I got the idea for my West Virginia Road Trip while planning another great road trip a few years ago. With our new Subaru Forester (Linda), we had packed up for an epic Virginia/North Carolina road trip. This trip down Skyline Drive and the Blue Ridge Parkway, brought us so close to West Virginia, yet so far. However, it put in my mind the idea for a West Virginia road trip that would loop around the state. It took a couple of years before we had the opportunity to pull it off but I’m so glad we did.
This post is going to be part recap of our own trip, and part guide for your own road trip around West Virginia. Hopefully it will serve to inspire you to explore The Mountain State and experience everything West Virginia has to offer you. If you’ve got questions about my trip or planning your own, please reach out in the comments below!
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Why You Should Take a West Virginia Road Trip
Let’s simply cut to the chase: I think a road trip in West Virginia is a must for any avid road trippers. The state is packed to the brim with fascinating history, breathtaking scenery, and a sense of adventure that’s hard to find east of the Rockies. I’ve taken my fair share of long distance road trips, and this one was an absolute classic in my book.
Yet, beyond all the superlatives, what makes a West Virginia Road Trip so great is actually the shape of the state. You see, the Mountain State is fairly circular in shape (minus it’s panhandles), making it pretty easy to do a loop trip. The roads which cut through the state are surprising well spaced, so you’re never really “stuck” in one part or needing to make a huge detour. There are also few stretches of road where you won’t have access to some kind of services, while still having plenty of opportunity for isolation if you want it.
You’ll find that all of those factors played a big role in why our road trip around West Virginia was such a success in my mind. I was able to plan a really efficient route that allowed us a chance to see everything we wanted to (with one exception due to limited time). Additionally, we actually had a chance to camp in a few spots more than a single night, giving time to more widely explore each area. Unlike our point to point trips, West Virginia really offered something different: a chance to slow down.
So, I definitely encourage you to read on and discover our trip day by day. It was a wonderful journey that I’m happy to finally get an opportunity to share. However, even if you don’t read it all, consider how you can take more trips that give you a chance to slow down. Once you’ve done that, come back and start planning your own classic West Virginia road trip.
Day 1: Along the Kanawha River
Our road trip around West Virginia got its proper start where the Kanawha meets the Ohio, where Mothman makes his home, and where one of the earliest battles of the American Revolution was fought: Point Pleasant.
We began the first day of our trip by exploring this river town and learning about its most famous resident: Mothman. Near the center of town, you’ll find the wonderfully quirky Mothman Museum. For any cryptid enthusiast, the museum and Point Pleasant is like a pilgrimage. There is a deep appreciation for unusual creatures in West Virginia, and the Mothman Museum is chock full of great artifacts about him.
Once we had learned all about Mothman, we took advantage of a gorgeous day to walk along the Ohio River. The town is protected by a huge flood wall, upon which they’ve painted a huge mural which I found really neat. At the end where the two rivers meet, you’ll find Tu-Endie-Wei State Park and the site of the Battle of Point Pleasant. The old house in the park was a really cool way to explore some of the history of this area.
Before too long, we got on the road towards Charleston. There are quite a few roads you that follow the river, but we went ahead and stuck to the highway which was plenty scenic. Charleston is also a beautiful city straddling the Kanawha River, with a great riverfront drive. Our main objective was to make a stop at the West Virginia State Museum. Admission to the museum is free, which is pretty cool. Even better though is just how in-depth the museum is. It covers the history of the state all the way back to when the coal itself was formed and into the present day. I’d actually say its one of the coolest history museums I’ve ever been to!
After our hours exploring museums, it was time to try and make it to camp. We still had quite a few miles to put in before dark, so we did miss stopping at a couple places I originally had on my list including Hawk’s Nest. Ultimately, we got to Babcock State Park with plenty of time to get our Subaru Forester setup for camping and to get a good night’s rest!
Day 2: Exploring The New River Gorge
We awoke pretty lazily on the morning of our second day. There wasn’t any need for urgency, since we would be coming right back to camp that night. It was a nice change of pace from our normal get up and go road trip mentality. It had also rained and cooled off during the night, so the inside of the car was nice and toasty.
New River Gorge is a long and snaking park. With our planned route looping back around the park in a few days, we decided to simply stick around the northern end of the park. We spent time at the visitor center, admired the bridge from “up close”, then heading into the gorge. I was certainly not brave enough to undertake the bridge walk, but I’m sure its fascinating.
