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inthecountry.Throwingcautiontothewinds,BASE-jumpingdaredevilscomeonceayear
to leap from the bridge's vertigo-producing heights, from whence they gently float down-
ward—to land on sandbars in the river.
Nowasemiwildernessoftree-coveredridgesandsandstoneoutcrops,therivercorridor
was until fairly recently one of the busiest coal-mining centers in the country. To this day
minersandotherlong-timelocalsgatheratthevisitorcentertorecounttheirexperiencesin
conversations thathelptokeepalive WestVirginia'stime-honored tradition ofstorytelling.
Glade Creek Grist Mill in Babcock State Park, made of parts from three mills in the state, is a re-creation of an earlier
mill. Visitors can purchase freshly ground grains from this working mill.
5.
Babcock State Park
Most of the old mines were abandoned by the 1930s, and nature ever since has been re-
claiming the ground under towns on which they stood. This regrowth is apparent at Bab-
cockStatePark.The4,127-acretract,lyingtothesouthalongRte.41,earnsspecialrenown
for its two different kinds of wild rhododendrons that enliven the hillsides from May until
July. Birds carol in the canopy of hardwoods, and trout fight the currents of Glade Creek.
Also of note are a reconstructed gristmill—one of the most photographed sites in the
state—which stands at the stream's edge, and some 20 miles of trails tempting hikers to
explore the parklands.
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