Bickle Knob is a mountain summit located east of Elkins in

Randolph County Randolph County is the name of eight counties in the United States: *Randolph County, Alabama *Randolph County, Arkansas *Randolph County, Georgia *Randolph County, Illinois *Randolph County, Indiana *Randolph County, Missouri *Randolph County, Nort ...

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

, USA. Easily accessible during warm-weather months, Bickle Knob is also home to one of the few remaining observation towers in

Monongahela National Forest The Monongahela National Forest is a national forest located in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It protects over of federally managed land within a proclamation boundary that includes much of the Potomac Highlands Regi ...

Observation tower

The most prominent feature of Bickle Knob is its observation tower. Formerly a

fire tower A fire lookout tower, fire tower or lookout tower, provides housing and protection for a person known as a "fire lookout" whose duty it is to search for wildfires in the wilderness. It is a small building, usually on the summit of a mountain or ...

, the original cab has been removed and replaced with a wooden viewing platform. The observation tower provides 360-degree views of the surrounding area including the

Shavers Fork River Shavers Fork of the Cheat River is situated in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It is 88.5 mi (142.5 km) long and forms the Cheat at its confluence with Black Fork at Parsons.DeLorme (1997). ''West Virginia Atlas ...

Tygart Valley River The Tygart Valley River — also known as the Tygart River — is a principal tributary of the Monongahela River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed Aug ...

valley, and the

U.S. Route 33 U.S. Route 33 (US 33) is a United States Numbered Highway that runs northwest–southeast for from northern Indiana to Richmond, Virginia, passing through Ohio and West Virginia en route. Although most odd-numbered U.S. routes are north– ...

crossing of

Cheat Mountain Cheat Mountain is an exceptionally high and rugged ridge situated in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It is about long (north to south) and more than five miles (8 km) wide at its widest. Its highest point is at its sou ...

. The tower is not handicapped-accessible.

Other facilities

pit toilet A pit latrine, also known as pit toilet, is a type of toilet that collects human feces in a hole in the ground. Urine and feces enter the pit through a drop hole in the floor, which might be connected to a toilet seat or squatting pan for user ...

is located at Bickle Knob. The site formerly featured a small picnic ground, which has since been removed. **pit toilet has been removed, as well.

Access

Bickle Knob is located at the end of Forest Route 91A, a spur from Stuart Memorial Drive (FR 91). Both roads are gravel but can easily be traversed by normal passenger cars. Stuart Memorial Drive is a scenic path as it traces the edge of the

Shavers Fork Shavers Fork of the Cheat River is situated in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It is 88.5 mi (142.5 km) long and forms the Cheat at its confluence with Black Fork at Parsons.DeLorme (1997). ''West Virginia Atlas ...

canyon. Due to the high elevation of the area and the fact that FR 91 is not plowed in the winter, the road may be hazardous when snow is present.

References

{{Mountains of West Virginia Monongahela National Forest Mountains of Randolph County, West Virginia Allegheny Mountains Mountains of West Virginia

Observation tower

Other facilities

Access

See also

References