Absolutely beautiful views!! Great historical location!! Very peaceful place to enjoy!read more

We've driven through this area (over this mountain gap) many times, but have never stopped here and…read moredecided to stop on an early evening... the views from here are beautiful! Especially beautiful when the sun is west (setting) and you can look east with the sun behind you... you can see a LONG way! Beautiful place to take a few pics too!

Amazing hidden gem hike with an elevated boardwalk that wanders through what will definitely feel…read morelike a town for bears. There's rock crevices and holes all easily visible from the .6 mile trail. Warning.. there are a lot if stairs, and the boardwalk can be slippery, but I did it in Teva flip flops, so take that for what it's worth. I recommend better shoes, but it's doable. There's but much else here, save a picnic area, but there's also not much out there like this place, either, so it's worth the trip! Droop Mountain State Park is nearby, so you can check that one out for longer hikes.

I absolutely loved walking along the boardwalk and seeing all of the cool stone and rocky views a…read morelong the way. So cool! Would love to explore more of the park someday. Unfortunately, the rest room needs attention. I couldn't even use it with the amount of flies in there. It was unbelievable. However, go before you get there because the boardwalk is worth the trip. In the area, check it out!

This a must stop location! Hayfields State Park is #36 park…read morefor me. I was glad to have stopped in. This is a great place for bird watching. I saw two American Goldfinch. They were brightly colored and beautiful. Also the best spot for butterfly watching. Hayfields has hundreds of Silver Spotted Skippers, Painted Ladies and Monarchs. I took pictures of each and I think I photographed a Red Admiral as well. Beautiful coloring. I saw dear jumping and running around the bear pond trail. I hiked all of the trails except for the second 1/2 of the River Loop Trail. All trails are 1 to 1.2 miles. Easy to loop them together and get in a 4 mile hike. My favorite lane was Bear Pond. It was gorgeous with the mountains so close. The Rangers were very nice. I had a good time talking with them and sharing my pictures of their birds and insects! Couple of things to know: 1st, there's no camping. 2nd, get water, snack and gas before you go. 3rd. Be careful driving on Bull Pasture River Road. Very curvy road with no lines. 4th, most trails are in the sun. I loved it!!!

This trail, not quite finished as of this writing, has highs and lows. A rail to trail that runs…read morealong a small river, it does deliver some fantastic views and is a flat and wide path that is amenable to biking and walking. It is free and has multiple entry points. On the downside, Covington is dominated by a cardboard manufacturer. I just moved from another place that had a similar factory, but for those without such experience, something involved in this industry smells strongly of wet dog, and the smell spreads widely. So at least on part of this trail, you've got that to contend with as well as a surprising number of flying insects for being up in the mountains. And while the trail runs by the river, everywhere you look there are signs saying that if you step off the trail, including trying to get closer to the river, it's private property and you can't. I don't begrudge whoever actually owns the land for owning it, but I wish some arrangement could have been worked out that involved more access and less passive-aggressive hostility. So I have a mix of nice pictures from a wonderful fall evening as well as a sense that some things could be better.

We were headed to spend a weekend night in Hot Springs and decided to stop in Covington to take a…read morehike, so we stopped at the Jackson River Trail... Wish we would have done more research on this place before stopping here to know that it's really not a "hike" and more of a walk. It's an old railroad bed, which is nice, but nothing fun and exciting about a truly "off-road" hike to this place. Also, the first ¾ of a mile is nasty and it's through houses, etc and nothing exciting. But after that, really from just before the Petticoat Junction to the north is beautiful and we were happy to finally come upon this area. The Jackson River is closer to the trail in this area and a beautiful stream to walk along. The banks of the trail in the first part, from the parking area in Covington to the Petticoat area are nasty and loaded with trash and pollution, the town of Covington or some volunteers really should clean it up and force the local residents to "police" their back yards better! Overall, we did it... won't waste time with it again.

