Local and Regional News

JANUARY 2021: Named the 63rd National Park, The New River Gorge National Park and Preserve is roughly four hours drive southwest of Whitetail Ridge. The area encompass 53 miles of the river, known locally as "The New." It was given conservation status as a national river in 1978. Since then, it's been administered by the National Park Service, which maintains several visitor centers on the gorge. 

The updated title of "Park and Preserve" makes the New River Gorge only the second site outside Alaska to receive that designation. Most of the land will be a 65,000 acre preserve, which allows hunting and fishing. The park, follows the river and covers 7,000 acres, an area about six times the size of Whitetai Ridge. At the center, the gorge is a mile wide and spanned by the New River Gorge Bridge, the longest steel arch span in the Western Hemisphere and the third-highest bridge in the United States.