Recent Congressional action assures that an ever-increasing number of visitors will be visiting New River Gorge National Park. The astute traveler will want to be armed with a well-researched travel guide to our newest national park. bbb
Guide to New River Gorge
Where is New River Gorge?
New River Gorge is located in the mountains of south central West Virginia, about 70 miles southeast of Charleston, just east of the town of Beckley. The park is easily accessed by Interstate 64, which runs across the southern section, near the Sandstone Visitor Center.
U.S. Route 19 leads northward from Beckley to the charming town of Fayetteville, which sits just to the west of the New River Gorge Bridge. This friendly Appalachian town offers excellent access to the park’s most dramatic scenery and exciting activities, as well as a wide array of services.
See the Park Junkie New River Gorge Map page for access to an interactive Google map that will show you exactly where the park is located.
Entrance Fee
New River Gorge National Park does not currently charge an entrance fee. Enjoy this park for free and put the money you save toward a guided trip in the New, or a good time out on the town in Fayetteville or another local hamlet.
Visitor Centers
There are four visitor centers in New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. Each of the park’s most popular locations offers services that provide information about the park and can help streamline your visit to the New.
Canyon Rim Visitor Center – The Canyon Rim Visitor Center is located just east of Fayetteville, in the small town of Lansing. It sits just south of U.S. Route 19 on the east side of the New River Gorge Bridge. This location is open year-round, includes a book store and gift shop, as well as an auditorium which shows a couple of films about the park and its attractions.
Thurmond Depot Visitor Center – The Thurmond Depot Visitor Center is found in the ghost-town remains of a once thriving mining and rail-centric community. Rangers staff the depot during the months of June, July and August and can answer questions relating to the history of what was once one of West Virginia’s richest towns.
Grandview Visitor Center – The Grandview Visitor Center offers a small information center at the park’s highest elevation, which provides fabulous views of the gorge, and the New River, which flows nearly 1,400 feet below. Visitors can acquire information at this location seasonally, from Memorial Day through Labor Day.
Sandstone Visitor Center – Located at the southern end of the park, the Sandstone Visitor Center sits just north of the Interstate 64 and W.V. Route 20 interchange. This 9,800 square-foot, green designed facility offers guests an example of energy and water conservation in sustainable building design. The location provides a theater, book store and gift shop, as well as an outdoor garden that features native plants. Check the link for seasonal hours, as this center is often closed during winter months.
Pets in New River Gorge
Pets are permitted on most of the park’s trails, provided they are restrained by a leash of 6 feet or less. Please respect the rules regarding pets and maintain control of your favorite creature at all times.
Seasons
West Virginia’s location in the east-central U.S. lends the area a full immersion into all four seasons and there is no better place to experience many of the state’s seasonal beauty than New River Gorge National Park. The seasonal changes in climatic conditions can provide beautiful experiences, as well as miserable days for those who arrive unprepared.
Winters here can be frustrating, as the weather can change rapidly, as it can at any time of year. Freezing temperatures and snowfall can provide a gorgeous white blanket to the park’s wooded terrain. Trails and rocks and roadways can be icy. Daytime temps hover just above freezing, while nights often dip into the lower teens. That said, this is a great time to visit, and many visitor services can still be found in Fayetteville and the surrounding area.
Spring is a delightful time to journey to this park. Days become longer and the gray outline of winter’s deciduous forests springs to life with an explosion of greenery and the return of life on the park’s forested slopes. Daytime temperatures often bounce upward into the 60s, but visitors should be prepared for springtime showers which lend the area its highest precipitation numbers of the year.
Summers draw the largest number of visitors to the park, with temperatures stretching into the 80s and 90s, which can feel even hotter given the area’s high levels of humidity. The scenery is lush as the skies still explode with moisture and high levels of sunlight, which provides fuel for the plants that blanket the landscape.
Fall is spectacular in the mountains of West Virginia and the seasonal display of colorful autumn trees with slowly falling leaves in the New River Gorge is about as good as it gets. Temperatures begin a downward trend, with daytime highs scraping the 50s and 60s, while nighttime may dip below freezing and leave a film of frost on the inside of tents. The annual Bridge Day festivities in the park bring throngs of curious visitors each October.
Getting Around
Most folks who journey to New River Gorge will do so in the classic automobile, and this will enable easy travel to the park’s various areas of interest, most of which are located some distance from your place of accommodation. There is not much here in the way of public transport, and the park does not offer shuttle service, so you’re on your own in terms of getting from place to place.
For those who may be rolling in sans auto, the park is serviced by rail, with Amtrak offering service on its Cardinal Line, which runs between Chicago, Illinois, to New York, New York.
The Cardinal line provides three stops in New River Gorge National Park: Thurmond, Prince and Hinton. However, these stops offer no form of accommodation, so you’ll be finding your way to a more populated area in order to secure a home base for your stay, unless your destination is Prince. In this case you can walk to either the Grandview Sandbar Campground, or the Army Camp Road Campground, which are no more than a mile away.
Camping in New River Gorge
Camping options in New River Gorge are limited to primitive only sites. In total, the park offers eight campgrounds, as well as two group campgrounds. All campgrounds are located along the New River, with the exception of War Ridge, and are absent water and hookups. They offer primitive restroom facilities, at best. That said, they are free! So you’ve got that going for you… which is nice.
The two group sites require a special use permit, which can be acquired by calling the permit office at 304-465-6517.
As for information regarding the individual sites inside the park, you’ll find them all listed on the Park Junkie Google Map. You should also check out the park website for a description and the regulations regarding each site.
NPS – New River Gorge – Camping
As for the surrounding area, you’ll find a number of more developed campgrounds that offer a full array of camping luxuries. The New River Gorge Convention and Visitors Bureau provides links to numerous local campgrounds on its website. Check them out.
Lodging in New River Gorge
There are no lodging options inside the park, but you’ll find adequate accommodations just outside the park in Fayetteville, Oak Hill, Glen Ferris and other communities that are not far away.
The New River Gorge Convention and Visitors Bureau has links to a few local hotels on its site.
You’ll also want to check out a listing of the local Bed & Breakfasts, as well as Cabins & Vacation Rentals in the surrounding area.
Eating in New River Gorge
You’re certainly going to work up an appetite here in the New, so you’ll want to treat yourself to a few nice meals while here. Luckily, visitors have a number of fine choices available in the small towns that lie adjacent to the park.
Here are a few of the local favorites, listed over at the New River Conventions and Visitors Bureau.
Guide to New River Gorge
Relevant Links
National Park Guides
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