
  • High Meadows Trail
  • Lumberjack Trail
  • Join back up with Huckleberry Trail
  • Arrive back at Spruce Knob Parking Lot

Day 2 – Seneca Creek Loop elevation Profile – Sintax77

Day 2 Mileage: 10 miles
Day 2 Gross Elevation Gain:  2,173 feet (pretty much up hill all day)

Notable Gear Seen in the Video

Denali’s Hammock – 2T’s Hammock Chair from Dutchware
Denali’s Dog Backpack – “One Tigris Cotton Canvas Dog Pack”
Denali’s Collapsible Dog Dish – Doggone Dish
Dutchware Chameleon Hammock
Hammock Gear Burrow 40 Top Quilt

Hammock Gear Phoenix 30 Underquilt
Hammock Gear Cuben Hex Tarp
Katadyn BeFree Water Filter
Toaks 750ml Titanium Pot
Vargo Windscreen
Esbit Solid Fuel Cubes
ULA Ohm 2.0 Backpack

Aerial Photography – DJI Mavic Pro
Primary Camera – Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera

3 thoughts on “Hammock Camping with my Dog – Seneca Creek Hiking & Backpacking Trip

  1. I hiked Seneca Creek the first week in May. Saw bear tracks on Lumberjack trail, no bear sitings though. Saw several large turkeys.
    Like your drone camera shots.

  2. I took my teenage son on the same hike a couple of years ago. In fact, I think we camped in the same area you did in the vid. Great hike and we loved being on the creek.

  3. Hey there, been watching your youtube for ages, your last video made me sign up so I could comment. Long time ketoer here, wonderful to see someone else look at hiking + keto. Couple of good recipes I’ve worked out. To replace dehydrated hiker meals, make cauliflower rice, dry it slightly in the oven, and buy a few of these type meals. https://www.woolworths.com.au/Shop/ProductDetails/786891/sunrice-indian-butter-chicken-curry-with-rice , Toss rice, the nice low carb part of the meal comes separately in a sealed foil packet with a huge room temp shelf life . Boil your cauliflower rice with the foil packets in with it. let it sit like a regular hiker meal, drain, add the contents of the pouch and a couple of spoons of ghee and you are good to go. they should all be fine carbs wise except sweet and sour. (ghee is the perfect hiker product, 100% fat, tastes like butter, 2 years room temperature shelf life, comes in a plastic jar like peanut butter). Fried cheese. Grate tasty cheese, fry till browning gently, turn once, repeat on other side. Cool and take as snacks or crackers for with dip. They taste amazing, especially if you fry them in the bacon fat after cooking bacon. And my fast lunch, instant chicken soup ( lowest carb one I’ve found is about 14grams, but hiking gives you some leeway on max carbs), add a fancy feast sized tin of shredded chicken meat in brine and 2 spoons of ghee. Again, delicious. went to get some for a hike and found my wife had pinched the lot for work lunches. Can not wait to see what you come up with. One more, fried cheese bread. mix up at home almond meal ( 3 tablespoons), coconut flour (1/2 teaspoon) and baking powder (1/4 teaspoon). When you are ready to make it, mix one egg and enough water to make it fairly thin. Put it in the frypan and cover so it cooks a bit through, otherwise it’s too runny to flip. when it bubbles up from about 1/4 of an inch to regular bread size, flip it and brown the other size. Has a bit dry texture, but lots of flavor, so add a heap of ghee and whatever you want on the bread, cheese, spam, tuna, it will support burgers if you get the size right, makes a really good bacon and egg sandwich, especially since you can just use the bacon fat to cook it with, then scramble the eggs last in the pan using the spatula, that absorbs the last of the fat and leaves a nearly clean pan. And the lightest egg flip is from kids kitchen play set with the handle cut in half. If these go well, let me know and I’ll give you my camp chocolate cake with cream recipe.

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