This list of rail trails in West Virginia includes former railroad right-of-ways in

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

that have been converted to

trails A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. The ...

for public use and proposed rail trails.

Established rail trails

* Allegheny Highland Trail: built as part of the

Corridor H U.S. Route 48 (US 48), also known as the incomplete Corridor H of the Appalachian Development Highway System, extends from Interstate 79 (I-79) in Weston, West Virginia, eastward across the crest of the Allegheny Mountains to I-81 in Str ...

project * Beckley Rail Trail: located in the city of Beckley; also known as the Lewis McManus Trail *

Blackwater Canyon Blackwater Canyon is a rugged, heavily wooded, long gorge carved by the Blackwater River in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. For many years, it has been the object of controversy as environmental activists have contended wit ...

, over 12 miles * Brooke Pioneer Rail-Trail: asphalt trail in Brooke County * Brooklyn-Southside Junction Trail: an old railroad in the

New River Gorge The New River Gorge National Park and Preserve is a unit of the United States National Park Service (NPS) designed to protect and maintain the New River Gorge in southern West Virginia in the Appalachian Mountains. Established in 1978 as a nat ...

that extends from the old mining towns of

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

to a now-active rail junction just west of Thurmond * Caperton Trail: follows the Monongahela River from the Mon River Rail Trail South to Mon River Rail Trail North through Morgantownhttp://montrails.org * Cheat Lake Trail: follows part of the eastern shore of

Cheat Lake Cheat Lake is a reservoir on the Cheat River in Monongalia County, West Virginia, United States. It was originally named Lake Lynn, but the Board on Geographic Names officially decided upon Cheat Lake as the reservoir's name in 1976. The surfac ...

north of

Interstate 68 Interstate 68 (I-68) is a Interstate Highway in the US states of West Virginia and Maryland, connecting I-79 in Morgantown, West Virginia, to I-70 in Hancock, Maryland. I-68 is also Corridor E of the Appalachian Development Highway Sy ...

; an extension north into

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

would connect it to the Mon River Rail Trail North * Cranberry / Tri-Rivers Trail: a depot was renovated in the city of

Richwood Richwood may refer to: Places ;United States * Richwood, Georgia * Richwood, Kentucky * Richwood, Louisiana * Richwood Township, Minnesota * Richwood, New Jersey * Richwood, Ohio * Richwood, Texas * Richwood, West Virginia * Richwood, Wisconsin ...

for use as a trailhead for the trail. This 14.5 former rail bed extends from the city along the Cherry River to the

Gauley River The Gauley River is a river in West Virginia. It merges with the New River to form the Kanawha River, a tributary of the Ohio River. The river features numerous recreational whitewater areas, including those in Gauley River National Recreation A ...

. The trail then turns upstream and follows alongside the Gauley to a high trestle and enters a tunnel, dead-ending at Allingdale. An extension is planned or underway from Cowen to Bolair. * Cunard - Kaymoor Trail: follows an old railroad from the old mining towns of

Cunard Cunard () is a British shipping and cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its three ships have been registered in Hamilton, Bermu ...

Kaymoor Kay Moor, also known as Kaymoor, is the site of an abandoned coal mine, coal-processing plant, and coal town near Fayetteville, West Virginia. The town site is located in the New River Gorge at Kaymoor Bottom (). It is linked to the mine portal ...

in the

* Deckers Creek Rail Trail: follows an abandoned rail corridor along Deckers Creek that extends from the Caperton Trail in Morgantown to Reedsville; in length * East Wetzel Rail-Trail: a rail trail located in

Hundred 100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to de ...

( Wetzel County) * Elk River Rail Trail: a rail trail that currently extends in Coonskin Park in

Kanawha County Kanawha County ( ) is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 180,745, making it West Virginia's most populous county. The county seat is Charlest ...

just north of

Charleston Charleston most commonly refers to: * Charleston, South Carolina * Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital * Charleston (dance) Charleston may also refer to: Places Australia * Charleston, South Australia Canada * Charleston, Newfoundlan ...

; the remainder of the disused line towards Morgantown may be converted into a rail trail; the extension of the runways at Yeager Airport has damaged the trail to make it nearly impassable at several places * Glade Creek Trail: located in the

along Glade Creek, this trail follows an old rail bed * Glen Dale to Moundsville Rail Trail: a rail trail *

Greenbrier River Trail The Greenbrier River Trail (GRT), is a lineal state park comprising a rail trail between North Caldwell and Cass in eastern West Virginia. The GRT route and its contours were originally engineered by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, serving as ...

: a rail trail that goes through pristine eastern West Virginia * Harrison County Bike and Hike Rail-Trail: a rail trail that goes through Clarksburg and Harrison County * Hawks Nest Rail-Trail * Lime Rock Rail-Trail: a rail trail through

Tucker County Tucker County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 6,762, making it West Virginia's fourth-least populous county. Its county seat is Parsons. The county was created in 1856 from a part of ...

