“He who seeks beauty will find it.” – Bill Cunningham

When we jumped in the car and headed out of Fayetteville, I thought I knew exactly where we would go next. We would head back North and get off on the Route 60 exit and head to a familiar spot. But, as we turned back onto Route 19, a new plan sprung up in my mind. One of the most beautiful landmarks in West Virginia was about to be under our wheels, and despite having lived in the Mountain State for nearly three years, I had yet to stop and see it. So we pulled off quickly to the visitor’s center and overlook at the New River Gorge Bridge.

The bridge is easily one of the most photographed landmarks in the state and even appears on the back of the West Virginia state quarter. It was also mentioned in an episode of the Fox show Bones, and the year I moved here, there was a showcase on The Price is Right that offered a trip to see the bridge from the New River on a jet boat (I mistakenly thought the bridge was new and called it the River Gorge Bridge when I told my friends about seeing the prize package, which elicited quite a few laughs). That day, a trip to see the New River Gorge Bridge in person was added to my bucket list.

I wanted to hit the visitor’s center first, which I blame on my inquisitive nature. I wanted to see the informational displays and understand just how much it took to build this landmark. I quickly learned that the bridge was not nearly as old as I thought it was. The first piece of steel was positioned above the gorge in 1974, and construction of the bridge wasn’t completed until 1977. Prior to the construction of the bridge, drivers had to travel narrow, winding roads down into the gorge, across a small bridge above the New River, and back up the other side of the mountain, which took about 40 minutes. Now, travel takes less than a minute.

But just because the travel time is faster doesn’t mean that the New River Gorge Bridge should go unseen. It is the largest steel span in the western hemisphere and the third highest in the United States. The bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2013 by the National Park Service. If that wasn’t enough, the New River itself is one of the oldest rivers in North America, and some believe it to be one of the oldest in the world, second only to the Nile River in Egypt.

In addition to a wealth of information on the bridge and the New River, the visitor’s center also offers beautiful views of the river.

         

After taking in the scene, I was ready to head to the overlook. Of course, I couldn’t resist snapping a few quick pictures of passing scenery on our way there…

           And once we finally made it to the overlook, I was far from disappointed. There’s nothing like looking at a huge structure, built by hardworking human hands, to make you feel small. I mean this in the best way, of course. It reminded me that I am a small part of the universe, but I am still lucky enough to be a part of it.

                      Maybe one year I will come down for Bridge Day. I’ve heard that the traffic can be crazy, but I think the festivities would more than make up for that. However, this gal will not be BASE jumping or rappelling off that perfectly good bridge… I’ll just stick to seeing the amazing views and enjoying good music and food.

After climbing back out of the gorge, we stopped at the ice cream stand and gift shop near the visitor’s center for a quick, cold treat, then hit the road again. There was still one more stop we needed to make before heading home…