Outdoor adventure is cool – literally – in Bath County, Virginia. At more than 2,000 feet above sea level, the mountain breezes are refreshing, often sending a shiver down your back when you’re working up a sweat doing what you love.
All of Bath County is a playground for an enthusiast like yourself. Which path will you take?
With 40 miles of hiking and biking trails in Douthat State Park, it’s an ideal place to begin an adventure. Those 40 miles are but a tip of the iceberg, however. Test the beast within you and connect those trails to the rest of the Allegheny Highlands Multi-User Trail System for a total of 63.3 miles. Whether you tackle it on foot or bike, this system is anything but boring. Multiple loops, lengths, and access points allow adventurers to skirt around Douthat and into George Washington National Forest with ease.
Elevate your vantage point by heading out on horseback. Horse campsites are available at Douthat State Park, which offers six miles of trails to connect with the Allegheny Highlands Multi-User Trail System.
Road cyclists find thrills on the winding back roads of Bath County. Peaceful and scenic, you can set the pace to be as carefree or zippy as you want. Route 39 is the Appalachian Waters Scenic Byway running east to west from Lexington to Summersville, West Virginia. The Dan Ingalls Overlook atop Warm Springs Mountain is a favorite place to catch your breath and soak in the views of the valley below.
Fishermen hungry for big bites cast their lines at Lake Moomaw for a chance at citation size brown and rainbow trout. Douthat State Park is also a great place to find a variety of trout, but large pike, catfish, yellow perch, and bass are also at home there. In fact, Virginia state record-sized yellow perch were twice pulled from Lake Moomaw, and the 1974 record of a seven-pound two-ounce chain pickerel caught at Moomaw still stands.
The solitude of fly-fishing mountain streams in search of prime fish is serious business. Impressive native and stocked trout have been pulled from Jackson and Cowpasture Rivers as well as Back Creek through Blowing Springs Campground.
Why let the fishermen have all the fun? Paddle your way through some of Virginia’s most beautiful mountain streams and across the flat waters of the lakes of Bath County. Connect with an outfitter or bring your own vessel to explore the Jackson River. Rentals are available to get on the water at Lake Moomaw and Douthat State Park. Peruse the coves to see what awaits.
Don’t let an opportunity for mountain adventures pass you by. Plan your getaway at DiscoverBath.com to create your own Made in Bath County outdoor experiences.
