The New River Gorge National Park may be best known for its world-class whitewater rafting, rock climbing, and adventure activities but it’s the lush Appalachian forest that makes this place so enchanting. This hardwood forest is ecologically diverse, rich in cultural and natural history and packed full of recreational opportunities. The New River Gorge […]

SPECIAL UPDATE – Legislation passed by Congress on 12/21/20 has designated the New River Gorge the 63rd national park in the United States! It is now known as the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve.  Without a doubt, the best view of the New River Gorge Bridge is from the end of the Long […]

Of all the New River Gorge National Park trails, The Endless Wall Trail has the most character and diversity. From the serenity of an ancient Hemlock forest to the pulse-quickening views from atop the cliffs overlooking the Gorge, it provides the casual hiker with a taste of everything that makes The New River Gorge National […]

Yearning for a fun getaway but nervous about traveling? We get it, and we’re here to help. In this post, you’ll find a list of New River Gorge activities that get you outside in the fresh air and beautiful sunshine. No need to worry about group activities, close quarters, or social interactions. There is plenty […]

SPECIAL UPDATE – Legislation passed by Congress on 12/21/20 has designated the New River Gorge the 63rd national park in the United States! It is now known as the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve.  Few people truly understand what makes the New River Gorge one of the most special places on Earth. Some […]

Thoreau said it best: “A taste for the beautiful is most cultivated out of doors.” While we have strived to make the interior spaces of Lafayette Flats as beautiful and comfortable as possible, we are at our core, outdoor people. Most every weekend for us includes at least one walk in the woods, whether hunting […]

When we heard about the New River Gorge 100 Mile Challenge last year, we knew that we wanted to participate. We love The Gorge, we love hiking and we love challenges, so the idea of putting in 100 miles in the calendar year seemed perfectly suited for us. We wasted no time, putting in our first […]

Back in late 2014, we set a personal goal to hike at least one serious trail in the New River Gorge each month. Here are the links to the blog post about our adventure: A Year of Hiking, Part 1: January – April A Year of Hiking, Part 2: May – August A Year of […]

Our last two posts documented two-thirds of our year of hiking (Part 1: Jan – April and Part 2: May – August). This post will take us from September to December. In the next post, the last of the series, we will tell you our favorites and give our recommendations for seasonal hikes. Thurmond as […]

In Part 1 we told you about the brutal winter hikes in The Gorge and how we persevered to reach our goal of at least one serious hike per month. As the weather warmed up, our goal became much more pleasurable to face, but with so many trails and so little time, we had to […]