If you enjoyed this video, please consider checking out the previous episode: Kayaking the Green River - kzread.info/dash/bejne/aZ-mmLybqsTPfrA.html

Excellent writing, editing, and cinematography!

@beyondthecampfire

5 күн бұрын

Thanks! I really like your Art Loeb video. I just subbed so I can check out more of your stuff!

Really lovely video! Nice filming, editing, grading and narration. My first trip to the Virginia Highlands was December 1981. That was nearly 43 years ago. My last trip (and video) to that area was June 30, 2021, so almost 3 years ago. I must get back there soon. It's magical. Thanks for sharing your trip!

Outstanding video

@beyondthecampfire

Ай бұрын

Thank you!

Very beautiful! Thank you for sharing! ☆ Jesi🐝Miel

well done.

Grayson Highlands is a truly special place, definitely our favorite of everywhere we’ve visited. Top-nothing video as well; sunsets, sunrises, the Milky Way; all very well done!

Top notch video!! I'm glad you enjoyed exploring my ''back yard''. I've been hiking the area for 40 plus years. Brier Ridge Meadow where you camped on your last night is one of my favorite spots. I actually grew up at the base of Whitetop Mtn. in the small community of Konnarock. Again you did an outstanding job on this video!

@beyondthecampfire

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you Jim! You weren't kidding about this area being your backyard. I remember seeing Konnarock on the map, and it's right in the thick of it. I looked all over for the name of that meadow and couldn't find it, so thanks for solving that mystery! I thought I was going to regret passing up the campsites around Thomas Knob, but I couldn't have picked a better spot for that last night. Thanks for watching!

I live, and grew up, in Grayson County. You have done an excellent job of showing the beauty of our area.

@beyondthecampfire

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you! I have to admit that the beauty of the area makes my job easy. All I have to do is point the camera and there's something beautiful there! Thank you for watching.

Really great video of a fantastic trip! I will share this with my mom when I am in Erie for Thanksgiving! What a talented cousin I have in you!

@beyondthecampfire

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you Joyce! It's great to hear from you. I would love for you to share this with your mom. I hope all of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Very well done. I really enjoyed this. I love the mount Rogers & Lewis fork wilderness. I did a trip there during a winter storm 2 years ago. What an experience! Thanks for sharing this!

@beyondthecampfire

2 жыл бұрын

You're welcome, and thank you for watching! That winter storm trip sounds awesome. I'd love to see the place in the snow. That might be the only thing that could make it more beautiful. Take care!

BRAVO! 👏 👏 👏 Such a wonderful video! I thought I was watching an epic nature film on National Geographic! Very well done!

@beyondthecampfire

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you, Nick! I'm really glad you liked it. I felt like I was in a National Geographic film while I was out there. I need to get you guys out there!

You've outdone yourself once again! So many great shots; your cinematic story telling keeps getting better as you add more tools to your toolbox. Great use of slo mo, time lapse, and long exposure (milky way 👌). I thoroughly enjoyed the ambient sequence with shots of canopy reflections in the leaf littered water, drowning in the laughter of the katydid.

@beyondthecampfire

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you! I appreciate you noticing some of those small details. It's always the little things that I spend the most time on during editing. I've been trying to do new things with each video, and my new camera has really helped with that, especially with the slo-mo and timelapses. I'm glad you liked the sequence with the leaves and katydids. That ended up being one of my favorite parts of the video too. I'm considering making some type of "relaxing nature ambiance" videos with that kind of imagery, natural sounds, and maybe music. Thanks again for watching!

Absolutely wonderful. Would you mind sharing your exact itinerary with campsites and water sources?

@beyondthecampfire

3 ай бұрын

I apologize for how convoluted this is going to be, but here goes: DAY 1 Parked at Grindstone Campground. There's a backpacking lot there. Took the Mt. Rogers Trail, going left at the intersection and crossing the road I came in on. On the other side of the road, followed the Fairwood Valley Trail until it intersected the Lewis Fork Trail and crossed the road again. Used the Lewis Fork and Cliffside trails to climb the mountain. Eventually, at the top, reached the Crest Trail and the spine of the mountains. Made camp there. There is a signposted spring nearby. It's the one I'm walking toward at 10:15 in the video. DAY 2 Followed the Crest Trail east to the Scales (there are vault toilets here). From the Scales, took the Appalachian Trail south through the Little Wilson Creek Wilderness. This is a very wet area, and it's where I loaded up on water for the rest of the day. The AT eventually curves to the west and meets up with a mess of trails inside Grayson Highlands State Park. From there, I took either the AT or the Horse Trail north. There's a gate where you exit Grayson Highlands, and I camped somewhere nearby. DAY 3: Continued north using the AT and the Wilburn Ridge Trail. The Wilburn Ridge Trail is the one that takes you OVER the awesome rock formations. The AT goes AROUND them. Reached the AT/Crest Trail again once I finished the climb. There is a well-marked spring south of the AT/Crest Trail. I filled up here for the rest of the day. Took the AT west, past the very popular Thomas Knob shelter (which also has a spring and a privy). There's a spur trail to the summit of Mt. Rogers shortly beyond the shelter. I didn't take it on this trip, but it's a short climb to the summit of the highest peak in the state. There's no view from the top, though. Continued west on the AT until I came out in that huge bald. Camped there. Beware that it's in a gap and could be very windy and/or damp. DAY 4: Returned to the AT. Took it W/NW until it met the Mt. Rogers Trail. Turned right/N on the Mt. Rogers Trail and followed it down the mountain and back to the Grindstone Campground. And that's it! I regret not including a map sequence in the video. That would have made this a little easier, haha. Just know that water sources, good campsites, ponies, and shortcuts are all plentiful. It's a great place for backpacking.

