Favorite Sites at NERI

Last year when we were at NERI, we stayed close to home because of COVID. This time we wanted to get out on our days off and revisit many of our favorite sites in the park, and perhaps discover a few new ones.

Because our RV site at Burnwood is located directly across the highway from the Canyon Rim Visitor Center, our first order of business was to walk the Canyon Rim Boardwalk Trail for great views of the New River Gorge Bridge and New River itself.

New River Gorge Bridge and the New River

We also returned to Grandview for several reasons. The view from the main overlook is one of the best in the park, and we never tire of gazing at the bend of the New River below. Since we were here in the spring, we were looking forward to the glorious rhododendrons. We returned several times to check out the progression of the blooms.

Grandview Main Overlook

Glorious Rhododendron

Our most poignant reason for returning to Grandview to spread some of our Kitty’s ashes near her favorite trees. Kitty loved to walk on her leash with Tim, and she had her own special places near our campsite. We thought she might like to come back here again.

Spreading Kitty's Ashes

New to us was Hawks Nest State Park, immediately adjacent to NERI on the north end of the park. Built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1939, the park also features incredible views of the New River.

Hawks Nest State Park

Our Fifth Season at New River Gorge National Park and Preserve

Tim and I have worked at New River Gorge National Park and Preserve (NERI) every year since 2017 on volunteer and/or contract museum assignments. We were happy to travel back to NERI in early May of this year for two reasons. One, the travel fund needed a serious infusion of capital after our travel booking spree in April. Most importantly, however, we really love working at NERI and feel like it is “our” park and “our” museum collection. 

You may have noticed a new designation for NERI. Last December, NERI was “upgraded,” or redesignated, from a National River to a National Park and Preserve, thus the new moniker.

A New Designation for NERI

Because of the size of our RV, we are not able to tow a car behind it. When we started full-timing, we decided to keep our car and drive it separately. Although this was a solution that few RVers adopt, it worked very well for us. We could set up the RV at a campsite, make the Kitty comfortable, and do our touring and errands with the car. 

This setup was almost a necessity during our museum projects, where we could be parked for up to two months. This time, however, we decided to leave the car behind and rent one when we arrived at NERI. We were able to get a good rate with Enterprise, and we would save additional wear and tear on our car. 

We left Colorado on May 4 and spent the first night at a lovely campground in Ellis, Kansas. We traveled through four more states before arriving in West Virginia on May 7.

From Colorado to Kansas

Traveling through Four States to Get to West Virginia

Because of a communication snafu, our favorite volunteer RV site at Grandview had been promised to someone else. We therefore were assigned a site at Burnwood. Although we were disappointed at first, we grew to really appreciate our new location. Although not as scenic or private as Grandview, Burnwood was so much closer to work, cutting our commuting time in half.

Our RV Site at Burnwood