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.
Beartown State Park
A half-mile boardwalk through a formation of large Droop Sandstone blocks separated by deep crevasses, some of which hold ice into early summer. The rock faces support extensive moss and lichen growth and seep water through most of the year. The full walk takes about forty minutes.
Know before you go
- Boardwalk is the only access — no off-trail travel
- Combine with Droop Mountain Battlefield a few miles north
- Closed in winter
What you can do here
The walk here is a half-mile boardwalk and about forty minutes end to end, so it is a stop rather than a day out. Off-trail travel is not permitted; the boardwalk is the only access. The park closes in winter. Droop Mountain Battlefield a few miles north pairs with it if you want more mileage.
Local organizations
Subjects are close range: large Droop Sandstone blocks, the deep crevasses between them, seep water and the moss and lichen covering the rock faces. Some crevasses hold ice into early summer, which is worth timing for. You shoot from the boardwalk, since there is no legal way off it, and the park is closed in winter.
Local organizations
Outdoor Photography across West Virginia →Moss, lichen and rock that seeps water through most of the year make these 110 acres a study in one small microclimate rather than a broad wildlife stop. Cold air pooling in the crevasses holds ice into early summer, which explains a good deal about what grows on the faces. Everything is viewed from the boardwalk, at reading distance.
Local organizations
Nature Observation across West Virginia →The entire route is a half-mile boardwalk, and it is also the only permitted access, so nobody is choosing between an easy way and a real one. Figure about forty minutes. The park publishes no grade, width or surface detail, so confirm specifics with the park office before driving out, and note that it closes in winter.
Guides, gear and lodging near Beartown State Park
Place-level placement for operators within range of this trailhead, put-in or crag.
List your business hereNearby in the Greenbrier Valley
Greenbrier River Trail
Seventy-eight miles from Cass to Caldwell on a former Chesapeake & Ohio logging grade, crossing 35 bridges by the state park's count and passing through 2 tunnels, following the Greenbrier River the entire way.
Watoga State Park
West Virginia's largest state park at over 10,100 acres, built largely by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s.
Cranberry Glades Botanical Area
The largest area of bogs in West Virginia — sphagnum and cranberry peat bogs holding plant communities left behind after the last glaciation, more typical of Canada than the mid-Atlantic, including carnivorous sundews and pitcher plants.
Falls of Hills Creek
Three waterfalls in three-quarters of a mile, dropping 25, 45 and 63 feet — the last is the second-highest waterfall in West Virginia.
Highland Scenic Highway
A 43-mile National Scenic Byway climbing over 4,500 feet across the Allegheny plateau between Richwood and US 219, with four major overlooks and access to Cranberry Glades, the Falls of Hills Creek and the Cranberry Wilderness.
Cranberry Wilderness
47,815 acres of second-growth northern hardwood and red spruce on the high plateau — the largest wilderness in West Virginia.
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.