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.
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. Machine-built flow and technical climbing trails on state-owned land, a deliberate departure from the region's traditional rugged riding.
Know before you go
- Check Trailforks for current open mileage — the network is expanding
- Wet-weather closures are enforced to protect new tread
What you can do here
Machine-built singletrack, flow and technical climbing trails cut on state land in Preston County, deliberately unlike the rock-and-root riding this region is known for. The network is still being built, so check Trailforks for what is currently open before driving out. Wet-weather closures are enforced to protect the new tread.
Local organizations
Purpose-built tread means consistent, runnable grades, which the older trails in this part of the state do not offer. Mileage is growing rather than fixed, so check Trailforks before planning a long run. Wet-weather closures are enforced across the network, and new tread is exactly the kind that does not survive traffic when soft.
Local organizations
Walkers get the same thing riders do from machine-built trail: even grades and clear tread with no navigation problem to solve. Bikes are the primary user group here, so expect to step aside on blind corners. Check Trailforks for open mileage, and note that the network closes in wet weather.
Local organizations
Guides, gear and lodging near Mountaineer Trail Network Recreation Area
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.
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.
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.