West Virginia and North Carolina Vacation – Day 3 of 9: New River Gorge Revisited
On our third day of vacation (May 11th) we were showered and dressed and had eaten breakfast by 6:30 am, at which time we left for another drive to the bottom of New River Gorge near Fayetteville WV. Yesterday morning, as we crossed over the New River Bridge en route Babcock State Park, there was fog rising up from the bottom of the gorge. I hoped conditions would be the same this morning because it would be quite impressive seeing the bridge rising out of the fog. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any fog this morning.
Still, the view at the bottom was once again worth the trip!
We stopped at three small waterfalls, as we were climbing up the other side.
First Waterfall
Second Waterfall
Third Waterfall
Our next stop was at the Canyon Rim Visitor Center. The views of the gorge and bridge are the main attraction at the visitor center.
A short hiking trail descends into the gorge on a wooden boardwalk.
The boardwalk has two observation decks which offer unobstructed views of the longest steel arch span in the western hemisphere and the mile wide gorge it spans. We walked the trail to the bottom-most observation deck. We have made this hike several times over the years. The view took on new meaning for us, as we saw where we had been when we were at the bottom of the gorge.
First Observation Deck View
View from Bottom Observation Deck
See that bridge at the bottom of the gorge?
I stood on that bridge, when we drove to the bottom of the gorge!
Bob and I on the bottom observation deck
It was not yet 8:30 am, when we walked back up the wooden boardwalk to the visitor center. We discussed the possibility of checking out of our hotel a day early, as we had seen all we hoped to see during our stay in the Fayetteville, WV area. We checked the weather report and saw that we would encounter rain en route Maggie Valley, NC (our final destination). Travel on our scheduled departure day, though, looked rain free. We decided to stay the night. In my next vacation blog post, I will share what we did on the rest of our third day of vacation.
The Beauty Around Us 
5 Responses to “West Virginia and North Carolina Vacation – Day 3 of 9: New River Gorge Revisited”
This looks like a great vacation Linda and such a beautiful area. Always enjoy the photos of you and Bob also. Great pictures!
We saw those same little waterfalls when we drove up from the bottom of the gorge. We didn’t have time to visit the observation decks at the Visitors Center. Perhaps we’ll get back there another time.
Beautiful series from your trip, Linda!
Those are spectacular views and shots Linda. How lovely it is to travel and see those locations, very green and serene.
Bridges, waterfalls and great scenery. Wonderful pics!