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The Atlas Obscura Guide To West Virginia

102 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in West Virginia

Updated October 11, 2024

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Cities

Top Cities
All Cities
  1. Alderson
  2. Charleston
  3. Eglon
  4. Fayetteville
  5. Grafton
  6. Green Bank
  7. Harpers Ferry
  8. Hillsboro
  9. Lewisburg
  10. Martinsburg
  11. Morgantown
  12. Moundsville
  13. Oak Hill
  14. Parkersburg
  15. Point Pleasant
  16. Shepherdstown
  17. Sutton
  18. Weston
  19. Wheeling

Unusual Attractions in West Virginia

See All 102 Things To Do in West Virginia

Cool Places to Eat & Drink in West Virginia

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Atlas Obscura Itineraries

The Dark History of West Virginia in 9 Sites

The Rockies may be bigger, but there's something special—and sometimes spooky—about the Appalachians. With dense forest cover, long history, and the shadowy hollows ("hollers," locally), they seem at times to be full of secrets. In West Virginia, the mountains and hills hold tales and myths, and a lot of places that were used and then abandoned. If you get excited about the feel of a shiver down your spine, you'll find a lot to love.

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Explore West Virginia

Architecture 9
History & Culture 8
Ruins 8
Museums 7
History 6
Geology 5
Coal 5
Architectural Oddities 5

West Virginia Leaderboard

Recent West Virginia Activity

Stories About West Virginia

Podcast: Arthurdale

Hear the saga of an ambitious, government-backed homestead project that never quite lived up to its hype.
by The Podcast Team
A Bridge Day base jumper.

Podcast: Embracing Adventure in Fayetteville

We visit a tiny town in West Virginia where, once a year, people jump off a bridge.
Sponsored by GoUSA TV

Podcast: The Greenbrier

This fallout shelter beneath a West Virginia resort was a state secret until 1992.
by The Podcast Team
Virginia Webb, right, and her husband, Carl, open up one of their 400 hives. The Webbs are one of the largest producers of honey in the Southeast.

The Blue Ridge Honey Made ‘by Bees and Angels’

Produced only in these mountains, it's regularly named best in the world.
by Rachel Kester
The author preps for the tasting.

What It's Like to Be a Water Judge

Tasting notes include flabby, flinty, and wet dog.
by Stephanie Kalina-Metzger
The recently dated Pitsenbarger Farm in Franklin, West Virginia, is on the state's list of endangered properties.

Why Trees Are the Most Reliable Historians of Early America

Dendrochronology doesn't just work on forests. It works on buildings too.
by Isaac Schultz
The Weston State Hospital, once (and again) known as the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum.

A Cultural Historian Explores an Old Mental Hospital, and Why They Scare Us

They are haunted, but not by ghosts.
by Troy Rondinone
A cemetery surrounded by a coal mine in West Virginia.

The Mountaintop Cemeteries Surrounded by Coal Mines

Hard to access and hemmed in by explosive activity, these graveyards are stuck in limbo.
by Jessica Leigh Hester

Lists Featuring West Virginia

12 Exciting Adventures in West Virginia: Wondrous and Worth a Visit

Sponsored by West Virginia Tourism
12

Including Jefferson Rock, Tygart Lake , and Hanging Rock Raptor Observatory

Pumpkin House day...
Mothman statue
The main entrance into the Asylum.

20 Places to Visit Along West Virginia's Country Roads

Sponsored by West Virginia Department of Tourism
20

Including Kenova's Pumpkin House, Mothman Statue , and Blennerhassett Island

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