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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:
There is coal still to be mined along the trail:
And waterfalls:
Old ventilation shaft enterances to the Kaymoor Mine:
Some of the unique sandstone rock cliffs that litter the Gorge:
A view of the river from along the trail. This is where I work in the summer:
The mine entrance:
The beginning of the stairs:
The view from the top of the stairs:
On the way down:
Ruins at the bottom:
What it looked like in the past. I'm roughly behind where the tall building on the bottom is:
Starting back up from the bottom. Prepare to feel the burn:
Enjoy!!!