Visiting Shenandoah National Park and New River Gorge National Park and Preserve
Back when we visited Shenandoah National Park for the first time, New River Gorge wasn’t a National Park yet and Shenandoah was fogged in. So, we thought Shenandoah was worth a “re-do” on our way from Washington DC to New River Gorge National Park.
We begin at the north entrance to Shenandoah from Route 340, 90 minutes west of DC, and head south along the beautiful and famous 105-mile Skyline Drive, the main attraction in the park! The chestnut and red oak forests are just beginning to show color. We can see the expansive valley views from the overlooks on both sides of the Skyline Drive ridge this time!
Skyland, where we stayed on our last trip, is the highest point on the ridge 40 miles into the drive. But Big Meadows Lodge, 10 miles further, is open today! So that’s where we enjoy lunch at the 1939 historic log lodge.
View from the great room at Big Meadows Lodge, Shenandoah National Park, WV
Getting to Shenandoah and New River Gorge National Parks
Going through Shenandoah on the way to New River Gorge from DC adds about 2 hours of drive time – not to mention the gawking, eating and/or hiking time. Otherwise, on the main highways it takes five hours. West Virginia International Yeager Airport, in Charleston, WV, is only two hours from New River Gorge National Park if DC isn’t your thing. In addition, there are several other local airports closer if you aren’t driving. It would be difficult to visit this park without a car.
When and how long to visit New River Gorge
New River Gorge National Park and Preserve has a long season – spring, summer and fall! Rhododendrons are the star of the show in spring, crowds dominate the summer activity months and fall color lasts into November depending on the year.
The park and surrounding area, called the Three Rivers (Bluestone, Gauley and New), is a whitewater haven! So, unless you are a boater, three days in this park is plenty – one for the visitor center and sights, one for a walk or hike and one for a mandatory raft trip.
Fall color at The Glade Springs Resort, WV
Food and Lodging in New River Gorge National Park
Beckley, southwest of the park, has many of the middle-of-the-road hotel chains and places to eat. There are also a few family oriented adventure parks that include camping, cabins, restaurant and activities like rafting. In addition, we found The Resort at Glade Springs to the southeast of the park. It’s a somewhat dated resort with nice grounds, a good breakfast, some remodeled rooms and amenities. The only lodging in the park itself is primitive camping.
We enjoyed meals at Pies and Pints in Fayetteville and Lucky Rivers Café in Hinton. Local food is spotty in the area.
History and Geography of New River Gorge National Park
Ironically, the New River is the second oldest river in the world after the Nile and the oldest in North America. There are differing theories as to how it got its name. New River Gorge National Park and Preserve includes 53 miles of the windy north flowing whitewater river along with the land on either side. So, the park itself is long and narrow with no continuous road through the park. On our first day, another park visitor tells us that “everything takes an hour to get to” which is about right, and the drive is on highways through smaller towns.
View of the New River from Canyon Rim Visitor Center, New River Gorge National Park, WV
Native Americans were early inhabitants of the gorge and river basin. Early European settlers were farmers. And then in 1870 coal was discovered in the gorge walls bringing an influx of miners. In 1873 the railroad was built along the river expanding the industrialization of the area. By the 1950’s the coal had mostly been extracted and folks moved on. In 1968 the first rafting company was established in the gorge kicking off the transition to a recreational area, protection and appreciation. In 2020 New River National River (1978) became New River National Park and Preserve.
Sights in New River Gorge National Park
As always, our first stop is the visitor center for a stamp, information and the movie – our first day in this park is no different. The beautifully designed Canyon Rim visitor center, near the north end of the park, includes incredible views of the river and the 3rd highest bridge in the US at 876 feet, built in 1977! (blog cover photo) The bridge is not only impressive to view but it changed the community by giving the ability to cross the river in minutes instead of hours.
View of New River Gorge Bridge from Fayette Station Driving Tour, New River Gorge National Park, WV
From the visitor center the historic Fayette Station Road Driving Tour shows firsthand what the main travel route was like for nearly 100 years primarily when the area was an industrialized boom town. Views of the river and “new bridge” are great but watch out it’s a narrow one-way road! The eight-mile road winds down to the river, crosses a narrow historic bridge and then climbs up the gorge on the west side.
Sandstone Falls near the south end of the park, is the largest waterfall in the park and can be accessed from a boardwalk with some optional pleasant walks in the area. The falls are not tall but are wide, spanning most of the river.
Grandview, as its name denotes, is a grand view of a huge curve in the river! The land everywhere in this slice of the Appalachian Mountains is blanketed with oak, hickory, maple, breech and blackgum trees which are beginning to turn colors.
Sandstone Falls, New River Gorge, New River Gorge National Park, WV
Activities in New River Gorge National Park
The primary activity is rafting on both the New and Gauley Rivers. The lower New River boasts II-IV class rapids while the upper New River is suitable for mellow folks and families with its class I-III rapids. The Gauley River is even more exciting we hear!
We visited near the end of October, so everything was closing down. But we got on an all-day upper New River trip. This is how to get a continuous experience of the river with some excitement thrown in. We had a great day in an Ace Adventure eight-person raft with Tami as our guide and boy did she hit the class III Surprise Rapid wall just right – everyone was thrilled including her fellow guide!
Rafting the upper New River, New River Gorge National Park, WV
Hiking is another activity with 100 miles of trails primarily in the Grandview, Lansing and Fayetteville areas. There are many flat nature type trails for families above the river as well as a few strenuous trails that go steeply down into the gorge and then up on the way back – the opposite of my preference! We enjoyed the less crowded hikes in the Grandview area among the shade and color of the oak, red maple, tulip popular and hemlock trees and the fabulous panoramic viewpoints of the river. But be ready for some steep steps! As I write this the Endless Wall Trail famous for its views and world class rock climbing was named the #1 national park hike by USA Today!
The grand view at Grandview, New River Gorge National Park, WV
Other activities in New River National Park include rock climbing, hunting (fall) and fishing (spring) and the adventure centers have all sorts of games, swimming, zip lines and the like for summer family fun.
Bridge Day, the third Sat in October, is the big event in the gorge! The bridge is closed for the day and tens of thousands gather to watch rappelers and base jumpers descend from the 876-foot bridge. Walkers, without a fear of heights, can walk across the bridge and back, about a mile, on the scaffolding underneath the bridge – none of this is for me. Our last day in the park was Bridge Day!
Having visited New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, we are now 59 down with four to go toward our goal of visiting all 63 National Parks!
DC to Seattle flight after having visited our 59th National Park!
Click here to see what inspires our goal of visiting all 63 National Parks and to check our progress.
And check out the National Park Gallery!
