Logistics in New River Gorge National Park
Exploring New River Gorge National Park is challenging in deciding what to see and how to get there. There are several visitor centers and since the river is 53 miles long in the park and at the bottom of gorge, it will take longer than you think to get around. Hikes can also be challenging because of 800 foot drops that you have to climb back up. However, many hikes are easy and quite pleasant as they wind through hemlock and rhododendron. There are roads in many places that go to the bottom but some are not for the faint of heart – gravel roads a car and a half wide that twist and turn with blind corners. So to get to your next stop, you may have to drive 30 miles north, cross a bridge, and take a 30 minute drive down a twisty narrow road, only to have to drive back up it when you are done. I should have planned another day. One of the roads that had good pictures of old mining equipment has been closed for 2 years. Other sites with old mining equipment were more strenuous to get too than I was prepared for.
It might have helped if I had picked a hotel closer to the middle of the park.
Return to New River Gorge National Park