Grayson Highlands State Park is best known for the wild ponies that you can find along the Appalachian trail. I knew I was going to pass nearby so of course I had to stop and see if I would have any luck there. Keep reading if you’d like to hear more about exactly how I found the ponies at Grayson Highlands. If you’d like to learn more about the trails and other park facilities check out my other post here!
When I got to the ticket office I asked the woman working which trail would give me the best chance of seeing the wild ponies and if you could see them all year. She and another park ranger both recommended the Rhododendron trail for any time of year. She handed me a trail map, and I was on my way.
As I headed up the hill, there was a viewpoint on my right showcasing stunning mountain layers. I stopped to snap a few photos and continued up the mountain to the start of the trailhead. As I continued up the mountain it seemed that the snow I had run into at the channels was starting to catch up to me here. By the time I reached the parking lot at Massie Gap it was a complete whiteout.
The Rhododendron trail is only .3 miles, then it connects to the high trail. This is where most people will find the ponies. It was about 29° when I was there, and the wind was growing stronger every step I took further up the mountain.
It didn’t take long for me to reach the end of the recommended trail, and after seeing no sign of the ponies I was starting to feel a bit discouraged. I wasn’t sure what the next best trail would be so I began to wander a bit. There was another trail marker ahead, and as I passed it, I saw sign for the Rhododendron Gap trail. I hadn’t seen it on the map but when I got closer I noticed there was a little sign with a pony carved into it. This seemed very promising, so I continued along the way.
The trail was nearly invisible. I was almost at the peak of the mountain range and could barely see anything around me. Snow and wind was whipping at my face and I was feeling miserable. It was around 1:30 when I had arrived at the park, and since I was there in November, sunset was quickly approaching. I wanted to make sure that I was heading back with plenty of time to still have light, and make sure that I could find the trail back with the low visibility conditions. I told myself that if I didn’t see them in an hour I’d have to turn around.
There was a peak ahead of me so I headed that way thinking I’d at least have a good vantage point from the top even if I didn’t see any ponies on the way up. No luck, it was time to turn around.
I quickly scampered back down the Rhododendron Gap trail feeling sad, cold, and eager to get back in the heat of my car. I tried to be optimistic that maybe they would’ve come out in the time that I had taken to go further down the trail but still there was no sign. As I came back to the intersection at the beginning of the Rhododendron Gap trail I had lost all hope.
I began to make my way back down the High trail when out of the corner of my eye. I saw a distinct, C shape in the snow. There was no snow in the center of it. It had to be a fresh print. My mind started racing as I told myself not to do some thing ridiculously stupid. I took a second to let myself check that I was heading in the right direction based on the shape of the print, and continued along the unmarked trail that they had followed.
About half way up the trail they disappeared. I looked around to see if maybe they had gone through the field next to the trail or if somehow, I was just missing them. Maybe the wind had blown them away but I had no idea. I was running out of time so I told myself I would try one more path. I would just walk to the top of the hill here and if I didn’t see anything I turn around.
As I trudged along about halfway up the hill, I noticed a pile of poop. Now this was fresh poop. There was not a flake of snow on it. I had never been so excited to see poop on a trail in my life. Picking up my pace to a slight jog, I noticed another pile of poop, and finally more clear hoof prints breaking up the snow. I ran up over the top of the hill and there I saw a single black pony grazing I could not contain my excitement, I think I actually yelled. As I slowly headed towards it to get a little bit closer the left side of the clearing came in to view and I realized he was in fact traveling with a herd. There were about 20 or so ponies including a few foals in the group.
I went to take my camera off of its clip. My hands were shaking from the cold and excitement but I managed to snap few good photos and videos despite the less than ideal weather conditions. Unfortunately since hit had taken so long to find the ponies I didn’t get to spend a whole lot of time with them before it started to get dark but at least it was worth suffering through the cold!
You can read more about Grayson Highlands State Park on my other post here! If you have any more questions please don’t hesitate to comment and I’ll do my best to answer them!
