What is the Tuscarora Trail?

One of my books is titled the “The Tuscarora Trail”. So what and where is the Tuscarora Trail?

Unless you are an experienced backpacker or familiar with hiking along the East Coast, you may not be aware of this trail or its location. This trail plays a significant role in two of my books: “The Province Senior Intelligence Adviser” and “The Tuscarora Trail.”

As noted in several prior blog posts, I was previously an enthusiastic backpacker until a longstanding injury from the Vietnam War made it necessary for me to stop. During my service in Vietnam, I sustained a significant back injury that, after more than fifty years, ultimately prevented me from continuing this activity. I greatly valued spending time in nature while backpacking with my friend John and the many remarkable individuals I encountered on the trails.

After completing the Appalachian Trail, John and I sought our next challenge. For years, we had explored the trails along Massanutten Mountain and frequently traversed what was once known as the ‘Big Blue’ trail. Upon reviewing a backpacking publication, I learned that this trail had been renamed the Tuscarora. The route intersects Massanutten Mountain at Veach Gap, a location where John and I have often stayed overnight at the Little Crease shelter.

As usual I was the research guy, and I started doing some research about the Tuscarora trail.

Research indicates that the Tuscarora, also known as the Big Blue, was established as a side trail during the 1960s to address challenges facing the Appalachian Trail. In the mid-1960s, the Appalachian Trail effectively concluded at the boundary of Shenandoah National Park for through-hikers, due to limited access through private lands in Northern Virginia and Maryland. Landowners in these regions were generally unwilling to permit the trail to pass through their woodlands. Consequently, hikers exiting the park needed to traverse significant stretches of roadway to remain on the trail. At that time, it was anticipated that this situation would persist indefinitely.

One contributing factor was land development; the property in question possessed significant value, and concerns arose that constructing a trail through it could adversely affect its worth. Another notable challenge involved a classified military installation. In Northern Virginia, Mount Weather is a highly secretive base, with the surrounding area protected by military authorities. The proposed trail route would have intersected the heart of this restricted military reservation.

So we have reluctance of the land owners to allow hikers to cross their land, and the issue of the military base that had to deny access for security reasons.

A group of hikers working with the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club decided that they could solve the problem by modifying the Appalachian Trail.

Instead of continuing north through Northern Virginia and Maryland, the trail would proceed westward across the Shenandoah Valley before ascending the Allegheny Front. From this point, it could traverse national forests and state forest lands, ultimately reconnecting with the Appalachian Trail just north of Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

The process of establishing the ‘Big Blue’ trail was undertaken to create this connection. The name ‘Big Blue’ was originally chosen because, on the Appalachian Trail, a blue blaze designates an alternate route or connector trail. Typically, blue blaze trails serve as links to shelters, water sources, or alternative paths around significant obstacles. In this instance, the primary challenge addressed was inadequate access.

The trail was constructed to traverse Page Valley before ascending Massanutten Mountain along its eastern slope. Upon entering Veach Gap, the route proceeded northward through National Forest lands toward the Elizabeth Furnace campgrounds. The pathway then continued west over the West Ridge of the Massanutten mountain range, subsequently descending into and crossing the Shenandoah Valley. The trail ascended the Allegheny front and extended north along the ridge to Hancock, Maryland, where it crossed the Potomac River.

After reaching Hancock, Maryland, the trail crossed the Potomac River and traveled east for approximately 8 miles along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal trail. It then linked to Pennsylvania game lands via a series of roads, continued through the game lands along Tuscarora Ridge, and ultimately rejoined the Appalachian Trail northwest of Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

This new trail was 252 miles long.

In 1969, significant developments occurred for the Appalachian Trail when Congress enacted the National Trails Act, incorporating the Trail into the national trail system. This designation provided the government with the authority to exercise eminent domain if necessary to secure land access for the Trail’s extension. Moreover, changes in national defense strategies reduced the strategic importance of previously restricted sites along the route. Consequently, the Trail was permitted to extend through the area now known as the Roller Coaster, situated below the former military installation.

As a result just about the time that the Tuscarora trail was completed it was somewhat abandoned. There were still maps of the area, but trail maintenance was very poor and in some areas the trail was nearly abandoned.

As increased usage of the Appalachian Trail led to greater hiking activity, interest in the Tuscarora Trail was revitalized. Many hikers sought an alternative to the heavily trafficked national trail, and the Tuscarora Trail provided a distinctive and rewarding experience.

During the 2000s, the Tuscarora Trail experienced a rise in popularity; however, it did not offer many of the amenities commonly available along the Appalachian Trail. Over time, the Appalachian Trail benefited from the establishment of hostels, the development of livery services, and increased accessibility for hikers. Such amenities were absent along the Tuscarora Trail.

