First trip
Pinnacle Creek or Buffalo Mountain
Solid intermediate systems with a good spread of green and blue trail, and enough mileage to fill two days without repeating yourself.
Full guide to Hatfield-McCoy Trails →ATV & UTV Riding
The Hatfield-McCoy Trails are the reason people trailer machines to West Virginia from a dozen states. Managed by the Hatfield-McCoy Regional Recreation Authority across former coal land in the southern counties, the system runs well over a thousand miles and connects directly into trail towns where street-legal riding is permitted.
The Hatfield-McCoy system was built on former coal lands beginning in 2000 and now exceeds 1,000 miles. Several connected towns permit off-highway vehicles on public streets, so riders can reach lodging, fuel and restaurants without trailering.
Well over a thousand miles across former coal land, split into named systems, with connected trail towns where street riding is legal.
Our recommendations
Where we'd send you
The biggest day
Rockhouse
One of the largest systems in the network, with terrain from easy doubletrack to difficult, and Gilbert right there.
Full guide to Hatfield-McCoy Trails →For the town experience
Gilbert or Matewan
Base in a trail town, ride to the restaurant, park the machine outside. The whole model of the system in one weekend.
Full guide to Hatfield-McCoy Trails →Practical note
Every rider needs a permit and they're less expensive and simpler to buy online in advance. The difficulty ratings are accurate, and black-rated trails are demanding on underpowered machines.
What to know before you go
- A Hatfield-McCoy permit is required and available online or from local vendors
- Several trail towns allow riding directly on city streets to lodging and restaurants
- Helmets are required for riders under 18 statewide
Regions that do it best
Every place we cover for atv & utv riding
Motorized Trail · Southern Coalfields
Hatfield-McCoy Trails
The largest off-highway trail system in the eastern United States — more than a thousand miles across former coal lands in southern West Virginia, split into named systems including Rockhouse, Bearwallow, Buffalo Mountain, Pinnacle Creek, Devil Anse, Pocahontas, Indian Ridge, Ivy Branch and Warrior.
1,000+ mi trail9+ trail systems
State Park · Southern Coalfields
Twin Falls Resort State Park
A quiet resort park in Wyoming County with a lodge, golf course and two waterfalls on Black Fork and Marsh Fork.
3,776 ac park2 waterfalls
State Park · Metro Valley
Chief Logan State Park
A 4,000-acre park in Logan County with a wildlife exhibit, trails through reclaimed coal country and an outdoor amphitheatre.
4,000 ac parkLogan County location
Trips built around it
AdvertiseThis space is available
Guides and rentals for atv & utv riding
Reserved for a West Virginia operator serving this activity. The listings above and below it are unpaid.
List your business hereQuestions people ask
Do you need a permit to ride the Hatfield-McCoy Trails?
Yes. A trail permit is required for every rider and is sold online and by local vendors, with separate resident and non-resident pricing.
How many miles are the Hatfield-McCoy Trails?
The system spans well over 1,000 miles across multiple connected trail systems in southern West Virginia.
Organizations, agencies and resources · 6
Groups that handle access, maintenance, licensing and conditions data for this activity. Starred entries publish updates worth following.
Hatfield-McCoy Trails / Trails Heaven
Essential statewide and southern West Virginia motorized trail resource — permits, trail systems, maps and trail town information.
Visit Hatfield-McCoy Regional Recreation Authority
Off-road
The public authority that manages, permits and expands the Hatfield-McCoy trail system across former coal lands.
Visit WVDNR ORV Resources
Off-road
Off-road vehicle regulations, registration and permitted-use information on state lands.
Visit onX Offroad
Off-road
Motorized trail and forest road mapping with legal-status layers and offline navigation.
Visit Gaia GPS Offroad
Off-road
Forest service road layers and offline topographic mapping for backcountry driving.
Visit Visit Southern West Virginia
Tourism
Regional tourism covering the New River Gorge, Beckley and the southern coalfields.
Visit
Related activities
Every organization we link to: local tourism offices, the state and federal agencies that manage the land, the nonprofits and clubs that keep access open, and the universities doing the research.
West Virginia has roughly 1.5 million acres of public land and a handful of places that carry almost all of the attention. The consequence is that a great deal of very good ground sits nearly empty, usually for one of three reasons: nobody has heard of it, the road in is gated or rough, or it is undeveloped and has nothing to advertise. Those are the places below — of them across regions.