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.
Mon River Rail-Trail System
About 48 miles of connected crushed-limestone rail-trail through Morgantown: the Caperton Trail along the riverfront downtown, the Mon River Trail running north to the Pennsylvania line and south toward Prickett's Fort, and the Deckers Creek Trail climbing 19 miles east to Reedsville. Together they form the best urban-to-rural trail network in the state.
Know before you go
- Deckers Creek climbs steadily eastbound — ride out, coast back
- The Caperton section is fully accessible and busy with walkers
- Connects to Pennsylvania's trail network at the state line
What you can do here
Three trails connect into about 48 miles: the Caperton along the Morgantown riverfront, the Mon River Trail running north to the Pennsylvania line and south toward Prickett's Fort, and Deckers Creek climbing 19 miles east to Reedsville. Surface is crushed limestone throughout. At the state line the network continues into Pennsylvania's trails.
Local organizations
Crushed limestone, no cars, and 48-plus connected miles means you can run any distance without crossing traffic. The Caperton section downtown is the busy one — expect walkers, and time your intervals accordingly. Deckers Creek climbs steadily eastbound, so an out-and-back there gives you the work first and a free ride home.
Crushed limestone on a rail grade is the mild end of gravel: no loose rock, no real climbing except Deckers Creek, which gains steadily over 19 miles eastbound. Ride out, coast back. With 48-plus connected miles and a link into Pennsylvania's network at the state line, the route options run longer than a day.
The Caperton section is fully accessible — crushed limestone on a rail grade, following the riverfront through downtown Morgantown. It is also the busiest stretch of the system with walkers, worth timing around. Gentle grades, firm surface and long uninterrupted mileage are exactly what makes rail-trails the most accessible outdoor option in the state.
Nothing technical here: crushed limestone on old rail grade, which rewards pace rather than footwork. Deckers Creek is the exception in effort if not surface, climbing 19 miles east to Reedsville, so run that one uphill first. West Virginia Mountain Trail Runners organizes races and group runs statewide if you want company.
Local organizations
Friends of Deckers Creek works the watershed the eastern arm of this system follows, and volunteer organizations maintain nearly every trail and river resource in West Virginia. Across 48-plus connected miles through a city, the work is constant — surface, drainage, brush, trash. Contact the trail organizations directly to find a work day.
Local organizations
Forty-eight-plus miles of connected trail from a downtown riverfront out to the Pennsylvania line gives caches a great deal of ground to hide in, including the 19-mile Deckers Creek climb. Nothing specific is published for this system. Geocaching.com is the working list here; the state park geocaching program covers parks rather than trails like this.
Guides, gear and lodging near Mon River Rail-Trail System
Place-level placement for operators within range of this trailhead, put-in or crag.
List your business hereNearby in the Mountaineer Country
Coopers Rock State Forest
A 12,747-acre state forest above the Cheat River Canyon.
Cheat Canyon
One of the classic big-water runs of the East: roughly 11 miles of Class IV–V through a remote gorge below Albright, with named rapids including Big Nasty, Coliseum and Pete Morgan.
Mountaineer Trail Network Recreation Area
Purpose-built modern singletrack in Preston County, the anchor project of a regional effort to link northern West Virginia into a single mountain bike destination.
Big Bear Lake Trail Center
A long-established private trail center in Preston County with dozens of miles of cross-country singletrack and doubletrack around a lake, plus camping.
Cathedral State Park
133 acres of virgin eastern hemlock, the last substantial stand of old-growth mixed forest remaining in West Virginia.
Valley Falls State Park
A series of ledge drops on the Tygart Valley River near Fairmont, popular with photographers, picnickers and — at the right levels — playboaters.
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.