Fayette Station Road is a pleasant drive and before long we were standing next to the New River. I was honestly fascinated by staring up at the huge arch of the bridge spanning this cut in the earth. The parking is limited, so we opted to not eat lunch down by the river. After admiring the bridge from below, we made our way back to the top.
Once up top, we made a different drive down into the gorge. This time it was to visit the old railroad town of Thurmond. While the town is nothing like it was during the golden age of rail, I was still intrigued by it’s history. The trains continue to run through this section of track, including being an active Amtrak stop! While we were walking around town, we had a chance to see the trains in action. It’s actually crazy just how close you can get while they’re running!
The drives into the gorge aren’t quick, so we skipped doing any major hiking after Thurmond and made our way back to camp for the night. A dinner of ramen noodles at camp is plenty filling after a leisurely day in the park.
Day 3: Heading Up to Morgantown
Day 3 of our West Virginia road trip featured our longest single day of driving. Staying at Babcock State Park meant we weren’t far away from one of the most pictured buildings in the entire state: The Glade Creek Grist Mill. As an aspiring photographer myself, there was no way we were leaving without capturing some photos of the mill.
After we finally got onto the road, we had three locations on the itinerary. The first of those was the Summersville Lighthouse. It’s the largest inland lighthouse in the country and easily accessible right off US 19. As avid fans of Fallout 76 (which is set in West Virginia), we wanted to make a stop here because it was the inspiration for a eerily similar location in the game.
Leaving the lighthouse, our next destination was the Flatwoods Monster Museum in Sutton. You know, West Virginia’s got a lot of cryptids and we were here to see ’em. What we didn’t expect to see was an entire fall festival going on in town! I’ll fully admit I didn’t do much research on festivals going on during our weekends, so this was a pleasant surprise. I love a good small town festival, so we ended up staying for a bit to enjoy the music, arts/crafts, and festival foods before leaving.
Unfortunately, stop #3 on our journey to Morgantown (Pricketts Fort State Park) ended up getting scrapped. It’s entirely possible we could have come back on Day 4, but that day turned into an entirely different adventure of its own. We wrapped up day three with a gorgeous anniversary dinner at Oliverio’s and a warm bed at the hotel.
Day 4: A Side Quest… to Pennsylvania
Sometimes, despite all my planning, I can miss some really basic stuff. When that happens, our adventures don’t always end up as originally planned. However, as super flexible people prepared for anything, we make it work. That’s what happened on Day 4 our our Mountain State road trip. You see, what I found out is that Morgantown is pretty much all closed up on Sundays.
We aren’t the earliest of risers, especially when staying in a hotel with great blackout curtains. Once we got moving, we grabbed coffee at The Grind and got ready for a stroll down High Street. We quickly discovered that pretty much every shop was closed for the day. While disappointed, we didn’t really need all those souvenirs anyway. Instead, we just enjoyed our delicious coffees and went straight to the Morgantown History Museum. This was a neat slice of local history, which we had all to ourselves which was even cooler.
After that, it was time for some lunch. Throwing caution to the wind, we combined lunch with some great drinks at Apothecary Ale House & Cafe. This was another great spot, which I’ll highly suggest to visitors to Morgantown. Yet, we were left with a bit of a conundrum that we pondered over our beers. What were we going to do with the rest of our afternoon in Morgantown? The answer to that finally came with our second drinks: let’s go to Pennsylvania!
I spotted Friendship Hill National Historic Site on the map, which was only a 25 minute drive away. Even better, it was open on a Sunday! This excellently preserved home and estate was a fun way to spend an hour or so. Since our road trip around West Virginia had already taken a detour into Pennsylvania, we decided to drive over to Fort Necessity National Battlefield. This battlefield is one of the best national battlefields in America and worth making the side trek. It was really interesting to find how much history could be packed into such a small slice of the country at these two sites.
Eventually, we got back on track with my original plans for the day. I wanted to catch at least one great sunset while on our West Virginia road trip. The one I picked just happens to be one of the best in the state. Cooper’s Rock provides a breathtaking view of the surrounding landscape, one that reminded me a bit of home in Chattanooga. As the sun set on our day, I was happy that I’d forgotten to do a bit of research and gave us a little spontaneity on our trip.
Day 5: Into the Heart of Appalachia
Day 5 of our West Virginia road trip had us heading deeper into the more rugged parts of Appalachia. We spent a good portion of this day on the road, with just a few small stops along the way. That made it a fairly relaxing day, and we started that approach by staying in our hotel beds as long as possible before leaving.
