Toby Creek Greenway

 Both Toby Creek Greenway and Mallard Creek Greenway can be accessed from the Kirk Farms Fields parking lot. We tried Mallard Creek Greenway first but the asphalt soon ended and the trail became rough crushed rock so we backtracked and walked/rolled along Toby Creek Greenway until it ended too at University City Blvd. We covered about five miles total.  

 Even though the trail cuts through the college campus most of it is under forest cover. We came to one spot where the underpass was flooded but the trail has a bypass that crossed the street.

      

 

The trail is almost completely level and in excellent condition. The last section to University City Blvd is very steep and can be skipped. 

 

RVs will fit in the Kirk Farms Fields lot if backed up over the grass.  Trail  35.32098, -80.73215

William King Museum

Only two galleries were open during our visit and while there's no admission fee, the museum may not warrant a special trip even when fully open. The changing exhibit galleries featured Salvador Dali etchings, mixed media pieces by Beka Addison-Browder, and functional stoneware and decorative pottery. 

The museum is accessible but due to the ongoing construction the entrance that we used on the left side of the building may not be the accessible entrance when the construction is finished.  

Parking was also disrupted by the construction. We parked in front of the building and had a very steep hill to climb to the accessible entrance.  Museum  36.70911, -81.98689

 

Museum of the Middle Appalachians

 Animals and people have been visiting Saltville, Virginia for over 14,000 years starting with mastodons, woolly mammoths, giant sloths, and musk oxen. Before that all kinds of creatures lived in the sea that covered the entire valley basin. When the sea dried up it left vast salt deposits which were mostly buried under sediment but the accessible salt was a big draw for animals, Native Americans, European explorers and settlers, and finally huge chemical factories who all came for the salt. 

 The small museum gives an overall history of the area with exhibits of mastodon bones, Native American artifacts, 1850s salt works, Civil War battles, and the rise of a company town. The company town is portrayed as idyllic but in the 1970s the chemical plants shut down for various reasons including pollution concerns and cheaper production in the western states. Salt is stilled mined for food and industrial use.  

The museum is accessible. 

Parking spaces in front of the museum are angled but there's a parking lot across the street where RVs will fit if parked across the spaces. There are also accessible spaces parallel to the sidewalk in front of the library. The curb cuts do not match up so rolling in the street may be necessary. Museum   36.88012, -81.76416

 

Bull Creek Pedestrian and Bike Trail

The trail runs along the former railbed  of a Norfolk Southern coal train. After climbing a short steep hill it levels out with views of the forest and the communities in the valley below. We went about 1 mile on the 1.5 mile trail before turning around. 

The fall colors along the trail were faded but we had passed some beautiful hillsides on the drive to the trailhead. 

The trail is hard packed dirt and small gravel. It's fairly easy to roll along but wheelchair users may need assistance on the hill. 

The parking area on the opposite side of the street is large enough for any vehicle.  

 

Roadside Park Port of St. Albans

This is an unusual free campground. We surmised that it must have been built years ago before the city grew because it's in the middle of a commercial district. There's a Kroger right across the street but US 60 is four lane, busy, and missing crosswalks so walking there would be difficult. 

There are three campsites with electricity, tables, and trash cans. The little park also has a dump station with fresh water, a playground, picnic shelter, a boat ramp, and a nice view of the Kanawha River. 

 The parking pads are paved and level. The picnic tables have a slight overhang. Park 38.38848, -81.82494

  

Morgantown History Museum

 Morgantown was the childhood home of Don Knotts, famous as the bumbling Mayberry deputy, Barney Fife, so naturally it's the first exhibit when you enter the museum. Other exhibits feature early history and the many industries that built the city but have closed their doors such as glassware, coal mining, woodworking, and shirt making. 

 

One of the companies that no longer exists is the  S&P Manufacturing Company home of  the Stepulator, invented in the early 1960s by local resident, Bob Phillips. The Stepulator had treads like a tank and could climb stairs. Airlines were the main customers because at that time passengers boarded by climbing a short flight of movable stairs. The arrival of passenger loading bridges in 1965 meant the end of the Stepulator company. Looks scary! 

The museum is on the ground floor of the Monongalia Arts Center building. The accessible entrance is in the rear.

RVs will not fit in the small parking lot located at the rear of the building. There is parking on High Street however Morgantown is very hilly and visitors in wheelchairs will need assistance to get to the accessible entrance.  Museum  39.62828, -79.9579

 

Whiskey Rebellion Education & Visitor Center

In 1791 the young government of the United States, in a move to  pay off debts from the Revolutionary War, passed a tax on whiskey. This was strongly opposed by farmers who found that whiskey was easier to transport to market and more profitable than harvested grain. The tax was to be paid in cash which rural farmers rarely had. If taxes weren't paid and stills weren't registered the farmers were required to travel to federal court in Philadelphia. All of this was met with resistance by the farmers who refused to pay and often harassed tax collectors until they left town. 

In 1794 a group of Washington county farmers, led by Washington attorney David Bradford, marched towards Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and attacked and burned the home of a tax inspector. With uprisings against the tax increasing, the federal government decided that a show of force was needed. George Washington personally led an army of 13,000 militiamen to western Pennsylvania and gave orders to suppress the rebellion and arrest the leaders. Most escaped into the mountains but the raid ended the violence. 

David Bradford fled south to present day Louisiana and lived there for the rest of his life. His house is across Main Street from the visitor center and open for tours but not accessible.

The small visitor center covers the rebellion from the causes to the aftermath. 

The visitor center is accessible.

There's an accessible on-street parking space in front of the museum where RVs will fit as long as the space behind it is empty.  Visitor Center  40.16811, -80.24459

 

Workhouse Arts Center

 For 91 years the workhouse, originally known as the Occoquan Workhouse, was a prison. It was planned as a self-sustaining facility where non-violent inmates could learn job skills in the cannery, foundry, tailor shop, bakery, electrical, farm, and culinary arts departments. The red brick prison complex with a grassy center courtyard was constructed by the prisoners of bricks made in the kilns that they also built. A festival was being held on the grounds the day we visited. 

 By the 1970s the prison had become overcrowded and dangerous as prisoners guilty of serious crimes were moved to the complex. Starting in 1995, inmates were gradually transferred to other facilities. The last one left in November 2001 and the property was sold to Fairfax County, Virginia. The buildings on the main prison campus now house art studios, art galleries, class spaces, and a small museum. A golf course has been constructed on the grounds and another prison complex has been renovated into one and two bedroom apartments. 

We visited the small Lorton Prison Museum which has exhibits about the changes of the prison over the years plus an exhibit on an unusual group of prisoners - dozens of suffragists who were arrested in 1917 after picketing the White House. They were kept for two weeks in unsanitary conditions with inadequate food and violent guards. The museum is free but for a few dollars visitors can take a guided tour of a cell block. There's not a lot to see in the cell block but the stories are interesting. 

We also visited the galleries at the Arts Center. 

Buildings W-5 through W-10 house artist's studios. They're opened to visitors if there's an artist on site so we checked one out. The art is beautiful with a wide range of mediums and techniques. All the studio doors stay open so we could peek in. 

Most of the service buildings are in disrepair and are not being used but visitors are welcome to explore the grounds. The paved paths and roads are accessible but wheelchair users may need assistance on hilly or uneven sections.  

The buildings are all accessible with sidewalks and paved paths in the courtyard.

 

The parking lot is large enough for any vehicle. Museum  38.69945, -77.25428