West Virginia

Not long after our fabulous trip to see the solar eclipse, we were traveling once again to New River Gorge in wild and wonderful West Virginia. This trip was geared towards hiking and seeing the wildflowers of mid-spring. We met our friends Lynn and Randy and everyday we set out on a hike to explore this beautiful area.

By week's end we had hiked about 33 miles on trails in various areas of the park. While that sounds like a lot, it is a small number considering there are over 100 miles of trails in the park and even more if you consider the nearby State Parks of Hawk's Nest and Babcock. It was more than enough enough mileage to get my 70 year old body's attention.

Wild West Virginia

Our hiking began with the Little Laurel Trail, an out and back trek that was 3.7 miles downhill to the town of Quinnimot. Of course when the trail is all downhill with 1,450 feet of elevation drop, it means it is all uphill coming back. The trail was composed of switchbacks and both gradual and steep drops. It was a chilly 35 degrees as we began. Donna, Lynn, and Randy fared a bit better than me because I chose to bring our dog Zari for the hike. She zig-zagged and explored every new scent to her.The foliage was sparse at first, but became more lush the further into the gorge we descended. Impressive stands of foam flower were the wildflower highlight. We identified about 30 different flowering plants. We were all a bit tired after this hike except for Zari, she probably would have done it again.

Spring Green

Nuttallburg, WVA

Nuttallburg

On day 2 we chose a less demanding destination. A winding, sometimes one lane road led to the remains of Nuttallburg. It once was a bustling coal mining town. The National Park Service has preserved the tipple and conveyor belt that brought the coal from the mountain side to the railroad and finally out to the waiting world. It was once owned by Henry Ford who hoped to control the entire process of car manufacturing from coal to coke and finally to the steel for his cars. He failed since the railroad could not or would not provide enough cars to transport his coal.We walked around looking at remnants of coke ovens, houses, and the company store. I tried to imagine the black smoke belching from this operation. Now its just a quiet area being reclaimed by nature.

On the way out we stopped along the mountain stream which parallels the road and is resplendent with waterfalls and wildflowers. Firepinks, foam-flower, longspur violets, wild geranium and faded white and red trillium were among wildflowers we spotted. Combined with history and nature, this was a very interesting place to visit.

IMG_6507 longspur violet worlds end 5-8-11-SharpenAI-Focus.jpg

Geranium maculatum

Later that evening while searching for sunset, we saw a piebold deer. mixing in with traditional coloration are varying degrees of white. not a true albino, it is present in less than 2% of the population.

Our day 3 adventure had us driving an hour to the southern part of the park. It had just quit raining as we began the Big Branch Trail. Although the entire trail is only 2 miles long, the first mile was uphill on a both rocky and muddy terrain. Zari helped pull me up, but at times her over zealous pulling almost pulled me down.The first mile had 4 stream crossings, numerous cascades, and 2 large waterfalls. Wildflowers were abundant with phlox, mayapple, geranium and foam-flower among others. The second mile of the trail was downhill and not muddy since we had left the stream bank. It was a very pretty hike.

We also went to see Sandstone Falls in the same area of the park. It is the largest waterfall on the New River spanning 1500 feet and dropping anywhere from 10 to 25 feet. A series of board walks go along the falls and surrounding area, providing easy access to views.

On day 4, we included 2 adventures. The first was spent driving to the once busting rail town of Thurmond. At one time 15-20 passenger trains would stop here everyday. The restored train station now serves as a flag stop for Amtrak so it is still somewhat active. Some of the old buildings remain harkening to a more prosperous time. We were lucky to see 2 coal trains pass through. Randy, counted 225 cars and 4 engines pulling the still mined WV coal.

After exploring Thurmond, we found the Southside trail. An easier graded trail rolls along the New River for 7.1 miles providing occasional good views of the New River and many rapids. The trail was rich with spring flowers, although many were past their all too short prime showiness. We walked about 3 miles out and back here, stopping frequently to admire and photograph nature's splendor.

Thurmond, WVA

Thurmond, WVA

As the week flew by, day 5 was spent with 2 hikes. Early morning found us at the Endless Wall trailhead. This hike was above the New River instead of in the river valley. The trail name alludes to the rocky cliff high above the river. Not a really hard hike, it goes in and out along the rock wall providing views of the New River below. one of the first views was of the New River Gorge bridge. This steel span crosses the New River on U.S. RT.19 reducing what was once a 40 minute drive to less than 1 minute. Endless Wall is also a popular spot for rock climbing. In fact there are actually steel ladders that descend into the rocky crevices below the trail. There are supposed to be a fair number of copperheads here. Even in my younger years, I would have passed on this.

Diamond Point

The highlight of the hike is a large rocky area named Diamond Point. Numerous vistas look out into the gorge. Gnarled and twisted trees dot the thin soil giving testament to harsh winter winds.

Endless Wall Trail

Endless Wall trail

Endless Wall Trail

waterfall on mill creek-Hawk's Nest State Park.jpg

Still fairly early in the day, we went to Hawk's Nest State park and found the Rail Trail. The trail begins crossing an old wooden rail trestle used to haul coal from the rich seams in the mountain side. The trail parallels Mill Creek, a fast moving stream with 4 waterfalls and numerous cataracts. It is evident where coal was extracted from the hillside. Numerous wildflowers grow along the impressive rock wall with jack-in-the-pulpit being the highlight. After 1.9 miles we reached the outflow of Mill Creek into the New River. Of course it was 1.9 miles back but from a different perspective.

Babcock State Park

After getting a bit to eat, we drove to Babcock State park and a very nice overlook. Right before sunset, a burst of rays illuminated the hillside and valley. It was if the hand of God brought light to the area. A real nice ending to a great day!!

Day 6, our last day of hiking took us to Hawk's Nest State Park again. This time we hiked the Cliffside trail. A very rocky and rugged trail curved in and out along an impressive rock wall. After a mile or so we reached Turkey Stream that had a nice waterfall, but very inaccessible. Most of the wildflowers were past peak. It was about 2 miles to loop and come back to the car.

Our last hike that day was Stone Cliff Trail. It is in the Thurmond area of New River gorge. The hike was rolling along the New River and very hot. Zari was definetley feeling the heat, but still sniffing and pulling. A surprise wildflower was found by Donna. Dutchman's Pipe resembles what else a pipe. It grows on a vine and while not rare it is difficult to see. This vine has come close to the ground as the tree it grew on fell. So glad to see it. It doesn't take much to make me happy anymore!We spend out last evening here with Randy and Lynn watching sunset at Babcock State Park.

Thank you so much for reading about our hiking adventure in west Virginia.

I hope you enjoyed coming along.

Till next time stay well.