As we lazily left Morgantown behind us, a stop at Walmart was on the horizon. We frequently make stops at local Walmart stores thanks to them being practically everywhere, and a good place to stock up on camping supplies or camping groceries. With four straight days of camping ahead of us, we picked up the food we needed to get us through this stretch of the trip. It’s always a best practice in my mind to stretch your budget by eating at camp as much as possible on trips like this.
After our obligatory stop at Walmart, we headed for Cathedral State Park. This state park features one of the largest remaining groves of uncut and virgin hemlock trees. The park is relatively small, but it’s trails are perfect for a nice walk to stretch your legs. You can also do a little picnic here as well, which is what we took time to do before our walk through the woods. The trails are easy to follow and well maintained, which is a big plus. They are also pretty interwoven, giving you a ton of options for crafting your own trail.
Cathedral State Park was the only planned stop our Day 5 drive. Having taken the trip in October, the amount of daylight you get is already getting shorter. I wanted to get into Blackwater Falls with plenty of time to spare and to enjoy some time at camp. It’s a good thing we did, because a touch of rain rolled in before nightfall meaning we had to finish up dinner quick!
The excitement of the day wasn’t done just because we had settled in. That night we had a few guests prowling around the open field and guarding the bathhouse. A few deer decided the dead of night was a great time to graze on the grass and made my trip to the restroom a bit more exciting!
Day 6: A Full Day of Activities
Part of planning this adventure around West Virginia was focused on have a couple days where the beginning and end were in the same place. Day 6 was one of those days that allowed us the freedom to take our time, but also finish where we started. It also allowed me to plan out a few activities and maximize our day.
A benefit of camping is that the sun will largely dictate what time you wake up. Getting this day started off a bit earlier than normal for us was a good thing since I had quite a few items on our to-do list. That started with a hike out to Lindy Point in Blackwater Falls State Park. We were a touch early to peak color, but it was still a stunning lookout. The hike was pleasant and simple, especially with the payoff at the end. After our hike, we took in some time at the beautiful lodge and I took a quick hike down to Blackwater Falls.
The early morning hikes gave way to an early afternoon stroll around Thomas. We had passed through Thomas the previous evening, but couldn’t stop in. Thomas has a wonderfully quaint and quiet run of shops along its riverfront. It was really nice to take some time to simply enjoy a small town and especially the wonderful art galleries. Thomas was one of those towns where I felt like you could simply escape to and slip into a simpler life.
After our time in Thomas, our road trip in West Virginia actually got back on the road for a little bit. We drove a loop around the Otter Creek Wilderness that followed US 48, US 33, and WV 32. This route took us through Parsons, Elkins, and Davis. Elkins had a nice park along the river, Glendale Park, that allowed us to stretch our legs a bit before getting back on the road. Ultimately, we wrapped up our day in Davis with a few tasty drinks at local brewery, Stumptown Ales. It was a really nice, laid back day which was the change of pace I’d been looking to create during our road trips.
Day 7: Forever in the Monongahela
It should be noted here that any West Virginia road trip worth it’s salt will take you into the Monongahela National Forest. What I failed to realize was just how HUGE this national forest is. We seemingly spent days upon days and miles upon miles driving through the forest. This might be a bit of an exaggeration, but the number of Welcome to the Monongahela National Forest signs we saw felt like driving in circles!
Our drive on Day 7 was back to getting from Point A to Point B while visiting a few places in between. The first stop was one of the most iconic places in the state, Seneca Rocks. While I’d have loved to done the hike to the top, time (and hiking skill) put the kibosh on that. It was still such a beautiful place to visit from afar and our Mountain State road trip wouldn’t have been complete with out it.
Not too far away from Seneca Rocks is the highest point in the state of West Virginia, Spruce Knob. It was super easy to access, but you’ve gotta make the time for the super winding road to the top. The hikes at the top of the mountain are very accessible and provide the furthest views in the entire state. I’ll tell you know to not skip this spot, especially if you’re visiting in the heart of the autumn color change.
The final stop for today was simultaneously extremely cool, and very poorly timed on my part. The Green Bank Observatory is the largest radio telescope array in the country. The site takes advantage of being very remote, and designated as a radio quiet zone to minimize interference with the delicate work. When we arrived, they were already on reduced open hours for the season meaning we couldn’t go into the visitor center. However, we still got a chance to walk much of the grounds and take some cool photos of the giant radio telescopes from afar.
When the time came to settle down for the night, we setup camp at the only private campground on our trip. This one was absolutely perfect, with a site right along the East Fork of the Greenbriar River in the tiny town of Durbin. If you’re open to a simpler kind of campground, then you’ll love staying at the East Fork Campground.
