About 10 years back I was talking to a couple of old timers from WV. One of them told a story about a mining town in WV that was deep in a valley. It was accessed by a railroad spur with a dirt road next to it. Everyone in the town worked in the mine or somehow supported the miners.
Around 100 years ago, maybe a little more there was a landslide that completely buried the RR and dirt road. It would have taken a year or more to dig out and the mine was starting to play out so they shut it down. Most of the people walked out through the steep mountains with only what they could carry, leaving the town as a snapshot in time with artifacts of daily life, homes, locomotives and mining equipment in place. A few people stayed but eventually left.
According to the old timer, they used to walk the 10 miles in and look around and camp there. Later they took atvs. The trails are too narrow and steep even for 4x4 trucks or jeeps. It is a challenge to get a 4x4 atv back there, according to the old timer.
He never told me exactly where the town was although he gave me an approximate location that I could not remember well enough to find and I kind of wrote it off as a tall tale. Until a few years later, another person told the same story on a car forum.
So I am wondering if anyone on here has heard the story and has any idea where to look. I have 4x4s a Utv and all the gear necessary to get in if the place exists. Any help would be appreciated.
Around 100 years ago, maybe a little more there was a landslide that completely buried the RR and dirt road. It would have taken a year or more to dig out and the mine was starting to play out so they shut it down. Most of the people walked out through the steep mountains with only what they could carry, leaving the town as a snapshot in time with artifacts of daily life, homes, locomotives and mining equipment in place. A few people stayed but eventually left.
According to the old timer, they used to walk the 10 miles in and look around and camp there. Later they took atvs. The trails are too narrow and steep even for 4x4 trucks or jeeps. It is a challenge to get a 4x4 atv back there, according to the old timer.
He never told me exactly where the town was although he gave me an approximate location that I could not remember well enough to find and I kind of wrote it off as a tall tale. Until a few years later, another person told the same story on a car forum.
So I am wondering if anyone on here has heard the story and has any idea where to look. I have 4x4s a Utv and all the gear necessary to get in if the place exists. Any help would be appreciated.
