Kanawha State Forest
9,300 acres of steep, wooded hollow just fifteen minutes from downtown Charleston, with more than 25 miles of trails, a well-known mountain bike network, a swimming pool, campground and some of the best spring warbler birding in the state. A remarkable amount of real backcountry for a city forest.
Know before you go
- Davis Creek and the ridge trails carry the best riding
- Spring migration here is exceptional — Cerulean and Kentucky warblers breed
- Hunting is permitted in season on much of the forest
What you can do here
Guides, gear and lodging near Kanawha State Forest
Place-level placement for operators within range of this trailhead, put-in or crag.
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Nearby in the Metro Valley
Coal River Water Trail
An organized water trail on the Big Coal, Little Coal and main-stem Coal rivers south of Charleston, with maintained access points, mapped mileages and signage — the product of sustained work by the Coal River Group to turn a working-class industrial river back into a recreation asset.
Beech Fork State Park
A 3,981-acre park around a 720-acre Corps reservoir near Huntington, with one of the largest campgrounds in the state park system, good bass fishing and easy trails.
Chief Logan State Park
A 4,000-acre park in Logan County with a wildlife exhibit, trails through reclaimed coal country and an outdoor amphitheatre.
East Lynn Lake
A 1,005-acre Corps reservoir in Wayne County with a strong bass and crappie fishery, a large wildlife management area around it and very little traffic.
Kanawha Falls
A wide ledge falls at Glen Ferris where the Gauley and New join to form the Kanawha — a well-known bank fishing spot for hybrid striped bass, walleye and catfish, with roadside access and a historic inn across the highway..
Tu-Endie-Wei State Park
The smallest park in the system, at the confluence of the Kanawha and Ohio rivers in Point Pleasant, marking the 1774 Battle of Point Pleasant.