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Kaymoor Trail, New River Gorge, WV-USA

PostPosted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 1:08 am
by rvrscum
This is one of my favorite walks in the New River Gorge of West Virginia, which is located in the Appalachain Mountains of the Eastern US. The area is well-known over here for the adventure sports of whitewater paddling and rock climbing, but there are also some great hikes. This one features a lot of different things, but above all for me it is a work out. The walk is 6.8km of a wide mostly level gravel path, which leads to abandoned indstrial ruins of a coal mine. There you have the option of descending 600ft in 829 steps to more ruins and a ghost town.

The beginning of the trail crosses Wolf Creek:

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There is coal still to be mined along the trail:

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And waterfalls:

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Old ventilation shaft enterances to the Kaymoor Mine:

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Some of the unique sandstone rock cliffs that litter the Gorge:

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A view of the river from along the trail. This is where I work in the summer:

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The mine entrance:

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The beginning of the stairs:

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The view from the top of the stairs:

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On the way down:

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Ruins at the bottom:

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What it looked like in the past. I'm roughly behind where the tall building on the bottom is:

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Starting back up from the bottom. Prepare to feel the burn:

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Enjoy!!!

Re: Kaymoor Trail, New River Gorge, WV-USA

PostPosted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 8:32 am
by GarryH
Well I think I can safely say this is one walk I wont be doing but I really enjoyed reading your report rvrscum.

Re: Kaymoor Trail, New River Gorge, WV-USA

PostPosted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 3:59 pm
by Michelle
Neat report, RV. Good scenery with a bit of history mixed in. I especially liked the shot of the waterfall :)

I looked up New River Gorge on the map, was hoping it would be a bit closer to the panhandle but alas, it's a bit far out there for me. I'm going whitewater tubing on the Potomac this weekend though, should be fun! I ought to get into a kayak or something a bit more adventurous, but I'm too much of a scaredy :shock:

Re: Kaymoor Trail, New River Gorge, WV-USA

PostPosted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 4:05 pm
by Paul Webster
That's one impressive wooden staircase 8)

Re: Kaymoor Trail, New River Gorge, WV-USA

PostPosted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 6:17 pm
by susanmyatt
Great report and pics, this one is certainly outside Scotland :lol:

Re: Kaymoor Trail, New River Gorge, WV-USA

PostPosted: Fri Jul 24, 2009 11:02 pm
by rvrscum
Thanks for the positive reviews. I've lurked a bit enjoying the TR's, especially of Skye. I found this website after my trip there in '07. I've since used the site extensively in planning my upcoming trip in less than a week. :D So I thought I might give back a little bit. To Michelle, a lot of folks from the DC area get down here, its only about 5hrs or so away. In a roundabout way one might call my report a "highland walk" as the Scottish Highlands were part of the North American plate 60 million years or so ago. The New River is thought to be among the oldest in the world, and may have been around when the Highlands were still connected to the Appalachains. Anyway, thanks for checking out my photos, and enjoy the follow on TR which I shot today from a typical day at my work. Perhaps some visitors to the site might tour the US and come visit.