Mountain Biking
Babcock State Park
Clifftop, West Virginia
Recent rains make for a memorable ride
8/17/03 - by Jeff Cobb, Outdoor Travels
Babcock State Park offers its guests 4,127 acres of serene, yet rugged beauty, with a frolicking trout stream and mountainous vistas to be viewed from several scenic overlooks. All of this variety is located a short distance from Summersville and the New River Gorge National River - the heart of the whitewater rafting industry of West Virginia.
Home to arguably the most photographed spot in West Virginia, Babcock State Park is off the beaten path but certainly worth visiting if not for biking or hiking, then for its ambience alone. This is probably one of the most visited of West Virginia’s many state parks due to the presence of the famous Grist Mill located on fast-flowing Glade Creek, which winds its way through a canyon strew with massive boulders and replete with waterfalls. The grist mill has appeared in many national publications and calendars. Reconstructed from portions of old mills throughout the state, the fully operable mill offers freshly ground cornmeal, buckwheat and whole wheat flour to park guests. The basic structure of the mill came from the Stoney Creek Grist Mill which dates back to 1890.
The closest “town” is Clifftop, but I use that term loosely since all you’ll find there is a gas station and convenience store. If you’re coming from the north, you’ll hit Summersville before you get to the park; coming from the west, you’ll drive past Beckley; and coming from the east or south, Lewisburg is the nearest town of any size. You’ll find ample lodging at all these spots. Otherwise, plan on camping at the park or renting one of the many picturesque cabins.
Picturesque is the optimum term when discussing Babcock. The vistas are awesome and it has some of the best rustic cabins outside of Watago, which lies to the east. During the ever-popular fall foliage season, both of those parks’ cabins are rented out a year in advance. If you don’t book them early, you’re not going get them in September or October!
A variety of accommodations are available for guests, including 26 cabins in two styles and a 51-site campground with 27 electric hookups. Among Babcock's recreational features are a swimming pool, horseback riding, extensive hiking and cross-country ski trails, a seasonal interpretive program and Boley Lake, a 19-acre impoundment for boating and fishing.
Adjacent to the park, Camp Washington Carver offers a wide range of weekend dinner theater productions, concerts, dances and do-wop nights that further enhance Babcock's recreational program. This park's mountainous vistas and its accessibility to the more urban areas of the state make it an ideal spot for a relaxing vacation.
Trail Review
Babcock is only about an hour from Lewisburg, so I’ve been there more than a few times. This was, however, the first time I’d approached it from a mountain biking perspective. The previous visits were for sight-seeing excursions or day hikes with my wife or visiting relatives. The park is criss-crossed with trails, but only two are open to mountain bikes. The rest are for pedestrian or equestrian traffic only. One mountain biking trail is Old Sewell Road, which didn’t appeal to me because it is basically a gravel road that has been closed to vehicles. It would make a fine ride if you’re in search of an easy, double track affair, but I was in search of single track adventure. That left the Narrow Gauge Trail as my only choice.
I arrived at the Grist Mill and unloaded my bike. I decided to shoot some photos of the grist mill before I got sweaty instead of doing it post-ride, and was pleasantly surprised to find a wedding in progress. The bride and groom were dressed traditionally, but I noticed the groom’s long hair and the assorted guests who were dressed, well, how should I put it? Unconditionally? Almost all the guest wore sandals, most in shorts, a lot of the guys had long hair, and I noticed an abundance of piercings and tattoos. Having spent a lot of time rafting and hanging around at the various outfitters, I immediately pegged them as rafting guides. Most of the West Virginia whitewater rafting industry is located nearby, so it made sense.
The first thing I noticed was mist rising from the waterfalls around the grist mill. Normally, Glade Creek is fairly mellow, but it had rained a good bit in the week preceding my ride, so the creek was rocking and rolling. It actually looked like a whitewater river in many spots. I had never seen the grinding wheel actually turning before because the water is usually so low, but it was kicking butt on this particular day. After snapping some photos, I headed for my bike.
If you’re going to ride the Narrow Gauge Trail, you’re going to have to do some road riding. There’s no way around it. I decided to ride back up toward the park entrance from the grist mill parking lot and access the trail on its eastern end, although you could actually ride the loop in reverse. Both ways have pros and cons, but I’d really recommend riding the counter-clockwise direction I chose; there’s still some climbing this way, but not as much as if you were riding the opposite direction.
I wound my way through the park’s forested roads, enjoying the scenery and the ever-present roar of Glade Creek in the ravine off to my left. After consulting the map at the cabin area, I made my way down a paved downhill section and came upon the Narrow Gauge trailhead. As I mentioned, it had rained a good bit, so the trail was pretty wet and sloppy. But I was undeterred and splashed my way into the woods.
The trail starts out basically level, but soon begins to descend. It wasn’t highly technical, but it was fun and the scenery was great. One part of the early trail was a tributary creek bed. Normally, I imagine this part of the trail is fairly dry. But not this day. I actually rode down the trail with water halfway up my wheels. After about 20-30 feet of this, the little tributary shot over the hill in a waterfall and was back on semi-dry ground. Within a few more minutes, I found myself on a ridge trail with steep embankments on both sides. The cliff towered to my left, and the ravine to my right was thundering with Glade Creek, and the drop off was VERY steep. I was especially careful riding through the narrower sections of the aptly named Narrow Gauge Trail. Sliding down the hill several hundred yards into the rapids of Glade Creek were not on my “to do” list on this day.
