Natural Wonders Adventure

The Heart of Appalachia is home to awe-inspiring geological and natural wonders that are oh so road trip-worthy. Let's go!

1 day BREAKS INTERSTATE PARK

The first day begins at Breaks

Interstate Park , home to Breaks Canyon, one of the deepest gorges east of the Mississippi River. Soak in all the views from Towers Overlook, then hike a few short trails with dreamy vistas, like the Tower Tunnel Trail. Rent a pedal boat at 25-acre Laurel Lake or soar like an eagle on the Canyon Rim Zipline. At Rhododendron Restaurant , unwind on the outdoor deck or take a seat inside for stunning views of the gorge from behind dramatic floorto-ceiling windows.

Overnight in one of seven wooded park lodges. The park also has lakefront cabins, as well as tent and RV sites at the on-site campground. You may even want to stay the night in their new yurt!

2 day DEVIL'S BATHTUB

Make Devil's Bathtub your next stop. It's less than a two-hour drive south for a waterfall hike, which includes 12 creek crossings and a dip in an icy cold swimming hole. A few steps past the swimming hole is the curiously-named bathtub-shaped water basin. Park in designated areas, please.

Natural Tunnel State Park

Drive 30 minutes to Natural Tunnel State Park , home to the "Eighth Wonder of the World," as coined by former Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan. Take the chairlift to the tunnel floor to ooh and ahh.

Ride the chairlift back up for a stroll to Lover's Leap Overlook for views into the naturallycarved tunnel from up high. Stay the night in one of the state park's cabins.

3 day SAND CAVE

Drive one hour west to Civic Park on the far east side of Cumberland Gap National Historical Park. It's a four-mile ascent along dirt trails to reach the 100-foot-tall Sand Cave, a striking geological wonder tucked away within a leafy, deciduous forest.

Wilderness Road State Park

Make Wilderness Road State Park your final stop. A fenced-in pasture allows up-close views of a small buffalo herd that depicts an era when bison ruled the land long before frontiersman Daniel Boone came to town. Rent bicycles from the visitor center to pedal along the Wilderness Road Trail. 

Leeman Field Park, constructed in 1933, was once recognized by the National Library of Congress as the World’s Largest baseball enclosure for 25 years. In 1937, Pennington Bears garnered a franchise with the Appalachian League, as an affiliate of the St. Louis Browns, and won the league championship. The name later changed to the Pennington Miners. All surrounding communities had teams and baseball was entertainment to the area and era. Getting to a game may have meant walking a distance, but baseball was the highlight of the times.

Today, Leeman Field Recreation Park and Leeman Field RV Park and Campground are owned and operated by the Town of Pennington Gap, who recently developed a Parks and Recreation department to handle the activities of the field and street parties downtown. A greenway, along the trout stocked north fork of Powell River is part of the 70+ acre town park, mown to perfection and enjoyed by walkers, runners and bikers. Inside the park, a 1.4 mile walkway leads out over the bridge to the greenway, and an 18-hole disc golf course parallels the greenway. Long gone is the board fence the field was known for, instead Little League baseball and soccer cheers echo against Stone Mountain to the North in springtime. Children’s playgrounds, tennis courts, basketball court, horse arena and soon to be pickleball court are central to the park. Leeman Field has an Olympic sized seasonal swimming pool open daily from Memorial weekend through Labor Day and extended through September weekends. Special events such as fireworks at the 4th of July or New Year's Eve along with Christmas Fantasy in Lights, ice skating, barrel racing and roping events help round out a year at Leeman Field.

Stone Mountain ATV Trail , part of Spearhead Trails system has 34 miles over 500 acres of highly technical "blue and black" trails along the crest and curves of Stone and Black Mountain. The trail has 9 overlooks with some of the most breathtaking views rivaling the Smoky Mountains. The Stone Mountain ATV trailhead is at Leeman Field and conveniently located there is Leeman Field RV Park and Campground with full-service hook-ups, Wi-Fi and hot showers. Campers enjoy mountain views, seasonal color changes and often, free firewood gleaned from maintaining the nearby grounds. Just outside of the park, North on Highway 421, sits the Great Stone Face Rock, also the town’s logo. Folklore says that the face was carved by Cherokee Indians honoring their chief at the time and said to mark the entrance to Cherokee holy ground. Others believe that the face has evolved over time by wind and rain. A train tunnel passes beneath and the trestle crosses the highway nearby.

Pennington Gap is ATV friendly allowing travel from the trail and campground one mile into downtown, Lee Theatre, restaurants and other businesses. The town owns the renovated 1946 Lee Theatre with state-of-the-art sound bringing plays, bands, movies, and other entertainment most weekends. 