There were limited trail towns along the Tuscarora Trail, making it considerably more difficult to leave the route and secure accommodation in a hostel or motel compared to the well-established Appalachian Trail. Aside from the small town of Gore in Virginia and Carlisle itself, opportunities for resupply or overnight stays were scarce. According to some experienced hikers, this environment closely resembled the conditions of the original Appalachian Trail.

We had to be imaginative about where we located resupply points at and in some cases our wives would have to drive quite a distance to support us.

I chose the Tuscarora Trail as the background setting for my book, “Province Senior Intelligence Adviser.” To be precise, the story follows two elderly veterans hiking along the Massanutten Trail until it meets the Tuscarora near Front Royal, Virginia.

The book describes a hike along the Massanutten Trail at the southern end of the mountain. During their journey, the main characters encounter two young ROTC cadets—soon to graduate and become second lieutenants—who are backpacking for a couple of days from Harrisonburg, Virginia, where they attend James Madison University. The two older veterans began their trek outside Harrisonburg and are heading north toward Paul Tyler’s cabin, where they plan to resupply before continuing their trip.

This would ultimately connect them in my book the “Tuscarora Trail” with the Big Blue at Veach Gap near Front Royal.

This way they were able to tell their war stories to these two young men who were eager to listen to the old warriors discussing what that ancient war in Vietnam had been like.

In my book the “Tuscarora Trail” the two old vets start out from the cabin in New Market Virginia and head up the trail to link up with the Appalachian Trail outside of Carlisle at a place called Darlington shelter.

Along the way they meet young people who are interested in their war stories. In some cases they meet old vets themselves who have stories to tell, and they interact with people along the trail. The trail itself becomes a vehicle for telling the stories.

The Tuscarora Trail remains a challenging route for hikers. However, various trail maintenance organizations have made significant improvements to address several issues previously encountered. The shelter system along the trail is notably well-designed, and RCI, a sports company, has contributed substantial funding towards the development of aesthetically pleasing shelters throughout the area.

I used to maintain a section along the Tuscarora trail from the top of the western Ridge of Massanutten mountain down through a farm and across the North Branch of the Shenandoah river. Unfortunately the farm was sold when the gentleman who owned it passed away and we lost transit rights across the property.

The trail has been redesigned since I last did my trail maintenance work. It now runs South down the Massanutten West trail to Woodstock gap. It then goes down the road into Woodstock before returning north along a road-march to its original trace. It’s added a number of miles to the trail because of this reroute requirement.

The Tuscarora Trail includes several segments that require walking on roads. Typically, these sections traverse smaller, secluded gravel roads with minimal traffic concerns. However, in Pennsylvania, certain portions of the trail necessitate travel along busier country roads. Notably, the road entering and leaving Spring Hill, Pennsylvania, experiences significant traffic. This route is distinctive due to the frequent presence of horse-drawn carriages.

Large parts of the trail are extremely rocky, which is typical of Pennsylvania, with large boulder fields of screed rock jumbles. It’s a tough trail.

I know that there’s been a lot of changes to the trail since I hiked it. When I wrote my books I used my trail journals that I maintained on all of my hikes.

At the conclusion of each day, upon arrival at a shelter or campsite, I would document the day’s events in my journal. My entries included an assessment of the hike’s difficulty, notable landmarks or scenic points encountered along the trail, as well as objective descriptions of the route itself. When meeting fellow hikers, I recorded their trail names and personal narratives. Additionally, I described the amenities of the shelters visited and identified available water sources on the trail.

When I wrote my books it was easy for me to go back into the trail journals and get good description of the trails.

In my novels, most of the characters are fictional. In the final installment, “The Tuscarora Trail,” I incorporated these characters to provide closure for several narratives from my Vietnam stories. They serve as a literary device to convey events that were originally intended for other works but did not seamlessly integrate. This approach effectively brought resolution to various storylines.

As noted in previous entries, incorporating trails such as the Appalachian Trail and the Tuscarora Trail into the narrative has provided a valuable framework for conveying experiences related to Vietnam.

If you’re enjoying these blogs please drop me a comment or if you have any questions that I might answer, again submit a comment on the comment pages. I’m always glad to hear from you.

Again, please take a look at all of my books that I have listed. They can be purchased from Amazon.com with the click of a button directly from my website, www.ptaylorvietnamadvisor.com.  Until next Friday, Have a good week.

The Advisor Series:

• “The Advisor, Kien Bing, South Vietnam, 1969-1970. A Novel” (Available on Amazon ASIN: B09L4X5NQ3)
• “The Province Senior Intelligence Advisor, Kien Song Province 1970-1971; A Novel” (Available on Amazon ASIN: B0BHL2XCX5)
• “The Hardchargers,” Vietnam 1972-1973; A Novel” (Available on Amazon ASIN: B0C7SPR1JY)
• “The Tuscarora Trail” (Available on Amazon ASIN: B0D3QY2GM6)

Check out my website for other books that I’ve written or edited.

Website: ptaylorvietnamadvisor.com