It wasn’t long until I hit upon a common sight in West Virginia trail riding: old railroad grade. The Narrow Gauge Trail was obviously an abandoned railway once used for industry, probably lumbering. Next I came upon a couple of short, difficult sections that were unrideable. The flat part of the trail was washed out and the alternative took you down and up steep, rutted embankments. Very steep. In fact, I even had a hard time pushing my bike up the other side. And I kept the brakes locked up as I walked it down, too, so it wouldn’t get away from me. Going through the second of these washouts, my suspicion about the railway was confirmed when I crossed a wet, slippery bridge and spotted some old railroad ties, a dilapidated trestle, and what looked to be a winch in the creek bed below.
After the washouts, it was a fun descent to the bottom of the ravine, where I discovered a kick-ass suspension bridge spanning the creek. After a couple more photo-ops, I pushed the bike up the brief, steep section of the trail on the opposite side of the bridge and began riding the last stretch of Narrow Gauge. This potion of the trail was a continual uphill, but it was fairly easy. I passed a lone hiker and her dog and she asked how far it was to the creek. I advise her to keep following the trail until the roar became ear-shattering and she found herself on a really cool bridge!
I made a sharp switchback to the left, and I was on Old Sewell Road. This old service road makes a gradual climb back towards the main part of the park and would eventually deposit me just downstream of the grist mill and the parking lot. The ride was easy until I encountered a really nasty wash out. It was very deep and the water was really rushing through it. The only way across was to walk across the top of the rocks in a swift moving waterfall to the far right side of the ravine. I couldn’t carry the bike on my back and keep my balance, so I used it for balance and pushed/pulled it through the deep pool on my right. And it was deep. My wheels were almost totally submerged. It was only about 4-5 feet across the span, but the water was moving fast and I didn’t want to risk slipping into the deeper water or, worse yet, into the ravine. It took me a good 30 seconds to get across.
With water sloshing in my shoes, I remounted my bike for the last push up Old Sewell Road. Eventually, the gravel road ended at a gate and I was back on paved State Park blacktop. After a few more minutes of pleasant scenery and some easy climbing, I was back at the parking area. The wedding was over, but a few rafting guide-types and their big Golden Retriever still remained. They were throwing Frisbee and hanging out near a van. Good luck to the Bride and Groom. Perhaps they spent their honeymoon on the Gauley.
Trail Snapshot
Trail(s): 8 miles of paved park service roads, gravel forest roads, hard-packed single track, and a few sections of double track.
Difficulty: This is an easy to intermediate level trail with a fair number of water breaks. Not much in the way of log crossings. While not that technical, the ascents are taxing and there are a couple of rough areas and washouts that it’s hard to even walk your bike through, let alone ride.
Outdoor Travels Rating: 3.5 out of 5 bikes
Thumbs Up
-A first-class state park (one of the best in West Virginia) with nice amenities.
-Privacy (I encountered only two sets of hikers).
-The sight seeing is top notch with the presence of the grist mill.
-Glade Creek is omnipresent, as it can be seen or heard during the entire ride.
-Mid-ride suspension bridge is awesome!
Thumbs Down
-Large washed out area on Old Sewell Road.
-Two portions of the Narrow Gauge Trail are not rideable; in fact, it’s hard to even walk your bike through them. One bad washout on Old Sewell, too.
-More time than I would like is spent on blacktop, but the scenery is still incredible.
Nuts & Bolts
Location: Located in Fayette County, WV, Babcock State Park is located on State Rt. 41, just 10 miles off US Rt. 60 (Midland Trail).
Directions: From Charleston, follow Rt. 60 East to Rt. 41 South; From the east, follow I-64 to the Sam Black Church exit, then follow US Rt. 60 West to Rt. 41 South; From the north take US 19 exit off I-79 and follow US 19 to US Rt. 60 East to Rt. 41 South.
Activities: Hiking, Biking, Swimming, Horseback riding, Cross-country skiing, Fishing, Picnicking, Photography, Paddleboats
Facilities: Babcock offers a 52-unit campground (includes 4 handicap accessible sites) complete with tent or trailer campsites, picnic tables, ground grills and a central bathhouse with toilet facilities, hot showers and coin-operated washers and dryers. The campground opens in mid-April and remains open until October 31st (weather permitting).
Vistors may also select from among 13 standard log cabins located along Glade Creek, five standard cabins of frame construction, eight bungalow cabins and two deluxe handicap accessible cabins. All cabin are open in Mid-April and close October 31.
Contact: Babcock State Park
HC35, Box 150
Clifftop, West Virginia 25831
(304) 438-3004 or 1-800-CALL WVA
E-mail: babcock@mail.wvnet.edu
Maps and Stuff
Trail Photos
Lots of great photos to give you a good idea of what riding here is like!
