New River Gorge National Park, WV
A rocky link from Fayette Station to Hawks Nest rail trail.
Overview
Map & elevation
Plan your hike
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
New River Gorge Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for New River Gorge National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the New River Gorge audio tourRecorded for this area
The Otter’s Underwater Whiskers“A river otter has a useful tool for finding food underwater: its whiskers. Those long, sensitive hairs help it locate prey, including fish and crayfish.”
Plays on the road 0.2 mi from the trailhead in the Parkwolf New River Gorge Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
The Hawks Nest Connector is a remote one-way trail of about 3.6–3.7 miles between its Fayette Station Road access and the Hawks Nest Rail Trail. Hiked out and back from the gate, the outing is 7.4 miles round trip; allow about 2.5–3 hours. The return follows the same line, so the distance includes both directions.
Fayette Station Road is one-way. The described approach follows it downhill to a gravel spur on the right, then about a quarter-mile along the spur to the gate. The route description does not identify a dedicated lot or say where to leave a vehicle, so parking needs to be worked out before starting this remote walk.
The route shifts from a converted old roadbed to benched singletrack. Expect narrow tread and rocky, technical sections; some rock-armored stretches can be slippery when wet. The trail is designated for bicycle use, so hikers share the narrow corridor with cyclists.
Pets are allowed on park trails on a physical leash no longer than six feet. The National Park Service designated the existing connector for bicycle use in 2013. Trail sources describe it as an early completed piece of a planned through-park connection; this hike covers only the mapped connector to the rail-trail junction.
Wildlife
18 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
126 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
25 sightingsPileated WoodpeckerMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
15 sightingsBarred OwlMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
14 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
58 sightingsCopperheadMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across New River Gorge. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyBurnwood Trail1.2 mi · 1 hr · 0.5 mi awayA short lollipop route through a pocket of old-growth forest.
ModerateCanyon Rim Boardwalk0.3 mi · 24 min · 0.8 mi awayA quick bridge view, with 178 strenuous steps below.
ModerateBridge Trail0.9 mi · 45 min · 1.1 mi awayGet beneath the New River Gorge Bridge on a short, rocky hike.
ModerateKaymoor Trail8.6 mi · 4.5 hr · 1.4 mi awayAn 8.6-mile one-way gorge route past Kaymoor's historic mine.
ChallengingFayetteville Trail4 mi · 3 hr · 1.4 mi awayA creek crossing links Fayetteville’s trails to Kaymoor.
EasyPark Loop Trail1.1 mi · 36 min · 1.7 mi awayAn easy wooded loop you can add at Town Park.
ModerateEndless Wall Trail2.4 mi · 1.8 hr · 1.8 mi awayWalk the New River rim to Diamond Point's high gorge view.
EasyWorkman's Hollow Trail1 mi · 24 min · 2 mi awayA quick singletrack link to the Wolf Creek footbridge.
Picnic area · 0.5 mi awayBurnwood Day Use Area and Group CampsiteA picnic pavilion by Canyon Rim with a permit-only group campsite.
Sight · 0.7 mi awayCanyon Rim Bridge OverlookTwo decks put the full bridge arch above the river gorge.
Sight · 0.7 mi awayBridge WalkA harnessed walk beneath the highway, 850 feet above the river.
Visitor center · 0.8 mi awayCanyon Rim Visitor CenterPlan your park visit, then step out to the bridge view.
Sight · 0.8 mi awayNew River Gorge BridgeA 3,030-foot steel arch above a river 876 feet below.
Sight · 0.9 mi awayFayette Station River AccessRapids, two bridges, and the gorge from river level.
Sight · 1.1 mi awayTunney Hunsaker BridgeA historic lower crossing on Fayette Station Road's one-way gorge drive.
Sight · 1.4 mi awayKaymoor Mine FallsA mossy cascade where mine drainage meets Wolf Creek.Parkwolf’s New River Gorge ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
