Upper South

States: West Virginia

The Midland Trail

US 60 over the New River country

The Midland Trail is a ~120-mile back-roads route from White Sulphur Springs to Charleston on US 60, driven in 1–2 days, that stays off I-64 through the Upper South.

Open the interactive map →

Drive

White Sulphur Springs → Charleston

Distance

~120 miles

Time

1–2 days

Highways

US 60

Avoids

I-64

Region

Upper South

US 60 follows the old James River & Kanawha Turnpike over the mountains the interstate tunnels under: the Greenbrier with a declassified congressional bunker beneath its wallpaper, Hawks Nest's gorge overlook above the tunnel disaster that killed hundreds of Depression-era drillers, the gloriously shameless Mystery Hole, a waterfall at the roadside, and Booker T. Washington's boyhood salt town at the end. Resort splendor and buried history on one two-lane.

📍 Midland Trail byway signs; the Hawks Nest workers' memorial deserves the stop the overlook gets.

The drive, segment by segment

Greenbrier Country

White Sulphur Springs → Rainelle · ~35 mi

The grand resort and Lewisburg's Carnegie Hall, then the long timber grades west.

• 🛏️The Greenbrier — White Sulphur Springs

  The 1913 grande dame hiding a declassified Cold War bunker built to house Congress; the bunker tour is the resort's best-kept open secret.

• 🏘️Lewisburg — Lewisburg

  A 1782 town with one of the few Carnegie Halls still in continuous use, plus a downtown that keeps winning 'coolest small town' honors and shrugging.

The Gorge Rim

Rainelle → Gauley Bridge · ~45 mi

Hawks Nest's overlook and memorial, the Mystery Hole, and Cathedral Falls at the roadside.

• 🌲Hawks Nest — Ansted

  A stunning gorge overlook above a grim ledger: the 1930s Hawks Nest Tunnel killed hundreds of silicosis-stricken drillers, most of them Black migrant workers. See both.

• 🛸The Mystery Hole — Ansted

  Gravity misbehaves indoors for a modest fee, as it has since 1973; the Volkswagen in the roof sets expectations correctly.

• 🌿Cathedral Falls — Gauley Bridge

  A 60-foot veil falls steps from the highway shoulder, one of West Virginia's most photographed and least effortful.

Kanawha Salines

Gauley Bridge → Charleston · ~40 mi

Down the river past Malden's salt history to the gold-domed capital.

• ✊Malden & African Zion — Malden

  Booker T. Washington worked these salt furnaces as a boy and worshipped at African Zion Baptist; the little church still stands as his true starting line.

Tips and best time to go

• Bunker tours require booking and surrender of your phone; the Cold War insists.
• Bridge Day (third Saturday of October) closes the New River bridge to cars and opens it to parachutes.

Frequently asked questions

How long is The Midland Trail and how many days does it take?

The Midland Trail is about 120 miles and takes 1–2 days at a back-roads pace.

Where does The Midland Trail start and end?

It runs from White Sulphur Springs to Charleston.

Which highways does The Midland Trail follow?

It follows US 60.

Which interstate does The Midland Trail replace?

It avoids I-64, using US 60 instead.

How many stops are on The Midland Trail, and what are the highlights?

6 stops are mapped, including The Greenbrier, Lewisburg, Hawks Nest, The Mystery Hole and Cathedral Falls.

When is the best time to drive The Midland Trail?

The atlas’s seasonal note for this route: “Bridge Day (third Saturday of October) closes the New River bridge to cars and opens it to parachutes.”

Worth a detour

• New River Gorge Bridge — The newest national park's icon, ten minutes south at Fayetteville; on Bridge Day each October they jump off it on purpose.
• J.Q. Dickinson Salt-Works — A seventh-generation family revival of Kanawha brine salt in Malden; the tour ends at the tasting table.