OUR HISTORY

“A PATH IN THE WOODS”:
THE WEST VIRGINIA SCENIC TRAILS ASSOCIATION’S FIRST 50 YEARS

Research and recollections by Doug Wood, December 2020 and January 2024

Without the assistance of Bob Tabor, Nick Lozano, Charlie Dundas, Carolyn Welcker, Shirley Schweizer, Bruce Bond, and Arthur
Foley, this compilation of memories would be sparse and suspect.

In 1958, members of Explorer Scout Post 4, sponsored by Kanawha Presbyterian Church in Charleston, West Virginia was backpacking on the Appalachian Trail in the Great Smoky Mountains. The Post Advisor, Doug McGrew was an inspiring leader of young men. McGrew was a Union Carbide chemical engineer. One Explorer Scout in particular, remembers the positive influence McGrew had on his charges.

Nicolas (correct spelling) B. Lozano, who was 15 years old at the time and is now a retired insurance executive, refers to his former Post Advisor as “the Grandfather of the Allegheny Trail.” According to Lozano, McGrew’s leadership inspired his Scouts and led them into life-changing outdoor experiences, such as that backpack trip in 1958.

Nick remembers thinking upon his return home to West Virginia after that trip, “Why should we West Virginia scouts have to travel to other states to experience the adventure of long-distance backpacking? We have the Allegheny Mountains with all their natural splendor and wildness to rival the Great Smoky Mountains. Why can’t we have a trail like the Appalachian Trail running through the mountains of The Mountain State?”

So, Doug McGrew is the “Grandfather” of the Allegheny Trail, because Nick Lozano is one of the “Founding Fathers” of the Allegheny Trail.

…. Read more via a 29 page PDF document (8.7 Mb download)