Return to New River Gorge makes for glorious escape

It had been two long years since I had visited the most beautiful place in the world.

Last year about this time, I was in the hospital with heart and COVID-19 issues, causing me to miss going to New River Gorge in southern West Virginia for the first time in nine years.

I was crushed.

I couldn't wait to get back and hoped in the days and weeks leading up to my trip this year that nothing would go wrong.

Nothing did, to my relief.

I headed out on a sunny morning. The first order of business was dropping off Katy the rescue cat at Phillips Animal Hospital, where our friends take such good care of her.

But when the veterinary technician placed Katy in a cage, she froze. Katy wouldn't even look at me. I hated to leave her like that, but I knew she would warm up to the staff after getting acclimated.

I don't really mind the 283-mile drive to Fayetteville, West Virginia. I look at the trip as a way to leave everything and everyone behind for a few days.

When I arrived at my hotel, there was a potential issue. I heard the manager say they were overbooked. The woman in front of me, who used a wheelchair, had made a reservation for a first-floor room facing the pool. The hotel had given her a second-floor room facing the highway.

Since I made my reservation in March, I was hoping I would be OK, and I was.

New River Gorge Bridge is 876 feet high

Once I tossed my luggage onto the bed, I headed out to the Canyon Rim Visitor Center, which offers a view of the New River Gorge Bridge, the longest single-span arch bridge in the country. It is also 876 feet high.

There is a boardwalk with about 180 steps to get to the view. On the way back up the steps, I had to stop four times, which gave me a good indicator of what kind of shape I would be in for the mountain trails.

Oh, what trails. They are the highlight of every trip, providing some of the most amazing views I can imagine.

Endless Wall Trail is my favorite and the one I always hike first. Along with Long Point Trail, Endless Wall is most popular with visitors.

I got there early and encountered only two people on the first half of the 2.4-mile loop. For sustenance, my hotel has a breakfast nook, where I could make my own waffle. It's the closest this bachelor will ever get to cooking.

Morning temperatures were in the 60s, making the fresh mountain air invigorating. There were no signs of the smoke from Canadian wildfires that we have dealt with in northern Ohio this summer.

For my money, the best view in the country's newest national park can be found at Diamond Point Overlook, midway through Endless Wall.

When I arrived, there were two young couples with children, along with an older couple. One of the young couples brought two dogs.

I'm always amazed at how close people get to the edge of the cliffs. I told one man that I was concerned about him falling, but he assured me that he was fine. He climbs trees for a living. OK, then.

Spending quality alone time in nature

The people who joined me atop Diamond Point Overlook all descended back into the forest about the same time. I had the view to myself. I closed my eyes, tilted my head back and basked in the breeze and sunshine. It was glorious.

When the other people left, I was almost immediately joined by several birds. A black-capped chickadee landed in a tree, along with a number of warblers. Bird watching is another of my favorite parts of hiking the mountain trails.

My plan for vacation is to hike a longer trail in the morning, followed by a shorter trail in the afternoon. That week, I got to enjoy Wimbledon tennis coverage in the interim between hikes. I was in my element.

My afternoon destination was Butcher Branch Trail, a 0.8-mile hike that has some steep and narrow parts. I always go back there because I saw two deer and a box turtle the first time I hiked it.

I don't plan on returning.

At the end of Butcher Branch, it converges with two other trails. I must not have been paying attention because I took the wrong trail back, adding an unknown distance to my hike.

By the time I finally stumbled out of the forest, I was wiped out and out of water. It's not a trip to New River Gorge if I don't do something hapless. I have gotten lost and almost run out of gas on previous excursions.

By evening, I was ready to head to Beauty Mountain, the go-to place for sunsets. Beauty Mountain Road can best be described as remote. It is a gravel road that is barely a lane wide.

Beauty Mountain makes for interesting encounters with animals, people

There are few homes but an abundance of wildlife. I encountered a brown thrasher, 11 deer, three baby rabbits and an Eastern towhee. I had never seen so many deer.

I wasn't sure about parking, so I walked up to a woman who was getting out of her car.

She proved to be the most interesting character I met all week. She had the word "savage" written or tattooed on her face.

Despite the menacing moniker, the woman, a West Virginia native, couldn't have been nicer. She told me that copperheads like to sun themselves on the warm sandstone, but she had not been bitten in 30 years of visiting Beauty Mountain. Good to know.

The woman and a friend of hers sat on one of several outlooks for a view of the pending sunset, while I ventured a bit farther down the trail.

It would not be my last encounter with her.

As the sun slipped behind the mountains, I headed back to my car and passed the woman and her friend.

"Do you smoke weed?" she asked.

I politely said "no." She and her friend were both partaking in a little marijuana.

"There is nothing like smoking herb," she told me.

West Virginian people are friendly.

I see all kinds of people on the trails. Some are more prepared than others.

One man wore yellow Crocs on Long Point Trail. I don't know how me made it through the forest.

To the other extreme, I encountered a couple on Endless Wall who were using cross-country skis and sporting black gloves, which seemed like a bit much.

Hawks Nest State Park offers new adventures

On my last full day in West Virginia, I ventured out of New River Gorge to Hawks Nest State Park, which is only about 10 miles to the north.

I had heard about Rail Trail and its view of waterfalls. I thought that would be a nice addition to the trip.

I traipsed down a gravel road that made Beauty Mountain Road look like a metropolis. There was no one around.

I wasn't even sure if the road was the actual trail, but I had nobody to ask. It was a little creepy as I continued under threatening skies.

A woman at the tourism center in Fayetteville told me most of the waterfalls were on the first half of the trail, which was a relief. My spindly legs were pretty tired by the third day of hiking more than 10 miles total.

As I continued, I could hear rushing water, but I couldn't see it because of the dense vegetation. I did manage to spot a couple of pretty little waterfalls, but I never learned if I was on the right trail.

At one point, I passed a house that had an Aldi's grocery bag sitting behind a car. The trunk was open, as was a door to the house. I called out, but no one answered. Three gray squirrels and a tufted titmouse in the yard weren't much help.

I decided to turn back. That was enough hiking for one trip.

The week was not without hiccups. I did feel chest discomfort two or three times and even took a nitroglycerin pill for relief. Since my 2010 heart attack, I take the pills wherever I go.

Maybe I overdid it a bit, but there's so much to see. Ninety-five percent of West Virginia is covered by mountains. There is beauty almost everywhere.

I can't wait to see it again.

mcaudill@gannett.com

419-521-7219

Twitter: @MarkCau32059251

This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: New River Gorge in West Virginia gives News Journal reporter respite