There are plenty of amazing places to visit within the Monongahela National Forest, but there’s one particular spot with an intriguing landscape and a fascinating history. The Dolly Sods Wilderness has been through logging, fires, climate change, and explosives, but nature refuses to give up on this spot, and its unrelenting beauty is unforgettable.

The high plateau of Dolly Sods was once covered in a dense forest of ancient spruce and hemlock trees.
WikiMedia Commons/Nicholas A. Tonelli
Early explorers were amazed and intimidated by the wilderness and wildlife within.
WikiMedia Commons/Justin Shoemaker
David Hunter Strother wrote of the area in 1852: "In Randolph County, Virginia, is a tract of country containing from seven to nine hundred square miles, entirely uninhabited, and so savage and inaccessible that it has rarely been penetrated even by the most adventurous. The settlers on its borders speak of it with a sort of dread, and regard it as an ill-omened region, filled with bears, panthers, impassable laurel-brakes, and dangerous precipices. Stories are told of hunters having ventured too far, becoming entangled, and perishing in its intricate labyrinths."
In 1884, railroads were built to the area so that loggers could make use of the trees.
WikiMedia Commons/G. E. Griffith
Most of the trees were cut down, and the change in landscape caused the area to become a desert. Several wildfires burned through the remains of the trees and other plant life.
WikiMedia Commons/Gerald Vicker, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
The fields are now marked with exposed rocks.
http://www.ForestWander.com
In 1943-1944, the U.S. Army used Dolly Sods as a place for target practice and explosives testing.
Flickr/Tim Menzies
It's quite possible that live explosives still remain in the area, so hikers today are encouraged to stick to the known trails and report any strange objects.
With the forests gone from the plateau, strong winds carved into the rocks and stunted the growth of new trees.
WikiMedia Commons/Aneta Kaluzna
The result is a very surreal landscape.
However, some trees and ferns are starting to return.
http://www.ForestWander.com
The landscape is marked with many blueberry, cranberry, and huckleberry plants, which turn brilliant colors in the fall.
http://www.ForestWander.com

Despite its rough past, Dolly Sods continues to be a home to plants and wildlife, and remains one of the most impressive landscapes in West Virginia.

West Virginia is full of stunning beauty. Take a look at these 13 staggering photos that prove West Virginia is the most beautiful place in the whole wide world.

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