Road Trip To Western West Virginia

Where do you want to go, we asked each other.  We couldn't decide what in the world to do with our long weekend.  We pondered and we talked about options.  Undecided, we knew we had to make a decision and we had to make it soon.  It wasn't until the simple comment was made, "There is so much I want to see in this world" that we knew.  Immediately, we knew what the plans were going to be.  We were going to visit two locations in western West Virginia.  Places that we had each longed to visit.  I was going to finally visit the Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in Weston, WV and Jason was going to be able to see the New River Gorge Bridge in Fayetteville, WV.  We couldn't be happier with our plans.

We took our time and researched everything fully and settled on our plans.   We woke up early and drove to Weston, WV and arrived at the Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum at 11:30.  The first tour was set to start at Noon.   I had already ascertained and decided on the tours that we would be doing,  so I quickly paid and we went out to wait for our tour to start.   Ohhh my word, this building and tour is everything I could have imagined.  This building is quite historic and is just teeming with stories and happenings. 

WeThe tour guide was knowledgeable and was able to give a history of the architecture and inhabitants through a variety of stories and information about the site.  I already want to go back!

We were tired at that point so we headed to our hotel.  We stayed at the Hampton Inn and we couldn't be any happier with our hotel.  The staff working the hotel were super friendly and the building was immaculate.  It was so clean in fact that we asked if the building has just been built and opened to the public!

The next morning we were ready to head to our next destination, The New River Gorge.  Before we left the town though, we decided to head into the Museum of American Glass.  This museum dedicated to glassware was interesting.  We enjoyed the oil lamp collection and I absolutely loved the Lady Jane Stained Glass Dollhouse.    The drive from Weston to Fayetteville was through mountains where nature surrounded us.  The scenery alone made the drive worthwhile.   It was about an hour drive and eventually we arrived!  We were so excited to get our first glimpse of the bridge.   We started at the National Park Service visitor Center parking lot.  We walked the boardwalks to the overlooks and took in the bridge.

It is hard to describe the massive proportions of the bridge.  This thing is huge!     

 This is located in a national park and unfortunately, due to the ongoing pandemic the visitor center was closed.  However all overlooks and trails were open.  We took every chance we could to see the bridge.

One of the highlights of this weekend was the visit to Thurmond, WV.  This is an abandoned town nestled in the bottom of the gorge.  Once a boom town, this town slowly faded to a collection of empty buildings as the coal mines shut down.  The buildings are intact and have been secured and maintained by the National Park Service.  The commerce area of the town is right on the edge of the railroad tracks while the residential area stood on the hill above the town.  Walking through this town was amazing.  It is hard to not think about the people that walked those roads many years before.  

  The trail system and scenery in this area are second to none.  There are trails that take you to overlooks, trails that take you to abandoned coal mines and trails that lead you to rivers edge.   It seemed as if we saw a waterfall at every turn, each one just as pretty as the one before.   We could have stayed for a week and still not seen and experienced everything that this area has to offer.   There are mountain bike trails, miles of hiking, ruins, kayaking and so much more.

On this trip, we even managed to squeeze in a quick visit to the Monster Museum in Sutton, WV!  The quirkiness of this little museum was a great stop along the drive home.

We have already decided that we will be returning to New River Gorge as soon as possible.  It's pretty and full of activities that will have you appreciating history and nature.  A weekend at New river Gorge National Park and visiting Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum was a perfect getaway!  

Check out the in detail descriptions for the locations visited during this trip

Thurmond 
New River Gorge 
Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum
Museum of American Glass