West Virginia 39 (West of US 220)

Motorcycle Roads & Rides > Routes > United States > Virginia
Motorcycle Roads & Rides > Routes > United States > West Virginia

Average Rating - This road has been rated by 2 visitors

State: West Virginia
Date Submitted: May 1, 2008
Submitted by: Brad Morgan
Motorcycle Road Length: 91 Miles

Written Directions

Start in Summersville, WV, at US 19 and head east on WV 39. Cross into Virginia shortly before you get to the endpoint in Warm Springs, VA, at the intersection of US 220.

Scenery

WV 39 is just a fantastic motorcycle touring road! At various times you will ride along beautiful mountain streams, thick forest, and cranberry glades as you cruise along the valley and over the mountains. If there is a BETTER motorcycle touring road in WV - I am not aware of it!

Headed East from Summersville you will go past the Cranberry Tri-River Trail Head, Summit Lake, the Cranberry Glades Botanical Area, the Chesapeake & Ohio RR Depot (in Marlinton) and the lush greenery of the Monongahela and George Washington forests.

You will hug the banks of the gorgeous Cherry river for several miles.

Road Quality: 4

WV 39 offers a near perfect balance of sweepers, tight turns, elevation changes and wide-open spaces for passing (when needed). There aren't very many hairpin turns - only a few spots are what I would label as "technical".

The constant change of terrain serves to make this road an absolute pleasure to ride.

Heading east from Summersville, WV 39 really starts to deliver after about 15 miles when you enter the Monongahela. At the 54 mile mark - WV39 borrows a typically fun & exhilarating section of US219 before getting back to business and heading out to the George Washington forest at Marlinton.

The condition of the tarmc is good to great - only a few small sections of patchwork. The only issue I had with the road was what seemed like more than the usual and customary amount of loose gravel in the tighter turns. .

Roadside Amenities:: 4

Summerville offers all of the usual and customary amenities with plenty of chain hotels and restaurants as well as some local establishments - its tied to the New River gorge tourism business.

There are several small towns along the way - Richwood and Marlinton have several places to rest and to dine that looked very inviting...maybe next time!

Road Quality

WV 39 offers a near perfect balance of sweepers, tight turns, elevation changes and wide-open spaces for passing (when needed). There aren't very many hairpin turns - only a few spots are what I would label as "technical".

The constant change of terrain serves to make this road an absolute pleasure to ride.

Heading east from Summersville, WV 39 really starts to deliver after about 15 miles when you enter the Monongahela. At the 54 mile mark - WV39 borrows a typically fun & exhilarating section of US219 before getting back to business and heading out to the George Washington forest at Marlinton.

The condition of the tarmc is good to great - only a few small sections of patchwork. The only issue I had with the road was what seemed like more than the usual and customary amount of loose gravel in the tighter turns.

Roadside Amenities

Summerville offers all of the usual and customary amenities with plenty of chain hotels and restaurants as well as some local establishments - its tied to the New River gorge tourism business.

There are several small towns along the way - Richwood and Marlinton have several places to rest and to dine that looked very inviting...maybe next time!

Additional Info

- View the weather forecast for this area from Yahoo weather .

Nickname (optional) Brad Morgan

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Reviewed by Ridden on October 6, 2011 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Ridden
motorcycle_year: 2004
motorcycle_make: BMW R1150R
motorcycle_type: Standard
Comment: Awesome road. I found this years ago and often go camping at Watoga state park and make a weekend out of this area.
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Reviewed by Guest on January 7, 2011 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Derek Evans
motorcycle_year: 2007
motorcycle_make: Triumph
motorcycle_type: Sport-Touring
Comment: This is a great road that is fun to ride. I recommed that you ride the whole route - 20 miles East of US220 is fantastic as well. Great write-up and nice pics - THANKS!
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