This is a gorgeous park for camping. The view is stunning, there are many lake front sites if you…read morereserve long enough in advance as we did. We discovered it last year by chance taking up a canceled spot with friends on Labor day, and returned this year the week before Memorial day. There is a significant difference between the place when in full capacity - obviously noise, crowd, and jet ski traffic on the lake. Also seems to be in transition from privately operated to state owned - when we visited this year none of the Marina services were operating which forces you to drive back to the nearest WV store for necessities such as ice etc. The facilities (shower, restrooms) were relatively clean (if you don't mind the crawlers, occasional mouse running across) but this was mainly for a lightly occupied camp, as mentioned above and indeed during the labor day weekend they were in much worst condition. So if you are geared for self sufficiency and pick an off time this is one of the most beautiful sites in VA, with an unbeatable cost/benefit ratio for a tranquil and relaxing vacation.

A great outdoor area for the camping novice…read more Bolar Recreation area is right next to Lake Moomaw and a few hiking areas. There are about five camp grounds here with each one allowing enough space for ten camping sites. There are camp sites both on and off the water and each site has a fire pit/cooking area. The exterior sites on the water are amazing! You have an incredible view, your own beach area and a lot of privacy. The interior sites are larger close to the bathroom/showers, but don't offer much of a view or privacy, but like I said, they are very spacious. This could have been a five-star review, but the person who runs this camp area was super rude to us one of the nights. Sooo, you're supposed to turn off your generator by 10pm, but ours was still going by 10:30pm and she let us have it! This was our first offense and we didn't know about the curfew. Take it easy Zelda! I would definitely be into another camping trip here possibly in the fall. I think I like camping now?!

Joined the trail by crossing into "downtown" hot springs to the left of the Spa. Look for the…read morestairs to the right of the corner restaurant caddy corner to the Homestead property. We walked up a short but steep path to a sign for "sunset overlook". Another short walk brought us to a a few benches in a clearing with a beautiful overlook of the Homestead. Overall, a nice relaxed 20 minute roundtrip walk for a great vista.

This trail starts on the grounds of The Homestead. From the valet entrance take a left on a side…read moreroad that winds behind the kid's pool and water slides. Runs left by the golf course and across the grounds of The Homestead then crosses Sam Sneed Parkway into the woods behind the town. See my pics from Sunset Overlook.

What an amazing adventure. We rented sit in kayaks for the 7 mile paddle from Indian Draft to…read moreIntervale and it was a BLAST. The tour was guileless, but you're told which way you need to go through different splits and are provided a water proof map. It was such a great time. There are small rapids you'll go through, it's so much fun. If you don't know how to kayak they'll give you a run down, don't worry! You're provided with life jacket, a dry bag and box for you're belongings, and of course, your kayak and paddle. Make sure you bring water and a hat. Oh, and your sense of adventure! We loved viewing the 300 sheer cliff walls and watching all the ducks and geese. It was genuinely such a wonderful time. If we're ever back in the area, we're definitely coming back and kayaking again.

Had a wonderful time kayaking on the Jackson River. All supplies included and didn't have to worry…read moreabout jockeying cars to transport kayaks! Relaxing time on a beautiful river. Husband had a lot of success trout fishing from his kayak. Still not too cold on a warm day for a kayak trip to see the leaves changing their beautiful colors.

I didn't get to spend a lot of time in the park, basically I drove up to the Lookout Tower and took…read moresome photos. From what I could see driving through, it has a lot of history and would be a good place to spend some time if you have an interest in the Civil War. Regardless of your bent on history, the Lookout Tower is worth the time to visit. You get some great views of the surrounding country side. Worth the trip!

First of all, someone give Sam Parker a raise!!…read more He was great! Not only did he grab a bunch of maps and brochures for our huge crowd, once he realized what we were looking to do, he grabbed a bunch of flashlights and joined us. He was very informative, not only about the events that took place here, but also about the land itself. Everything from edible mushrooms to salamanders, all sorts of wildlife and plants. And lots of fun stories! He joked around with us and the 16 kiddos we brought along, had fun conversations, and we even made sure to snap a photo or two of and with him. As for the mountain, it's very historical for the civil war period. Every family vacation we go on we find a place that's not only historical but also dubbed as being haunted. A little two for one deal. Caught lots of fun things on pic and recording. Had a nice hike around. Went through the trenches, explored a cave, looked out over the landscape, found the horse burial grounds, toured the tiny little museum, found lots of little critters. It was a fun day for our group that ranged from ages 2 to 40. After our hike we did drive up to the lookout as well, and let the little one play on the playground. They do have bathrooms there. Well, a hole in the ground, but it does the job! Everyone had a good time! Would love to go back again one day!