Idyllic Alleghany Weekend

Our weekend in Alleghany County consisted of one highlight after another.

Day 1 was all about the Jackson River.

We were either fishing the Jackson River, kayaking on it, or biking next to it.

Day 2 was a series of WOWs

Island Ford Cave, the LOVEworks at Humpback Bridge, and Falling Spring Falls

We rated our impressions of Alleghany County below. Ratings are based on diversity and quality of each category.

Most categories received 5 stars.

We awarded 4 stars to the restaurants category. The food was very good, but there were not many dining options and we could not find any dog friendly places to eat.

We awarded 3 stars to the history category because although Alleghany County has a rich history, it was not made part of the experience (no museum, for example.)

• Accommodations ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• Dog Friendly ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• History ⭐️⭐️⭐️
• Recreation ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• Restaurants ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
• Sightseeing ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Jackson River

Public Service Announcement: Be careful where you fish on the Jackson River and refer to this map to avoid fishing on private property.

Mack spent all day fishing for trout. The only downside is that the day had to end.

The Jackson River offers some five star kayaking opportunities and I wish I had signed up for a kayaking adventure through Alleghany Outdoors.

Instead, I launched my kayak into a spot in the river where I greatly underestimated the current. Immediately I lost control of my kayak and the rapids tossed me around like a bath toy.

I hauled my kayak out of the river a short time later and decided to try biking.

The Jackson River Scenic Trail

Who knew that I was embarking on the most enjoyable bike ride of my life?!

Thank goodness I brought my bike on this trip. I ventured out on the first day of our 2-day trip to check out the Jackson River Scenic Trail. I was pleasantly surprised to find a beautiful and well-maintained trail that seemed to go on forever. (It’s actually over 14 miles long.) Even better, the trail is mostly flat and is composed of finely crushed gravel. I could have happily spent the entire weekend biking on this trail. And more good news, this trail is dog friendly.

This YouTube video captures the awesomeness of riding on the Jackson River Scenic Trail.

Falling Spring Falls

On the second day, we left early in the morning to see the Falling Spring Falls, but not early enough. This stunning waterfall is a popular spot (and a stop on the Virginia Cave and Karst Trail). When we arrived, one couple had set up a tripod for an extended photo shoot. They were not happy to see us arrive. We quickly snapped a photo and filmed a 2-second video. Then, we went on our way.

LOVEworks

We stopped by dog friendly Wayside Park to see Alleghany County’s LOVEworks as well as the Humpback Bridge.

Mack took advantage of the opportunity to go fishing at Wayside Park. He caught 4 smallmouth bass and 3 rock bass.

Island Ford Cave

I didn’t know that Virginia has a Significant Cave List, but apparently it does, and this list includes Island Ford Cave due to its aesthetics, biology, geology, and history.

Alleghany County is located in Virginia’s Valley and Ridge region. This area is known for hot springs, caverns and caves, such as the Island Ford Cave, conveniently located right along State Route 1104.

Island Ford Cave is a favorite destination of amateur “flashlight cavers.” You don’t have to be an experienced spelunker to explore this cave and see its WOWness for yourself.

Between its accessibility, ease of exploration, & WOW Factor, this cave almost seems too good to be true. We parked along the side of the road and walked inside. We had the cave completely to ourselves.

The cave entrance leads into a large “room” with a wall of rocks at the rear. Unfortunately, We had no idea that the WOW factor of Island Ford Cave increased exponentially just beyond the wall of rocks.

Not only does the cave stretch way out from the room at the entrance, but it contains bone sites from the Ice Age, and a pool with cave crayfish. Good grief, did I mess up on this one…..

If only I had found this map prior to our visit, we could have explored the cave for another couple of hours.

This video by YouTube’s Smell N Roses channel shows what a successful Island Ford Cave exploration looks like.

Dining

During our weekend stay, we dined at two of Covington’s restaurants that we recommend: Cucci’s Pizzeria and the San-Juan which serves Mexican food.

Know before You Go

• Download Alleghany County to your Google maps and print out this map. We lost signal while we were driving around.
• Plan your visit to Alleghany County by reviewing https://www.visitalleghanyhighlands.com/
• Covington’s West Rock Paper Mill employs many citizens which is wonderful for the local economy. The downside is the pulp mill smell. However, we stayed just a few miles from downtown on the Jackson River and we did not smell the pulp mill at all.
• Also, be forewarned that Falling Spring Falls is a very popular attraction so be sure to visit during an off peak time, such as very early on a weekday morning.

Road Trip Reads

These books, all available at Audible, for easy road trip listening, each provide different insights into the history and culture, and economy of Alleghany County.

Alleghany Humane Society

Alleghany Humane Society is open by appointment only. You can also check out their Facebook page.

Cold Case Corner

Please review and share the details of one of the area’s unsolved homicide cases. Somebody knows something.

from: https://coldcase.vsp.virginia.gov/virginia-state-police/case/virginia-state-police-case-92-15284/