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.
Moncove Lake State Park
Local knowledge
A small park in Monroe County built around a 144-acre lake with warm-water fishing for largemouth bass, bluegill and channel catfish, plus a swimming pool. The park adjoins a wildlife management area, adding public hunting and hiking acreage. Visitation is among the lowest in the state park system.
Visitation is among the lowest in the state park system, and an adjoining wildlife management area adds hunting and hiking acreage to a small park.
More places like thisKnow before you go
- Largemouth, bluegill and channel catfish
- Adjacent WMA adds hunting and hiking acreage
- Gasoline motors are limited to 5 horsepower, and there is a boat ramp with rowboat, kayak and paddleboat rental
- The pool runs Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend, Wednesday to Sunday, $6 for adults
- Camping runs April into the end of October, with limited November availability for hunters by reservation
What you can do here
Warm-water lake fishing in Monroe County for largemouth, bluegill and channel catfish, with a boat ramp and rowboat, kayak and paddleboat rentals if you arrive without a boat. Gasoline motors are limited to 5 horsepower, which keeps the water quiet. Visitation is among the lowest in the state park system, and that works in an angler's favor. WVDNR licensing applies.
Local organizations
Rowboats, kayaks and paddleboats rent at the ramp, and the 5-horsepower cap on gas motors keeps wake and noise off the water — beginner conditions by design. April through October. Because this is one of the least-visited parks in the system, a weekday paddle here is usually a solitary one.
The campground runs from April into the end of October, with limited November availability held for hunters by reservation. The adjoining wildlife management area is what makes that late window make sense. Reserve through the state park system, and ask the office directly about what is open at the end of the season.
A wildlife management area adjoins the park, so the public ground is larger than the boundary suggests — lake edge, woods and WMA habitat in one place. May is the peak. Low visitation means quiet mornings most of the year. Ask at the office where the WMA access points are before you set out.
Most of the walkable acreage comes from the adjoining wildlife management area rather than the park itself, which is small. That means shared ground with hunters in fall, so check season dates and wear orange. No trail mileage is published here; ask at the office which routes are marked and where they begin.
Local organizations
Guides, gear and lodging near Moncove Lake State Park
Place-level placement for operators within range of this trailhead, put-in or crag.
List your business hereNearby in the Greenbrier Valley
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Watoga State Park
West Virginia's largest state park at over 10,100 acres, built largely by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s.
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.
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.
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.