Day 8: Steam Trains and Dark Skies
When I began planning our West Virginia road trip, the timeline was actually centered on the activity I planned for this day. I was obsessed with the idea of taking a scenic train ride, and the Cass Scenic Railroad was exactly what I was looking for. They offer a variety of options, but not every day of the week. Ultimately, I picked a day for us to visit and planned our entire route and itinerary around that to make sure it happened.
The train leaves the station for the day pretty early in the morning. So of course, we got up and going from Durbin plenty early. The day was a beautifully clear, crisp, cool fall morning that was perfect for a scenic train ride. We’ve never ridden a legitimate steam powered locomotive before, so getting to do so as part of our road trip around West Virginia was awesome! The train takes you along the Greenbriar River from the old company town of Cass, to the town of Durbin. Lunch is provided, making it another laid back and unbothered day on our trip.
With the Cass Scenic Railroad being the primary focus on the day, we left there and went straight to camp. Watoga State Park might be the best state park in West Virginia, and it’s definitely one of the best dark sky parks in the entire US. I’ve visited a few dark sky parks over the years at places like Bryce Canyon in Utah, or Pickett CCC Memorial State Park in Tennessee. Watoga was special thanks to how remote it really felt. We simply laid down next to the Greenbriar River, snuggled up in a blanket, and looked up at the stars just few away from our campsite.
At the end of these last few days of our road trip in West Virginia, I really understood why people say its Almost Heaven. It was so easy to connect with the mountains, rivers, and forests around us and simply forget about your daily troubles here. So, it was on this night that I started planning our next trip to spend more time in Almost Heaven.
Day 9: On the Road to Beckley
Getting up to leave Watoga State Park meant that we were on the final stretch of our journey. The last days of any trip are hard. The memories have piled up, and the hours away from home grow shorter and shorter. Our plans for the day were much like previous ones on this trip: enjoy the time outdoors and savor every mile and moment that we could.
Since we weren’t eager to leave Watoga right away, we drove up to one of the lookouts in the park. Despite having spent quite a few days in the woods of West Virginia, it wasn’t until we were leaving the overlook that we spotted our first black bear! He looked like an older cub or young adult, and didn’t want anything to do with our car as he scampered away. However, it was a really neat encounter before we left the park.
Once we finally pulled ourselves away from Watoga State Park, the next stop on our West Virginia road trip was Cranberry Glades. We made a quick stop at the Cranberry Mountain Nature Center, before heading over for a hike around the Cranberry Glades Botanical Area. We lucked into a really beautiful day for a walk. The boardwalk is super accessible, and walking around this unique ecosystem was a really different way of experiencing the state.
The next destination on Day 9 was the southern end of New River Gorge National Park at Sandstone Falls. The visitor center was super awesome and had a lot of displays and information about the formation of the New River and the national park. I definitely feel like it was better than the visitor center located at the northern end of the gorge near the bridge. After our stop here, we drove around to Sandstone Falls itself. I had fully intended to shoot sunset at this spot before I realized I completely read the area map wrong and was staring due west into the sun. Better luck next time!
We wrapped up our second to last day on our road trip in West Virginia, with a stop at one of my favorite fast food places. Now, normally visiting a Dairy Queen wouldn’t be remarkable. However, when that Dairy Queen is the most scenic one in the entire country, well how could we NOT stop there. It’s situated right on New River, and we even got to see some wildlife across the river while enjoying our Blizzards! It was a great cap on the day!
Day 10: A Final Rainy Day on Our West Virginia Road Trip
If you’re lucky, then you’ll find the weather on your road trip around West Virginia to be perfect the entire time you’re on the road. If you’re like us, then it’s more likely that you’ll run into a couple of days where mother nature isn’t going to play nice. While we’d experienced a few showers here and there, the final day of our trip was a very damp one. However, we certainly weren’t going to let that rain on our parade and I think it even made the last day of the trip one to really remember.
So far, our West Virginia road trip hadn’t visited any sites centered on the coal mining history of the state. Our day in Beckley fixed that with a stop at the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine. We loved this deep dive into the life of a coal miner and their family. The tour on site takes you into an actual coal mine, and is lead by former coal miners. There are also a number of other buildings on site which demonstrate a slice of life for those living and working at a mine. It was a fascinating snap shot of West Virginia life, and I highly recommend a stop here during your road trip around West Virginia.
