I drove Sue and her family to Elizabeth Furnace Recreation Area for a short hike yesterday. There are interpretive signs along the trail to tell you how iron was made here in the 19th century. Now it's part of George Washington National Forest.After we walked the loop trail around the iron furnace, we took a second interpretive trail, the Charcoal Trail. Since the signs there were written in the first person as though told by a charcoal maker and later the iron master, Doug read the signs in various voices, to the amusement of the rest of us.
At the time of the iron industry, all the trees were cut down in this area in order to make charcoal. The forest today is typical second-growth Virginia forest. A brochure about Elizabeth Furnace is available on the Shenandoah County website.
Sharing with Good Fences
Looks like a lovely place for a hike. I love the trees and fences.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a pretty spot for a hike. Have a happy day and weekend!
ReplyDeletethe voice-overs sounded fun. :) neat trail and cute family.
ReplyDeleteAmazing what we find, when we stop and take a look along our day.
ReplyDeleteIt really doesn't take long for nature to reclaim!
ReplyDeleteNice place for a hike. Always interesting to find artifacts from a bygone era.
ReplyDeleteNice family shots. :-)
ReplyDeleteI like this kind of walk where you can learn a bit about the area. Thanks for sharing.
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