Almost Heaven West Virginia

As we continued our journey across the country we made an overnight stop at Jon and Megan's place in Indianapolis (Jennifer's brother). Sadly we didn't take any pictures of the amazing view from the helicopter pad on top of the hospital where Jon is an intern. It was a fun stop. It is an interesting thing to have the freedom and time to choose our route to Washington DC. Neil drives and I look at the map and play with the GPS. On Friday I said, "Hey, it will only cost us two hours to drive through West Virginia. I want to drive through the Appalachians!" So, we made a detour in Ohio and turned south. It was like we entered a different world! West Virginia is entirely mountainous. It broke from the rest of Virginia during the Civil War due to differences regarding slavery and economics. WV is one of the poorest states in the country. The economy is based on the coal mine. It was so interesting to drive the mountain road through little mining towns. The coal trains winding near the river were a sight to see. Have you ever read "When I was Young in the Mountains?" That is where we were!

This bridge is called the New River Gorge bridge. It is the largest single arch bridge in the world. You can't tell from the picture, but the river is about 1000 feet below!

Can you see the train track near the river? I'd love to see this place again someday when the leaves are on the trees.