After our brief visit to Jersey City, Daniel and I headed south. It was time to put some distance between us and the northern part of the country before winter set in. Operation Escape from the North was officially underway so we headed south for a quick visit to Huntington West Virginia.
My husband Daniel grew up in Huntington and his family still lives there. We originally planned to spend a week or so in Huntington, but that was before we were delayed by illness and car trouble. So, we only stayed for a couple of days.
Long Driving Days
Since it’s a 9-hour drive from Jersey City to Huntington, Daniel and I decided to break up the journey over two days. These were our longest driving days on this trip so far. We usually drive for only 3-4 hours at a time. This leaves us enough time for setting up and breaking down camp, blogging, planning, cooking dinner, etc. But we’re usually not in that much of a hurry either.
Welcome to West Virginia!
Windy rolling hills of Appalachia. The fall foliage is still lovely but many trees are already bare.
Sunny Autumn Days with Family
I couldn’t believe the weather when arrived in West Virginia. I had been wearing sweaters and leggings for weeks thanks to the cooler autumn weather. Daniel and I had to huddle under blankets and run the heater at night to keep warm. But this was definitely not the case during our visit to Huntington. I happily put away my warmer clothing and enjoyed the last few days of summer.
The weather made visiting family easier too. We didn’t want to sit indoors with everyone, given the surge of Coronavirus cases across the country. So we sat outdoors and chatted around a fire.
Daniel and his mom, Mary. She just built this cute little house in her front yard.
Daniel puts his Eagle Scout skills to work by building a fire
Hanging out around the fire with Daniel’s family
This is the next door neighbor’s house. The building was completely destroyed because the hill is slipping. Needless to say no one lives there any more. Mary and Greg hope their house doesn’t follow suit.
Beech Fork State Park
Daniel and I decided to camp at Beech Fork State Park during our visit to Huntington. I’ve visited it a number of times but this was our first time camping at the park. It’s a lovely spot and one of my favorite places that we’ve stayed so far this year.
The state park has four different campgrounds that were all still open during our visit. We stayed in the Four Coves Campground right on the lake’s edge.
The view from our campsite at Beech Fork State Park
A heron walked right by our campsite!
Pretty autumn weather in Beech Fork State Park
Overlook Trail Hike at Beech Fork State Park
There are a lot of great hiking trails in Beech Fork State Park. During our last visit to Huntington, I drove over to the park to hike the Lost Trail. I didn’t have as much time for hiking during this visit so I decided to hike the shorter Overlook Trail instead.
I’ll be honest – I didn’t even hike the whole trail. I was still recovering from our illness the previous week in Buffalo. So I just hiked to the Overlook and back from our campsite. The entire hike was about 1.5 miles roundtrip which was perfect for my energy level. Baby steps!
A cute little bridge just past the trailhead for the Overlook Trail
Hiking through the woods on the Overlook Trail
The Overlook
There’s not much of a view from the Overlook right now. I imagine the view will improve during the winter when the trees are bare.
Where are we now?
We are at Beech Fork State Park in West Virginia!
Dates: October 19-22, 2020
Great American Road Trip Status: Days 106-109
Total Trip Mileage: 7392.5
Day 106 Starting Location: Liberty Harbor RV Park – Jersey City, New Jersey
Day 106 Ending Location: Ramada Hotel – Cumberland, MD
Day 106 Miles Traveled: 296
Day 107 Starting Location: Ramada – Cumberland, MD
Day 107 Ending Location: Beech Fork State Park – Barboursville, WV
Day 107 Miles Traveled: 283.9
For more details on our Great America (Socially Distanced) Road Trip, see my previous posts:
- Days 104 & 105: Liberty Harbor RV Park: Urban Camping in Jersey City
- Days 102 & 103: A Quick Tour of the Office Shooting Locations in Scranton
- Days 96-101: Sidelined by Illness in Buffalo
- Day 95: One day in Niagara Falls: A Visit to America’s Largest Waterfall
- Day 94: The Great Lakes Challenge
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