Cranberry Glades Botanical Area

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Cranberry Glades, as seen from the boardwalk

Cranberry Glades Botanical Area is the name of a group of five bog wetlands located in the Gauley Ranger District of the Monongahela National Forest. The area is situated in the highlands of the Allegheny Mountains of Pocahontas County, West Virginia at an approximate elevation of 3400 ft.

[edit] Geographic and biological aspects

The area, commonly known as Cranberry Glades or The Glades, is a 750-acre grouping of peat bogs that are reminiscent of those found in Canada. The gladed land is highly acidic and yields plants commonly found at higher latitudes, including cranberries, sphagnum moss, skunk cabbage, and several carnivorous plants, such as the purple pitcher plant (Sarracenia purpurea) and the sundew.

The drainage from the botanical area forms the headwaters of the Cranberry River, a popular trout stream.

[edit] Recreation

A section of the glades can be explored via a half-mile boardwalk that is handicapped accessible. The area can also be circumnavigated by Cowpasture trail, a six-mile, improved loop path that also serves as the boundary between in Cranberry Glades Botanical Area and the Cranberry Wilderness. Visitors, however, are not permitted to venture off of approved trails without the proper permits.