West Union of the Buckeye Trail- Photo Albumn

After two trips to the West Union section of the Buckeye Trail I have far more photos than I have room for in my traditional blog posts. Not wanting to keep these images of Ohio all to myself I am posting many here, to show you more of what is to be seen as you drive or walk the Buckeye Trail by following the Blue Blazes. 

Both times I drove the West Union section of the Buckeye Trail I started at the far east end and made my west.  Without hesitation I would say that the eastern half of the section is my favorite. It is rugged in places, heavily wooded and the roads are like roller coasters with their ups and downs and twists and turns. In short, it's great fun to drive.

Both sides of the roads early in the drive were private property and family cemeteries. Many of the lanes dipping into private land is marked with a sign or maybe a simple gate. This gate benefited from a bit of design. 

Snacks were hard to come by on this trip. Luckily, I always travel with provisions; water and corn nuts. In a pinch most small towns have a Family Dollar or some such place to grab a few supplies. 

I am hopelessly in love with old barns, especially ones with Mail Pouch Tobacco advertisements.

I came across a lot of vacant buildings such as this old beauty. I imagine this was quite

the homestead in the day. Even in its derelict state I find it to be beautiful.

A typical  paved road in the West Union section.

Not much remains of the old campgrounds and amusement park.  There was a restaurant, I use that term loosely, that was still open but even I was not keen on going inside. I am pretty open to trying out any place. Worse case you can order coffee or soda. This place was just a bit too far-gone for my comfort. Thank goodness for bottled waters and corn nuts.

One of my favorite roads in the West Union section is Waggoner Riffle Rd. It follows a stream, has a few small houses and gardens and horses. 

I come across a lot of bridges like this one on my drives: one lane, quite old with wood decking.  I can't help it, but each time I come across one I have to get out and take a few pictures. It is one of the things I see on my drives that makes me wonder how long they will be around for us to enjoy; much like the Mail Pouch barns.  These are glimpses to our past that will one day live on only in blogs, books and photo albums. 

If I can't resist old wooden bridges it is safe to say I can never pass up a covered bridge!

Ruins of buildings, such as barns are common on these back roads and are part of the allure of the drive. Abandoned churches stir up different feelings. Perhaps a forgotten church reflects too clearly today's state of affairs.