* Lost Creek Rail-Trail: near Clarksburg; also known as South Harrison County Bike-Hike Trail;runs eight miles from Lost Creek to Mount Clare * MCTrail: a small rail trail from Morgantown Avenue and Winfield Street intersection at East Fairmont to Pricketts Fort State Park, where it connects to the Mon River Rail Trail South * Mill Creek Rail-Trail: in Anstead; follows Mill Creek to where it flows into the New River * Mon River Rail Trail North: follows the Monongahela River from the Caperton Trail at Morgantown to Van Voorhis Road; it is being planned for an extension into

, which would ultimately connect to the Cheat Lake Trail; currently in length; planned extension to * Mon River Rail Trail South: follows the Monongahela River from Pricketts Fort State Park and MCTrail to Morgantown where it becomes the Caperton Trail; in length *

Narrow Gauge Rail Trail The Lexington and West Cambridge Railroad was a railroad company chartered in 1845 and opened in 1846 that operated in eastern Massachusetts. It and its successors provided passenger service until 1977 and freight service until 1980 or early 1981. ...

: a trail in

Babcock State Park Babcock State Park is a state park located along the New River Gorge on wooded in Fayette County, West Virginia. It is located approximately 20 miles away from the New River Gorge Bridge. Located near the park headquarters, the Glade Creek G ...

in Fayette County *

North Bend Rail Trail The North Bend Rail Trail is a rail trail in north-central and western West Virginia in the United States. It is operated by West Virginia State Parks and is part of the American Discovery Trail. Running parallel to U.S. Route 50, the rail ...

: 72 miles, covering most of the distance between Clarksburg and

Parkersburg Parkersburg is a city in and the county seat of Wood County, West Virginia. Located at the confluence of the Ohio and Little Kanawha rivers, it is the state's fourth-largest city and the largest city in the Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna metro ...

. * North Marion Rail-Trail *

Panhandle Trail The Panhandle Trail is a rail trail in southern Pennsylvania and the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia. It occupies an abandoned railroad corridor that had been known as the Panhandle route which has been converted to a bicycle and walking trail ...

: a rail trail with some parts complete while others are under construction; spans from the northern sector of

Washington County, Pennsylvania Washington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 209,349. Its county seat is Washington. Washington County is part of the Pittsburgh, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county i ...

to Weirton * Railroad Grade Rail-Trail: a rail trail through Canaan Valley State Park in

* Thurmond-Minden Trail: follows an old rail line from a now-active rail line just west of Thurmond to

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the greatest town between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district (''Kreis'') of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Detm ...

in the

* West Fork Rail-Trail: this trail extends through the

Monongahela National Forest The Monongahela National Forest is a national forest located in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It protects over of federally managed land within a proclamation boundary that includes much of the Potomac Highlands Regi ...

( Randolph and

Pocahontas Pocahontas (, ; born Amonute, known as Matoaka, 1596 – March 1617) was a Native American woman, belonging to the Powhatan people, notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of ...

counties) with a trailhead in Glady; this is near the

Allegheny Trail The Allegheny Trail is a hiking trail that passes through the Allegheny Mountains in West Virginia, United States. It is the longest named trail in the state excepting the Appalachian Trail, of which traverses the state at Harper's Ferry. The ...

* Wheeling Heritage Rail-Trail: a trail in three segments in the Wheeling region * White Oak Rail Trail: an asphalt trail along a abandoned

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad in the United States formed in 1982 with the merger of Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. With headquarters in Atlanta, the company operates 19,420 route miles (31 ...

corridor that travels through

Oak Hill, West Virginia Oak Hill is a city in Fayette County, West Virginia, United States and is the primary city within the Oak Hill, WV Micropolitan Statistical Area. The micropolitan area is also included in the Beckley-Oak Hill, WV Combined Statistical Area. The ...

, beginning near a church along

West Virginia Route 612 West Virginia Route 612 is an east–west state highway in Fayette County, West Virginia. The western terminus of the route is at Interstate 64 and Interstate 77 southeast of Mossy. The eastern terminus is at U.S. Route 19 south of Oak H ...

on the south and ending at Summerlee Road on the north end, with a spur beginning near the existing

along

West Virginia Route 61 West Virginia Route 61 is a north–south state highway in central and southern West Virginia. The southern terminus of the route is at West Virginia Route 41 West Virginia Route 41 (WV 41) is a north–south state highway in ...

and meeting the mainline trail near the former Collins Middle School building..

Proposed rail trails

*The Mon River Rail Trail North is slated for an extension north from Van Voorhis Road to

, where a trail would loop back to the Cheat Lake Trail. The Mon River Rail Trail North is currently long with an extension to slated for construction.

References

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West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...

Rail trails A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetcar ...

Established rail trails

Proposed rail trails

See also

References