bchva.org - Back Country Horsemen in the Virginias

Public Land and Agencies

George Washington/Jefferson National Forest in VA and WV <http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/gwj/>

Monongahela National Forest in WV <http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/mnf/>

Lee District of the GWJ National Forest <http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/gwj/lee/>

US Department of Agriculture, Southern Region NF <http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/>

US Department of Agriculture, Eastern Region NF<http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/>

US Department of Agriculture <http://www.usda.gov/>

(please note that National Forest lands in VA are under the Southern District of the USDA (headquarters in Georgia), while WV is under the Eastern District USDA, (headquarters in Wisconsin)

Schedule of Proposed Actions in George Washington/Jefferson National Forest in VA <http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/gwj/projects_plans/sopa/>

Official Newspapers for Notice of Actions for each Ranger District in VA <http://www.fs.fed.us/r8/gwj/projects_plans/sopa/>

Schedule of Proposed Actions Monongahela National Forest in WV <http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/mnf/environmental/environmental_index.htm>

Shenandoah National Park <http://www.nps.gov/shen/>

Appalachian National Scenic Trail <http://www.nps.gov/appa/> traditionally closed to horses and mountain bikes even on federal land in some areas. Shenandoah National Park, for instance.

National Park Service <http://www.nps.gov/>

US Department of the Interior <http://www.doi.gov/>

WV State Parks, Forests and Wildlife Management areas <http://www.wvparks.com/>

VA State Parks, Forests and Wildlife Management areas <http://www.dcr.state.va.us/parks/>

Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries <http://www.dgif.virginia.gov/>

Back Country Horsemen of America (national website) <http://www.backcountryhorse.com>

Maps and Guidebooks

National Geographic Trails Illustrated Maps of each Ranger District in Virginia <http://maps.nationalgeographic.com/trails/>

Topo! series of USGS topographic maps to 7.5 minute (Mid-Atlantc covers VA/WV) <http://maps.nationalgeographic.com/topo/>

both of the above can be purchased at <http://www.ngmapstore.com/> and digital files made with Topo! can be shared with other users at the Topo! mapXchange website

Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (PATC) maps and guidebooks <http://www.patc.net/store/>

Allen de Hart Guide Books at Amazon <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=books&field-author=Allen%20De%20Hart/102-6877224-1154508>

Hiking the Old Dominion, Allan de Hart
Hiking the Mountain State, Allen de Hart
Hiking Guide to the Monongahela National Forest 2001, Allen deHart

(the Amazon link contains all of the deHart books, some of which are also available from PATC or from the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy)

Historic Topographic Maps on-line <http://historical.maptech.com/>

Current Topographic Maps on-line <http://topozone.com/>

Another place to purchase some of these maps and GPS units is GPS City <http://www.gpscity.com/>

Other user groups websites

Mountain Bikes:
Shenandoah Mountain Bike Club <http://www.shenandoahmountainbikeclub.com/>

International Mountain Bike Association <http://www.imba.com/>

Hikers:
Potomac Appalachian Trail Club <http://www.patc.net/>

Appalachian Trail Conference (changing name in 2005 to Appalachian Trail Conservancy) link is to their database of clubs by state <http://www.appalachiantrail.org/hike/dbase1.html>

Conservation Groups:
West Virginia Highlands Conservancy <http://www.wvhighlands.org/>

Virginia Forest Watch <http://www.virginiaforestwatch.org/>

Sierra Club <http://www.sierraclub.org/>

Sportsmen and related:
Virginia Council of Trout Unlimited <http://www.vctu.org>

Fly-Fishing in VA <http://www.vatrout.com/>

Virginia Deer Hunters Association <http://www.virginiadeerhunters.org/>

West Virginia Trout Unlimited <http://www.wvtu.org/>

West Virginia Trophy Hunters Association <http://www.wvtrophyhunters.com/>

West Virginia Trappers Association <http://www.wvtrappers.com/>

ATV/ORV's:
Northern Virginia Trail Riders <http://www.nvtr.org>

Mountain View ATV Club <http://mountainviewatvclub.org/>

Forestry:
Virginia department of Forestry <http://www.dof.virginia.gov/>

Virginia Forestry Association <http://www.vaforestry.org/>

West Virginia Division of Forestry <http://www.wvforestry.com/>

West Virginia Forestry Association <http://wvfa.org/>

Mead-Westvaco <http://www.meadwestvaco.com/>

Mining:
Virginia Department of Mines Minerals and Energy <http://www.mme.state.va.us>

Virginia Mining Association <http://www.virginiaminingassoc.com/>

West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection <http://www.dep.state.wv.us/>

Useful Data, Packing Equipment, Books, Leave No Trace, etc.

USGS real-time water data for stream gage on Waites Run, WV (2.6 miles south of Wardensville, 4.3 miles above the mouth, and 8.2 miles east of Baker.) <http://waterdata.usgs.gov/wv/nwis/uv/?site_no=01610400&agency_cd=USGS> you must click on "get data" to view current reading. This gage is a good bellweather for streams throughout the Lee District area.

Historic topo maps online <http://historical.maptech.com/>

Current topo maps online <http://topozone.com/>

Satellite Phones <http://www.globalstar.com/> cell phones do not work in most areas and the price of satellite phones which do work has dropped dramatically in recent years

Leave NoTrace <http://www.lnt.org/> Back Country Horsemen supports the Leave No Trace ethic

Pack Saddles and all related gear including highline swivels, bells, muzzles, hobbles, canvas buckets, etc. <http://www.custompackrigging.com/> very good prices; looks like top quality equipment

Blue Creek Outfitters <http://www.bcoutfitter.com/> Stuff here you won't find anywhere else. This is the website of Stan Walchuk Jr, author of CORDILLERA! an account of his 1000 mile journey from BC to Alaska on horseback.

Books on Packing:

Horses, Hitches and Rocky Trails by Joe Back <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1555661416/qid=1110469576/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-6877224-1154508?v=glance&s=books>

Packin' in on Mules and Horses by Smoke Elser, Bill Brown <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0878421270/qid=1110469759/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-6877224-1154508?v=glance&s=books>

Corbin Cabin Project

The supplies we packed in will be used for repairs to the cabin. See the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club site for more information. And we used this for our Trail Trotter Project. See The Equestrian Land Conservation Resource <http://www.elcr.org>

Wilderness in National Parks see <http://wilderness.nps.gov>

When Past is Present : Archaeology of the Displaced in Shenandoah National Park. <http://www.nps.gov/shen/3b1d1.htm>

Children of Shenandoah <http://www.usgennet.org/usa/va/shenan/>