Most of our final day was spent at the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine, but we made some time for a final trip into New River Gorge National Park. Grandview was our final stop on this truly grand adventure. The rain that had pestered us most of the day had relented, allowing us to enjoy walking around Grandview. There certainly are a number of grand views from this spot in the park. We enjoyed time on some simple hikes, taking in the amazing views, and trying to capture some photos in the fading light of our stormy final day.
It was fitting to end our West Virginia road trip in the nation’s newest national park. There are so many places to explore in the park, that you could dedicate an entire trip to it. West Virginia itself is a destination that deserves more attention, and taking a road trip in West Virginia was absolutely the right call on our part to see as much of the state as possible.
How You Can Expand This West Virginia Road Trip
I’ll be the first to admit that our 10-day road trip in West Virginia is not all encompassing. In fact, I would have loved to expand it to two full weeks. That would have allowed me to expand the trip into parts of the state we missed. Primarily, this would include stops in each of West Virginia’s panhandle portions.
The first way to expand the trip we took is to include more stops along the Ohio River and Western Panhandle. Cities like Parkersburg and Wheeling were skipped because they just didn’t fit into our itinerary or travel directions. We even missed stopping in Huntington because we simply lacked the time after a long day of driving to West Virginia. With an extra two days, I’d almost certainly work these into the route.
The portion of the trip I’m most disappointed to have not included is the Eastern Panhandle. I love history, and no part of the state features more pivotal history than Harper’s Ferry. Perhaps more than any other, West Virginia is a state defined by the Civil War because it owes its very existence to it. The Eastern Panhandle is full of places for Civil War buffs to visit including Harper’s Ferry and nearby Antietam National Battlefield (in Maryland). There are other wonderful towns to visit like Berkely Springs which got left out. With two more days, I could have included this portion as well.
The final option for expanding your road trip around West Virginia is in the southern most part of the state. Much of the history of coal in West Virginia can be found to the south and west of I-64 as it cuts across the state. This is a magnificently rugged country, which could have made for a road trip all its own. That’s doubly true if you’re not interested in visiting the bigger towns to the north, but simply want a quieter nature focused trip around the state.
My Recommended Lodging for Your West Virginia Road Trip
Any road trip in West Virginia is going to offer up quite a few options for where you sleep each night. As you’ve already read, the entire state is filled with wonderful state parks featuring great campgrounds. There are also a number of small motels and hotels well worth a stay for that mom and pop feel. Heck, you can find gorgeous lodges and resorts all across the state too if you want to go big budget with your trip. For us, we aimed to evenly split our nights between camping in the car and beds with four walls and a roof.
On the camping front, it was primarily staying in state parks (except one night). Each one that we stayed in provided a wonderful experience, and I’d instantly stay in them again. These were also some of the most popular parks in all of West Virginia. Your mileage may vary, but I’d say it’s a safe bet that most of the state parks are of similar quality. We also did one night at a private campground in Durbin. It sat right on the river and is another spot I’d happily return to.
We did take advantage of hotels twice on the trip, both times when staying in the “big city”. Morgantown was your standard Candlewood Suites, which I’m always a fan of since I really like the IHG Rewards Program. Our night in Beckley wasn’t really in Beckley but in Ghent at the Skyline Lodge. This place was a phenomenal deal, especially on an October weekend date. Highly recommend checking them out if you’re exploring that part of the state.
While our road trip around West Virginia didn’t feature any lodges, I’d be remiss if I didn’t highlight a couple we seriously considered. I considered booking nights at both the Hawks Nest State Park Lodge (instead of camping Babcock) and Blackwater Falls State Park (instead of camping there). I had actually booked a night at the Corduroy Inn & Lodge near Snowshoe, before changing our mind and doing another night of camping instead. All three (and I’m sure countless others) would have been great places to stay the night while in West Virginia.
Why I Can’t Wait to Get Back to West Virginia
The final header here I don’t think gives justice to how much I want to get back and visit West Virginia again. We were probably a couple days early to see the peak colors of fall, yet the color we did see was amazing. There are so many parts of the state that I’d love to settle down in for a couple days and explore more fully, or places we simply had to go by on our way. Taking a road trip around West Virginia was a fulfilling journey, yet it left me wanting to experience even more of the Mountain State.
The road trips over the past 6+ years have encompassed thousands of miles. I’d be very tempted to say that the 600+ miles we drove on our West Virginia road trip were some of my favorites. I felt continually stunned by the scenic, yet simple, beauty of the landscapes we drove through. The views were easily on par with those on the Blue Ridge Parkway, which makes it a great alternative destination in the fall. I honestly can’t recommend more for you to start planning your own road trip in West Virginia.
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