After the period covered by my last post, my plan was to wind my way (depending on weather and mood) up to Ohio to meet up with a group of friends for the eclipse.
I decided to drive up through the Great Smoky Mountains and then over toward Kentucky. Once in the mountains, I did take a hike, but believe it or not I left my camera in the car! Ridiculous. I was able to pull over a few times as I drove and get some pictures though. It's so stunning.
As I drove further, there was a (very small) spot to pull over. On one side of the road, a river. On the other a waterfall so close you could put your hand under the water as it splashed on the ground and the edge of the road.
Next stop was the Grandview/New River Gorge area. This is a huge area. I went to Canyon Rim, the Thurmond Historic District, and Grandview
Canyon Rim is the primary visitor center (with museum, film, store, etc). I was there for the views though!
The small town of Thurmond was the originally the heart of New River Gorge, a rail center through which coal and timber was shipped. According to the park literature, activity in Thurmond peaked in 1910 when more freight tonnage was shipped from this depot than Cincinnati, Ohio, and Richmond combined. That same yaer, 75,000 passengers passed through the depot. Thurmond's decline was a combination of factors, including the Great Depression and changing transportation factors including the transition to diesel-powered rather than steam-powered.
In 1995 the Thurmond depot became a visitor center, and there are about 20 park-owned structures in the historic district. I only got a chance to get a couple of pictures on this trip. Maybe I'll get a chance to get back there someday.
Grandview has some of the highest vistas in the park. These pictures are from April 1st (no kidding!). I can imagine what some of these views will look like a little later in spring and again the fall!
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