A Humble Bridge

On Wednesday afternoon I did some exploring and finally saw the bridge I had driven over a dozen times. Most huge bridges, like the Golden Gate, are suspension or at least mostly visible to its users. That is not the case with the New River Gorge Bridge, a simple drive over it allows you to see nothing of its massive structure. It is the largest arch bridge in the western hemisphere, but it only reveals itself to those that go to effort to see it, it is a very humble bridge.

So after visiting the National Park visitor center I took a drive down into the gorge on a fun little road that twists and turns down the gorge wall under the bridge. I hiked around the New River checking out some rapids and just enjoying the tranquility. As I went to driving back up the other side of the gorge I came up on the Kaymoor Trailhead which was a 2.0 mile moderate hike one way to an old coal mine. I decided to give it a go as I was itching for a good hike and have always been curious about coal mines. It was totally worth it, the trail was a stunning tour of the gorge with water falls, beautiful trees and eerie abandoned coal mine structures. I was worried I would not make it back to the car before dark so I booked it and did the whole thing in under 90 mins. Here is a quick video of the gorge. And be sure to follow my adventures on Twitter.com/KMuncie