On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
frosty
In the fall of 2023, on a trip to Southern Virginia, we detoured to West Virginia to see the newest National Park – New River Gorge. It turned out that we hit the one-day-a-year Bridge Walk! We wanted to see the new National Park and this weekend fit our schedule.
This is West Virginia’s biggest one-day party. The walk has been going on over 40 years.
Here’s a shot of the Bridge Walk crowds.
The Bridge Walk day is also the one day a year that BASE jumping from the bridge is allowed (BASE = Building, Antenna (i.e. radio mast) Span, (i.e. bridge), Earth (i.e. cliff). Needless to say, BASE jumping is considered one of the most dangerous extreme sports – low altitude, only one parachute. It’s still going on now because one of the conditions NPS had to agree to when they made it a National Park was to continue to have the BASE jumping day. They jump from this platform.
Launch!
My wife took a video and texted it to our sons with this message: “Wait til after I die before you try this.” Responses:
Younger son: “OMG, that looks terrifying!”
Older son: “Looks cool!”
Guess which one went to the ER three times one year in middle school: Snowboard, skateboard, skates.
Somersault!
Coming in …
Landing!
Baud
Yeah, that doesn’t look high enough.
Van Buren
Theres also an old bridge way down by the river that you can walk across. It took us forever because my wife had a brand new camera and stopped every 3 feet to take another picture.
Rusty
I live in terror my 16 year old son will eventually decide to take up something as crazy as base jumping or free climbing. It’s definitely more a guy thing, as are most death defying stupid hobbies.
stinger
I’d do the Bridge Walk; looks like fun. Would not do the jumping thing.
Great photos!
circular reasoning
I have rafted the New and Gauley rivers there. My first time out there were bungee jumpers on one of the bridges we went under, which was cool to watch from that vantage point.
The second time we went, my buddy who organized the trip arranged for us to do a 2-day “upper, upper” Gauley trip. That is where you do the upper, roughest part, of the river both days instead of having a wild adventure on day 1 followed by a more relaxing day 2 on the lower part of the river. On day 2 when our guide asked “what kind of ride do you want”, I was outvoted by my friends who wanted “the wildest!”. So, basically we rafted the river on day 1 and swam it on day 2!
JoeyJoeJoe
In the area, there is also a place where you can fly in a biplane and fly over the river. I did so in 2020. If you want, the pilot will do a barrel roll, loop the loop, or nosedive, or even let you steer the plane. I declined all of those options
eclare
Put me down in the terrifying camp.
HinTN
The young plant guys John highlighted a year or so ago make interesting note cards. One features the New River.
Well hell, I try to link to them and get some sort of internet error.
https://www.botanytropicals.com
HinTN
@HinTN:
The webpage at botanytropicals.com/product/go-smudge-yourself-greeting-card/1598 could not be loaded because:
net::ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH
They Call Me Noni
@eclare: Ditto
espierce
@circular reasoning:
I did both segments of the Gauley over 20 years ago on a two day Lower/Upper trip with Class VI River Runners. Day 2 on the Upper that begins with Class III rapids at the base of the dam was exhilarating!
frosty
@espierce: My SIL and BIL were white water kayakers and talked me and my older son into a raft trip on the Nantahala. If by exhilarating you mean the fun of having a quarter ton of 55 degree water dumped in your lap at 9:00 in the morning, then it was definitely exhilarating!
Another Scott
Neato.
My boss once told me that the largest employer in WV was the state Department of Transportation. (Dunno if that’s still the case.) There are lots of impressive bridges there, which is kinda expected given that the Appalachian Mountains were once the highest in the world…
E.g. Glade Creek Bridge on I-64 and of course the New River Gorge Bridge on US-19.
Thanks.
Best wishes,
Scott.
Gin & Tonic
My dear wife and I were there last fall, and really enjoyed it. I spent one day rafting the lower Gauley, which was, indeed, exhilarating. I was in a raft with a bunch of very nice and very interesting older folks who travel as a group every year and do a lot of adventurous trips.
dr. luba
My mom and I stopped here on the way to visit my cousin in Lynchburg VA. Saw it on a map (yes, still use those) and was surprised to find a national park there–didn’t realize how new it was. Spent a few hours driving around and stopping for short walks (mom is 92).
Bridge is impressive, but the “Sandstone Falls” were undewhelming……perhaps the water levels were low, but we’d call those rapids where I come from.
StringOnAStick
The only reason I won’t try BASE jumping is I have a weak ankle and I know how that can go bad with the landing, plus I don’t want to overstress the connections between my bones and my replacement knees, but I’d do it in hot second if I could. I like helmet sports, what can I say?
Ruckus
Not a particular fan of heights. Although the group I was in charge of on the ship I was on for 2 years in the USN did have equipment most of the way up the mast and on the end of the yardarm. (Yeah that’s the name of the horizontal bar most of the way up the mast. No it wasn’t a sailboat, just the names of all the main parts of a ship come from when they were all made of wood and had sails. The yardarm was most of the way up the mast and was as wide as the ship, so having to climb the ladder up the mast to the yardarm and then out to the end of that was FUN! (and yes that is BS) But we had electronic equipment out there and it had to be checked/fixed and aligned every so often. Good times……