Visit the Hatfield-McCoy Trails YouTube Channel

In case you weren't already in the know, Hatfield-McCoy has its own YouTube Channel now. You can check out official trail videos featuring the numerous TV spots the trails have been involved in over the years, as well as post your own videos like this little number:

Hatfield-McCoy Trail System Recovers from Floods, Turns to Help Gilbert

The Hatfield-McCoy Trails has substantially recovered from flooding in Mingo County, West Virginia, earlier this month and hopes to be back to 100 percent by June 1, Executive Director Jeffrey T. Lusk said Thursday.

Also, all Hatfield-McCoy equipment not being used to repair the trails is being loaned to the town of Gilbert to help in flood recovery, Lusk said.

Southern West Virginia was stricken by heavy flooding on May 9, destroying hundreds of homes and businesses. Much of the damage was centered in Gilbert in Mingo County.

"This was a catastrophic event that most of us have not seen before," Lusk said. “The Hatfield-McCoy Regional Recreational Authority wants to do its part to help the town of Gilbert and businesses in that area.

“We have all of our crews working overtime to get the trails up and running and every piece of equipment we have that is not pushing dirt in the woods on trails is in Gilbert helping with flood recovery,” he said.

“Gilbert is the centerpiece of our trail system,” Lusk said. “We lost probably about half of the Rockhouse Trail System and about half of the Buffalo Mountain Trail System.” (Rockhouse is located near Gilbert and Buffalo Mountain near Williamson.)

The connector to the town of Gilbert was reopened May 14, Lusk said, with about 70 percent of the Rockhouse and Buffalo Mountain trails also reopened.

The connector to Matewan remains closed, he said, but was expected to reopen by May 20. “We’re going to get through this,” Lusk said. “We’ve been working 12- to 14-hour days since Saturday to get the trails open and to help businesses recover.”

The Hatfield-McCoy Trails is a key economic engine for the area, especially in and around Gilbert where many businesses have sprouted since the Trails opened in 2000.

The four other trail systems – Bear Wallow, Indian Ridge, Little Coal and Pinnacle Creek – were largely unaffected, Lusk said, and are fully open.



A tip o' the hat to the Charleston Daily Mail's Bob Wojcieszak for the pictures.

Hatfield-McCoy Expands Trails Just in Time for Summer

Just in time for the summer riding season, Hatfield-McCoy has added 15 miles of new trails on two of its six systems.

“We’ve opened 10 miles on the Buffalo Mountain system, including five miles exclusively for motorcycles,” said John Fekete, Hatfield-McCoy’s deputy executive director. “Buffalo Mountain now has a total of 15 miles of single track trails, more than any other system.”

Buffalo Mountain also added five miles of trails for ATVs and UTVs. The 76.4-mile system, located between Williamson, Delbarton and Matewan, is the most historic of the six systems and has three community connectors.

The Pinnacle Creek system, near Pineville, received a new five-mile stretch of “Extreme Difficulty” trails, Fekete said. This trail system is known for its breathtaking scenic views and is located less than one hour from world class whitewater rafting. “Extreme Difficulty” trails, designated by black and red markers, combine the aspects of the “Most Difficult” trails, along with stipulations barring riders under 18, machines under 200cc’s, and two-wheel drive machine. (“Most Difficult” trails can be extremely steep, with larger rocks and more obstacles on the sometimes overgrown paths.)

“Folks shouldn’t have any trouble negotiating these new trails,” Fekete said. “We have one of the best and easiest trail mapping and signage systems in the country.

“Our maps are easy to understand for just about anyone and our signage – including specifying difficulty level – is such that people can easily get around without getting lost.”
Additional trails are scheduled to be opened during the remainder of the year, including a one connecting the Fountain Place area near the town of Logan and the Bear Wallow trailhead.

Hatfield-McCoy is Changing Their Message Board

Attention all you current Hatfield-McCoy message board users: On May 15, 2009, the current message board is going the way of the dodo bird. It's being phased out in favor of a new and improved version that promises to offer more user interaction and be more of an online community than just a simple message system.

How does this affect you? If you're already a Mc-Message Board user, your current user information will be deleted along with the old board on May 15. So if you would, please head over to riders.trailsheaven.com to re-register for the new Hatfield-McCoy Trails online community. We're waiting to hear from you!