Wednesday, August, 23rd 2023
We took a field trip to New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. We were pleasantly surprised with the mix of nature, rough roads (okay papa and Richard are the only two who enjoy this one) and history.
On our way out of Flatwoods KOA we got see some of the local wildlife and beautiful landscapes.
Canyon Rim Visitors Center & Bridge
After a little over an hour drive, we started out at the Canyon Rim Visitor Center at the North End of the Park. This is the newest addition to the National Park system. We got park information, updated our passports with cancelation stamps and Sidney got his Jr. Ranger Info.
We then proceeded outside and took the short Accessible Trail to the overlook at the Canyon Rim Bridge.
More Canyon Rim Photos
Drive to Thurmond Depot Visitor Center
We left the Canyon Rim area and headed to Thurmond Depot Visitor Center. Thurmond was a the key town during the coal mining boom and largest railroad hub. We enjoyed the drive and got some scenic views of the area. The drive needed with a very narrow bridge that was shared with the Railroad.
Thurmond Depot
Just as we arrived the boys got the thrill of a coal train passing by. After checking out the Visitor’s Center we joined a walking tour of the old town.
We really enjoyed the tour and found it very informative. It was very interesting to hear about the history and how this valley is woven into our entire country’s history.
Sidney true to his form got compliments from a women who was on the tour with us for how attentive and well behaved he was during the tour.
Just as we were leaving, the daily Amtrack pulled into the station. Yes, this is still an active route.
Walking tour photos
Scenic Drive to Sandstone Visitor Center
After we were done exploring the town papa decided to take the backway to our next stop. We drove back across the bridge and took the right on to McKendree Rd. It started out a nice and easy drive on a nicely paved road.
Shortly after crossing the river it turned into about your standard logging/forest service road. About a quarter of the way into the drive we ran into a gentleman who was blocking the road with having issues (OEM jack broke) changing his tire.
Sidney and papa jumped into action to help out. Sidney (with a little direction from papa) setup the ‘traffic triangles’ on both sides of us to warn incoming traffic that there was an issues a head and papa got out some tools from our truck and we managed to get the man back on the road
After passing some private residents we came upon an old church and shortly thereafter a dog who was resting in the middle of the road. This is where the road started transitioning from a gravel road to more of an off-road trail. Papa truly enjoyed the average 9 mph and all the technical driving. Mama was not so sure about how much fun this part of the drive was. The boys also enjoyed the ride.
Video clip of mom’s enjoyment
More Photos from the drive
Sandstone Visitors Center
We got to the Sandstone Visitors Center in the mid afternoon. It was another great visitors center. We watched a short video about the park, Sidney turned in his Jr. Ranger book and got sworn in as a Jr. Ranger. We have integrated the Jr. Ranger programs at each National Park as part of his ‘roadschooling’ curriculum. Mama also enjoyed one of her favorite pastimes of taking pictures of the flowers.
Sandstone Falls
Our final stop was at an overlook at Sandstone Falls. This park is definitely worth 2+ days to properly explore and we were disappointed that we could not make it down to the falls or the 4th visitor center.
We ended the day at a local buffet by the campground. In his true form, Richard was being quite the silly boy and impressing all the people around us.