This West Virginia Peak And Cave Pairing Takes You From The Top Of The World To the Bowels Of The Earth In A Single Day

Contrasts in nature abound, and we all experience them, whether we're out hiking or just sitting on our back porch watching evening fall. We daily live through the morning and evening juxtaposition of light and darkness. Seasonally, we see the verdant greens of spring and summer contrasted with the crimson and brown hues of fall and winter, contrasts of life and death. And in West Virginia's Grant County, one can also experience another of nature's contrasts: high and low, peak and trough, mountain-top and cave depth.

North Fork Mountain is one of the majestic peaks that presides over Germany Valley in Eastern West Virginia, and in a single day, you can climb to its peak at Chimney Top for a birds-eye view of the valley AND delve deep into the caves that network underneath it at the nearby Smoke Hole Caverns.

Start your day with a climb up the peak. Chimney Top on North Fork Mountain is accessible on the North Fork Trail. You can find the trailhead on Smoke Hole Road, just off North Fork Highway not far from Cabins, West Virginia.

It's a steep climb, but the view from the top more than makes up for the work of getting there.

Also located on North Fork Highway near Cabins, just minutes from the North Fork Trailhead, is Smoke Hole Caverns.

After your trip up the peak, you can then descend to the depths of these caverns, getting a view underneath the valley you just viewed from above...and all in the space of a single day.

From sky-high views of mountains, trees, and rock cliffs to underground tunnels filled with stalactites and stalagmites, this pairing provides a stunning natural contrast that you won't likely forget anytime soon.

Have you ever attempted a peak and cave pairing like this before? If so, which ones? We realize there are more options than just these, even right here in Germany Valley (Seneca Rocks/Seneca Caverns, we're looking at you!). To learn more about the individual components of this pairing, you can read more about Chimney Top here or Smoke Hole here.