I had a plan for my time after checking out of the hotel in Beckley, West Virginia, and that involved using all the camping gear taking up residence in my little Honda.
There are several primitive campsites within New River Gorge and most of them are right on the New River. I was told that some of them were “more primitive than others,” whatever that means, and they were spread out throughout the Park. Looking over my options I settled on plan A – Glade Creek Campground, and Plan B – Army Camp.
The railroads are still quite active here and I came across a lovely railroad bridge on my turnoff towards Glade Creek.
Alas, Glade Campground was not meant to be. First, it had been raining for the past two days and the sky was still completely overcast. Glade Creek is right on the New River and heavily wooded. Great when it’s hot, right? But not so much when it’s cold and cloudy.
Also, few of the sites were still open. Most of them were right next to the site that had a massive tent in the middle, and five or six small tents surrounding it. It looked like party central.
No thanks.
Onward then, to plan B: Army Camp. The Park claims this campground is not on the river, but I could hear the water from my little camp site and walked to the riverbank in less than five minutes. Now, about half of the Army Camp sites had little to no shade. Not so great when it’s hot, sure. Totally ideal for cooler days. Also, Army Camp was practically empty when I arrived, so I had my pick of sites. Perfect!
For a “primitive” campground, I thought this one was quite lovely. Level site, picnic table, and a bathroom with running water: everything I needed. I loved it! Now, with my accommodations for the night set, it was time to visit more of the Park. Next stop? Sandstone falls. But first, I needed to get gas along the way, in the tiny hamlet of Sandstone. There wasn’t much to the town but they did have a gas station/general store. I pulled in at one of the four pumps and quickly realized there was no pay-at-the-pump option. I hate doing the mental math, trying to figure out just how much gas I needed, but what can you do? I grabbed my wallet and headed inside.
“Can I get 6 gallons on pump two?” I asked the nice lady at the counter, making my best guess at how much gas I would actually need. (The Honda has a 10-gallon tank and I was nowhere near empty.)
She just looked at me for a beat. “What do you …. do you just want to fill up?” She asked in a common sense voice. When I nodded, she said, “well, go do that, then come in here and pay afterword.”
Oh.
I laughed at myself as I headed back out to the pump. Isn’t that how we used to pay for gas, way back in the old days? Before we paid for everything with a credit card? I guess they didn’t worry too much about people filling up and then driving off without paying.
Anyway, the Honda took just over 6 gallons (called it!) and when I went back inside to pay I also picked up a yummy-looking chicken salad sandwich on a croissant bun.
Onward to Sandstone falls, passing through the town of Hinton, which looked lovely except for all the Trump flags. I did see something a bit more interesting, though: signs for the African American Heritage Driving Tour. It was developed by the Park as a “smart phone app to uncover and tell the stories of the many black coal miners, railroad workers, and other community members that helped shape the region.”
Unfortunately for me, I was pretty much out of data on my phone, so I was not able to download anything as I drove along. Also, cell coverage is spotty at best in this area of the world. Luckily you can still listen to everything by clicking on that link above. It’s definitely worth it!
Eventually I came to Sandstone Falls. Such a pretty day, and such a beautiful area. I bet New River Gorge is spectacular at the peak of fall color!
The falls themselves are divided into two sections – upper and lower. The upper falls have a slower water flow and are marked by many beaver dams. In fact, the area right above the upper falls is slowly turning into a meadow.
I was so glad the rain had moved off. This was a perfect day to check out the falls. While you can see the upper falls from the parking lot, there’s a boardwalk that will take you over to see the lower falls.
I was a bit disappointed by the viewing area for the lower falls, though, and found several social trails that led me to a much better vantage point:
Back at the car, I enjoyed my chicken salad sandwich and my parking lot view of the falls. Before heading back to camp to relax for the afternoon, I pulled out my maps and made my plan for the next few days. What can I say? I’m a planner.
I was spending the night at Army Camp and didn’t need to be heading back towards Arkansas for another full day. So I could spend more time in New River Gorge. But there was something else I wanted to see, in a tiny little spot in far western West Virginia: the town of Matewan. And something called the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum.
Now, Matewan looked to be about a 2-hour drive from New River Gorge. There didn’t seem to be a lot of camping in the immediate area. But, further west, in Kentucky and right on the way home…
Was Mammoth Cave National Park.
I’ve done a few cave tours in the past, like Oregon Caves National Monument in Oregon, and Carlsbad Caverns In New Mexico. So I was pretty interested to check out the longest known cave system in the world. And I was pretty sure I could fit it all into the three-day window I had remaining.
Game on!