Man, you have another instant BTC classic right here!! Super sorry for my delay in replying, idk why the heck my schedule has been so stupid lately haha. Thoroughly enjoyed this one (as did the family!). I don’t have time stamps on this one, but hopefully you’ll know the general places in the video where I make references: -Your intro music feels very Tolkien-esque, I feel like you’re getting ready to take us on a grand adventure. -Catepillar/Slug creature macro shot was super cool at the parking lot -Can’t believe how loud those katydids were!!! Almost like cicadas -“sometimes more of a creek bed than a trail”. Boy, can I relate to that struggle! That’s Birch Knob of the PMT all over again! -Camp 1: Dinner on the “rock” as your table looked very inviting and fitting. Also the milky sis shot was mind blowing 🤯 -DUDE, that fog on morning two was completely unbelievable. It looks like a sunrise that you see at the top of Haleakala National Park in Hawaii. I bet this was something truly to behold! -I like your choice of Scottish/Irish themed music as you were heading out. Feels very appropriate for a land that probably many immigrants passed by on their way to settle west. -It’s amazing how close you were able to get to the ponies to capture them on camera! -Those longhorns feel like you were exploring out west! Remarkable. -This seems like an area where you really have to be careful about sun exposure- there wasn’t too many trees around to get shade from. -I love the several shots you got of the autumn leaves in the water with the fall foliage still on the trees reflecting from above! -Speaking, that shot of you walking away from the reflection of the puddle was sicccckkkkkkk. I wish I had thought of that shot! (How in the heck did you get that in focus?!) -1st person view of walking through ferns very neat -Were those choke cherry trees with the red fruits up on the top of the mountain? -Night 2 campsite looked super warm and welcome with those evergreen trees nearby -That shot of Mt Rogers in the sunset on Night 2 was incredible. So much exposed rock on that mountain! -Morning 3: another spectacular showcase of the billowing clouds with the sunrise! It’s like you were looking at the earth from above. -Clever spot to hang a clothes line! -Phew! Those were some sketchy climbs up to Mt Wilburn. -Your 1st person shot of collecting water was very unique- hadn’t seen that in a backpacking video before. -Bill said multiple times how western your video felt. He said the scenery and music could have been an episode of Lonesome Dove! -Night 3: Time Lapse of clouds moving looked like some type of ethereal creature drifting along the mountain top. All in all, a fantastic rendition of this beautiful area! I also could see the “Tree of Life” references from the combination of the music and the extended landscape scenes to provoke thought and emotion. Also, before watching this video, I could have said I would be okay if I never saw this portion of the Appalachians, but now you’ve caused this to jump to the front of the bucket list!! Great job on all the hard editing work, it paid off! Thanks for being a creative inspiration among the backpacking community! Onward to the Sods!!!

