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the Degree Confluence Project
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United States : West Virginia

3.2 miles (5.2 km) SE of Trainer, Greenbrier, WV, USA
Approx. altitude: 942 m (3090 ft)
([?] maps: Google MapQuest OpenStreetMap topo aerial ConfluenceNavigator)
Antipode: 38°S 100°E

Accuracy: 6 m (19 ft)
Quality: good

Click on any of the images for the full-sized picture.

#2: 38N 80W is located in the Lake Sherwood Recreation Area, about 100 meters below the far ridge and about 600 meters to the right of the high point. #3: The insert shows an enlarged view of the barely visible beaver seen next to his lodge along the Lake Sherwood Trail on the way to 38N 80W. #4: Taking the trail over this wooden bridge eliminates any need to cross the spillway at the earthen dam. #5: A half mile hike up the Virginia Trail provides an easy approach to 38N 80W. #6: Spelling may not be the trail builders’ strongest suit, along the Allegheny Trail. #7: View downhill from the Virginia/ West Virginia border towards 38N 80W. #8: Cynthia does the numbers. #9: Up and down:  Ground cover and tree canopy at 38N 80W. #10: The 2006 – 2008 Virginia Official Transportation Map mistakenly claims 38N 80W is within the Old Dominion State!

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  38°N 80°W (visit #3)  

#1: Clockwise from the upper left corner:  Looking north, east, south, and west.

(visited by Woody Harrell and Cynthia Harrell)

04-Sep-2006 -- ”Almost heaven…” In fact, almost in Virginia! Heading northeast on Interstate Highway 81 towards Shenandoah National Park, we took a detour north on I-77 past Bluefield, then turned east on I-64 at Beckley, to break up the trip and attempt our first cp visit in the State of West Virginia. We stopped for the night in the historic little town of Lewisburg ["Only two kinds of people ever leave Lewisburg - those who will return and those who wish they could."]. Of particular interest was a large cross-shaped mass grave containing the bodies of almost 100 Confederate soldiers from America’s Civil War.

The next morning, we were off bright and early, following Ross Finlayson’s excellent directions from his August 2000 trip. Our only glitch was following our state road map, rather than the highway signs, only to learn there is no exit onto Highway 92 traveling east at Exit 81, forcing us to reverse course at Exit 83. [We should have taken Exit 175, past the famous Greenbrier Resort. (And if we’d been a day earlier, we could have taken the newly offered twice-weekly tour of a legendary piece of Cold War history, the former U.S. Government Relocation Facility, commonly known as “the bunker,” located below the resort’s West Virginia wing!)]

Eleven miles past Neola, we parked at Lake Sherwood Recreation Area, which even on Labor Day, the last big U.S. holiday of the summer, was far from crowded. The weather was cool and cloudy, with the threat of a shower. Making our way around the calm lake, we spotted a beaver swimming near its lodge at water’s edge. A little further on we crossed the earthen dam that forms the lake. Although the previous visitor talked about having to get his feet wet to hike across the spillway, we found our path led over a sturdy wooden bridge just below the dam.

On the other side we began an upward climb on the Virginia Trail. A short hike with a gain of 100+ meters in elevation brought us to the Allegheny Mountain Trail and the Virginia/West Virginia border. The ridge was noticeably steeper on the Virginia side, and in a few weeks, on a clear day after leaf fall, the view should be spectacular. After a short walk north along the ridge, we turned downhill toward the cp. Although the forest understory was thin, the tree canopy nevertheless caused problems while trying to photograph ten zeroes. The area surrounding the cp appears unchanged since the two previous visits.

Resuming our journey east on I-64, we picked up a new road map at the Virginia Welcome Station, and couldn’t help but notice, according to the map, Virginia also claims ownership of 38N 80W! Although the location was well within Virginia from at least 1787 until the creation of West Virginia in 1863, some pretty serious plate tectonics would be required today to move the intersection back into Virginia…


 All pictures
#1: Clockwise from the upper left corner: Looking north, east, south, and west.
#2: 38N 80W is located in the Lake Sherwood Recreation Area, about 100 meters below the far ridge and about 600 meters to the right of the high point.
#3: The insert shows an enlarged view of the barely visible beaver seen next to his lodge along the Lake Sherwood Trail on the way to 38N 80W.
#4: Taking the trail over this wooden bridge eliminates any need to cross the spillway at the earthen dam.
#5: A half mile hike up the Virginia Trail provides an easy approach to 38N 80W.
#6: Spelling may not be the trail builders’ strongest suit, along the Allegheny Trail.
#7: View downhill from the Virginia/ West Virginia border towards 38N 80W.
#8: Cynthia does the numbers.
#9: Up and down: Ground cover and tree canopy at 38N 80W.
#10: The 2006 – 2008 Virginia Official Transportation Map mistakenly claims 38N 80W is within the Old Dominion State!
ALL: All pictures on one page