Beartown State Park

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Coordinates: 38°03′08″N 80°16′32″W / 38.05222°N 80.27556°W

Beartown State Park
West Virginia State Park
The walkway at Beartown State Park.
Country	United States
State	West Virginia
Counties	Greenbrier, Pocahontas

Elevation	3,425 ft (1,043.9 m)
Coordinates	38°03′08″N 80°16′32″W / 38.05222°N 80.27556°W / 38.05222; -80.27556

Area	110 acres (44.5 ha) ^[1]

Established	1970 ^[2]
Owner	West Virginia Division of Natural Resources

Nearest city	Hillsboro, West Virginia

Location of Beartown State Park in West Virginia
Website: Beartown State Park

Beartown State Park is a 110-acre (45 ha)^[1] state park located on the eastern summit of Droop Mountain, 7 miles (11 km) southwest of Hillsboro, West Virginia, in northern Greenbrier County, West Virginia (with a small portion of the park also located in Pocahontas County). The land was purchased in 1970 with funds from the Nature Conservancy and a donation from Mrs. Edwin G. Polan, in memory of her son, Ronald Keith Neal, a local soldier who was killed in the Vietnam War. Development of the park has been minimal in order to preserve the natural attractions of the area. Recreation in the park consists of hiking along improved trails and boardwalks. Markers explain the natural processes at work in the area. The name "Beartown State Park" was chosen because local residents claimed that many cave-like openings in the rocks made ideal winter dens for the native black bears, the state animal of West Virginia. Also because the many deep, narrow crevasses were formed in a regular criss-cross pattern which appear from above like the streets of a small town. Beartown is noted for its unusual rock formations, which consist of Droop, or Pottsville, Sandstone formed during the Pennsylvanian age. Massive boulders, overhanging cliffs and deep crevasses make up the beauty of the park. On the face of the cliffs are hundreds of eroded pits. These pits range from the size of a marble to others large enough to hold two grown men. It is not unusual to see ice and snow remaining in the deeper crevasses until mid summer.

The park is accessible via U.S. Highway 219, 7 miles (11 km) southwest of Hillsboro, West Virginia and is close to Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park and Watoga State Park.

The park is open daily from April to October. Access during the off-season is available by appointment.^[3] No fee is charged for admission to the park.

Accessibility

Accessibility for the disabled was assessed by West Virginia University.^[4] The 2005 assessment found issues with the slipperiness of the boardwalk ramps and signage in the parking lot.

Photo gallery

Canyons of Beartown SP.

References

↑ 1.0 1.1 West Virginia State Parks Facilities Grid, accessed March 29, 2008
↑ Where People and Nature Meet: A History of the West Virginia State Parks. Charleston, West Virginia: Pictorial Histories Publishing Company. April 1988. ISBN 0-933126-91-3.
↑ Beartown State Park web site, accessed July 20, 2006.
↑ Guide to Accessible Recreation and Travel in WV, WVU Center for Excellence in Disabilities web site, accessed July 31, 2006

External links

Official site

Protected areas of West Virginia

Federal

National Historical Parks	Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Harpers Ferry

National Forests	George Washington and Jefferson Monongahela

National Recreation Areas	Gauley River Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks (USFS)

National Wildlife Refuges	Canaan Valley Ohio River Islands

National Trails System	Appalachian National Scenic Trail

Wilderness Areas	Big Draft Wilderness Cranberry Wilderness Dolly Sods Wilderness Laurel Fork North Wilderness Laurel Fork South Wilderness Mountain Lake Wilderness Otter Creek Wilderness Roaring Plains Wilderness Spice Run Wilderness

National Rivers	Bluestone NSR New River Gorge

State

State parks	Audra Babcock Beartown Beech Fork Berkeley Springs Blackwater Falls Blennerhassett Island Bluestone Cacapon Resort Camp Creek Canaan Valley Resort Carnifex Ferry Battlefield Cass Scenic Railroad Cathedral Cedar Creek Chief Logan Droop Mountain Battlefield Fairfax Stone Greenbrier River Trail Hawks Nest Holly River Little Beaver Lost River Moncove Lake North Bend Rail Trail North Bend Pinnacle Rock Pipestem Resort Prickett's Fort Stonewall Jackson Lake Tomlinson Run Tu-Endie-Wei Twin Falls Resort Tygart Lake Valley Falls Watoga Watters Smith Memorial

State forests	Cabwaylingo Calvin Price Camp Creek Coopers Rock Greenbrier Kanawha Kumbrabow Seneca

Wildlife management areas	Allegheny Amherst-Plymouth Anawalt Lake Bear Rock Lakes Becky Creek Beech Fork Lake Berwind Lake Beury Mountain Big Ditch Big Ugly Bluestone Burches Run Burnsville Lake Castleman Run Lake Cecil H. Underwood Center Branch Chief Cornstalk Conaway Run Lake Cross Creek Dents Run Dunkard Fork East Lynn Lake Edwards Run Elk Creek Elk River Fort Mill Ridge Frozen Camp Green Bottom Handley Hilbert Hillcrest Horse Creek Hughes River Huttonsville State Farm Lantz Farm and Nature Preserve Laurel Lake Lewis Wetzel Little Indian Creek McClintic Meadow River Mill Creek Moncove Lake Morris Creek Nathaniel Mountain Panther Pedlar Pleasant Creek Plum Orchard Lake Pruntytown State Farm R.D. Bailey Lake Ritchie Mines Sand Hill Shannondale Springs Short Mountain Slatyfork Sleepy Creek Smoke Camp Snake Hill South Branch Stonecoal Lake Stonewall Jackson Lake Stumptown Summersville Lake Tate Lohr Teter Creek Lake The Jug Thorn Creek Tug Fork Turkey Run Upper Deckers Creek Upper Mud River Valley Bend Wetlands Wallback Widmeyer Woodrum Lake

Other WVDNR sites	West Virginia State Wildlife Center

Non-
governmental

Nature Conservancy preserves	Brush Creek Bear Rocks Cranesville Swamp Greenland Gap Hungry Beech Ice Mountain Mount Porte Crayon Murphy Panther Knob Pike Knob Slaty Mountain Upper Shavers Fork Yankauer

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.

Beartown State Park

Accessibility

Photo gallery

See also

References

External links