@beyondthecampfire

2 жыл бұрын

No worries at all! Sorry to hear your schedule has been running you ragged lately. I'm really glad to hear that your family enjoyed this one. I had a lot of fun making it. - I didn't even think about it at the time, but you're right about the music being Tolkien-esque! I'm pretty sure that most of the things I do are unconsciously-inspired by Tolkien, haha. - The katydids were almost as loud as the insect sounds on the Green River! - Sounds like we need to go out west where the trails aren't creekbeds half of the year 😁 - Dinner on the rock was one of my favorite parts of the trip. It was so nice to be rewarded with hot food and an amazing view after climbing the mountain. - I couldn't get over the sight of the fog and clouds in the morning. That's what kept getting me out of bed when it was still dark and cold in the morning. - Good point about the Scottish/Irish immigrants! I do think there was a "Scottish highland" theme going on in some of my music selections for this one. - Those ponies might be the most photogenic animals I've ever seen, haha. - I wasn't anticipating the sun exposure, and I didn't bring any sunscreen. I got absolutely cooked... You can see in some of the later shots that I look very well-done, haha. - I'm glad you like the reflection shots. I sort of stumbled into getting the one with me walking past, and it was just sheer luck that the focus was so sharp, haha. - I think the trees that you mentioned are some kind of mountain ash. I've never seen so many of them in one place. - The rosy glow on those exposed rocks at Campsite 2 was unreal. Not bad for evening entertainment. - That second sunrise might have been the most spectacular I've seen in my life. - I think I had the same thought when I was shooting the water shot: "Hey, why haven't I seen anyone get this shot before?" 😅 - Bill makes a good point! It felt like a western trip at times. When I saw those longhorn for the first time I had a weird sense of being displaced. This place is similar to the Dolly Sods in how it seems to belong to some other, far distant part of the country. - I love the clouds forming over that mountaintop. It really did look like a living thing. I sped up that shot quite a bit, but you could see it moving in real-time, too. - Yeah, that's pretty much what I meant when I said I was probably inspired by Tree of Life! I also tried using the style of jump cut that they use in that movie. Thanks again for the support and for sharing your thoughts. I really appreciate it. We definitely need to get you out to this part of the Appalachians, especially now that I have a better of what to do and not to do (and now that I know some great campsites). First, however, it's on to the Sods for us! I'm getting really pumped for it!

I just stumbled upon your channel this evening and have now binge-watched a ton of your hikes. This video in particular is probably my favorite. What a beautiful hike - the colors, varied terrain, adorable creatures along the way - and that shot of the Milky Way was wonderful. I live in Illinois and have only done a few hikes, but now I really want to drive out and try this one. Thank you for sharing your adventures - looking forward to more! By the way, I know you mentioned not having a planned circuit when you had started, but do you by any chance have a map or summary of the trails you ended up following that comprised the journey?

@beyondthecampfire

2 жыл бұрын

I'm very sorry for the delayed response to your wonderful comment. I was out of town for several days with spotty internet access. Thank you very much for watching and for letting me know that this video inspired you in some way. These are the type of comments that make this all worthwhile for me. I really hope you get to explore the area in the near future. It's very much worth the drive from Illinois. Let me see if I can give you a decent description of my route: Parked at Grindstone Campground (there's a small fee for an overnight parking tag). Briefly used the Mount Rogers Trail to connect with the Fairwood Valley Trail. Cut across to the Lewis Fork Trail, then used it and the Cliffside Trail to get to the crest where I spent the first night. Day 2: headed east on the Crest Trail to The Scales. From Scales, followed the Appalachian Trail clockwise past Wise Shelter, into Massie Gap, and north toward Wilburn Ridge. Camped near intersection of AT and Virginia Highlands Trail. Day 3: headed north on Appalachian Trail, with a detour on the very rocky Wilburn Ridge Trail. At the intersection with the Crest Trail, followed the AT west past Thomas Knob and the summit of Mt. Rogers. Camped in the big clearing just off the AT near the intersection with the Cabin Mountain Trail. Day 4: Got back on the AT and followed it west to the intersection with the Mount Rogers Trail. Followed the Mount Rogers Trail down the mountain and back to my car at Grindstone.

@melaniereveal573

Жыл бұрын

Thank you for adding the specifics…I watched your video and took notes while referring to the amount Rogers High Country map…and then I discovered this post! Excellent description! I’ll be heading back to the area in late spring / early summer 2023 and looking forward to exploring some of these spots! 😊❤

Thank you for the reminder how amazing this place is! As always, the video makes me feel like I was right there with you. I always feel so relaxed and incredibly blessed when I watch your videos! Awesome job! I can’t wait for the next one!

@beyondthecampfire

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you for watching and putting up with all the work! I'm glad it made you feel that way. I didn't quite realize it at first, but I seem to be trying to make relaxing, anxiety-reducing videos. They make me feel better too!

Hy, just a curiosity, Are these all campsites 🏕️ are free ?? You just go there and ground the tent ⛺️??

@beyondthecampfire

7 күн бұрын

Yes and yes! As long as you stay within National Forest boundaries, you can camp almost anywhere at no fee.

Is this trail moderately difficult and / or do you feel it too much for an elderly person to attempt?

@beyondthecampfire

4 ай бұрын

The trails vary in difficulty quite a bit. If you begin at Grayson Highlands State Park, I'd say the trails are easy to moderate. It's a relatively short hike from the state park up to the ridgeline and the nice views. If you start at the Grindstone campground (where I started in this video), the hike up to the ridge is fairly difficult. I'd recommend the state park.

Hi, friend, I'm fully watching. Good job. Keep in touch & remember to return thx. 👍26

First! 🤣

🙏 Thank you for sharing. This channel just needs Promo SM!