esme whitman author at My Family Travels
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Taller Than The Washington Monument, This West Virginia Bridge Lets You Walk Its Catwalk Underneath

I pulled off a mountain road in West Virginia expecting nothing more than a quick stretch and a gas station snack, and I left with the most jaw-dropping story of my whole trip....

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Nobody Driving Past Would Guess This West Virginia Courthouse Square Launched A Whole New State

Some of the best stories in West Virginia hide behind plain walls and parking meters. I went looking for a quiet place to stretch my legs and maybe find a sandwich, and I walked...

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Seven West Virginia Historic Places Where The Buildings Look Just Like They Did A Century Ago

Every so often in West Virginia, you round a corner and time seems to hold its breath. The brick storefronts, the tall porches, the quiet streets all still look the way they did...

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Locals Still Fill Jugs At This West Virginia Cider Mill That’s Pressed Apples For Generations

Tucked into the rolling green hills of West Virginia sits a little family operation that has been turning local fruit into something special for years. Folks pass by the mountains...

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Seven West Virginia Breakfasts Where The Biscuits And Gravy Come Straight From The Kitchen

Some of the best breakfasts in West Virginia hide in plain sight, tucked along back roads and small-town Main Streets where nobody's trying to impress anyone. You pull in hungry,...

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This Working Grist Mill In Babcock State Park Near Danese, West Virginia, Still Grinds Cornmeal With Its Water Wheel

Some places in West Virginia sneak up on you when you least expect it. You round a bend on a quiet park road, and suddenly there it is: a weathered wooden mill perched over a rushing...

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Locals Say This Charleston, West Virginia Hot Dog Stand Serves Some Of The Best Chili-Slaw Dogs In The State

Some of the best meals in West Virginia hide behind the plainest storefronts, the kind you drive past a hundred times before curiosity finally wins. Along a busy stretch of road,...

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Once The Richest Little Town In America, This West Virginia Main Street Still Shows Its Gilded Bones

Sometimes the smallest dots on a West Virginia map hold the biggest surprises. Pull off the highway with a hungry stomach and a wandering mind, and you might stumble onto a quiet...

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Fifteen Famous Faces You’d Never Guess Were Born In Small-Town West Virginia

Some of the biggest names in music, movies, sports, and books got their start in tiny West Virginia towns you could drive through in a blink. These are places with a few hundred...

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Way Back In A West Virginia Hollow, A Trout Hatchery Raises Thousands Of Fish You Can Watch Being Fed

Some of the best places in West Virginia aren't marked with flashy signs or fancy billboards. Tucked deep in a green mountain hollow sits a spot where thousands of trout swim in...

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These 7 West Virginia Swimming Holes Stay Crystal-Clear And Cold Straight Through Summer

There's a certain kind of magic in West Virginia when the heat gets heavy and you round a bend to find water so clear it barely looks real. These are the spots where the cold hits...

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Seven West Virginia Swimming Holes Where Cold Mountain Water Still Beats Any Public Pool

There's a certain thrill that comes from turning down an unmarked road in West Virginia and finding cold, clear water waiting between the rocks. Nothing about a chlorinated public...

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Folks Fill Their Coolers For Less Than Grocery Prices At This Lost River, West Virginia Butcher Counter

Sometimes the best places in West Virginia hide at the top of a quiet hill, where cattle graze across the way and the smell of fresh food drifts out the door. Imagine pulling over...

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Folks Line Up At This West Virginia Fish Fry Where A Dollar Or Two Still Feeds The Whole Family

Sometimes the best meal you will ever eat hides inside an old market building where the line runs out the door and nobody minds the wait. Tucked into a corner of West Virginia,...

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This West Virginia Amish Market Bakes Hand Pies So Good Folks Call Them The Best In America

Some of the best food in West Virginia hides at the end of a winding country road, far from any highway or shopping center. Picture yourself driving through rolling green hills,...

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Folks Drive Clear Across West Virginia Just To Fill A Cooler At This Riverside Farm Store

Some places in West Virginia stay hidden at the end of a winding country road, waiting for you to stumble upon them. Picture rolling green hills, the smell of fresh tomatoes still...

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Country Music Legends Still Take This West Virginia Stage That’s Broadcast Since The 1920s

Some places hum with a kind of magic the moment you walk through the doors, and West Virginia has one that has been drawing music lovers for almost a century. Tucked into a downtown...

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6 West Virginia Wildlife Rescues Where You Get Closer To The Animals Than You’d Ever Expect

There's a special kind of thrill in West Virginia when a quiet road leads you somewhere unforgettable. Tucked between the ridges and hollows of the Mountain State are places where...

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An Entire Hillside Of Wild Rhododendron Bursts Into Bloom Above This West Virginia Overlook

Some places in West Virginia stay hidden until you stumble upon them by chance, and then they never leave your memory. Way up on a windswept plateau, a rugged wilderness sits so...

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You Can Watch Glowing Molten Glass Become A Handmade Ornament At This West Virginia Studio

Somewhere in the rolling hills of West Virginia, there's a place where sand and fire turn into something you can hold in your hands. Picture standing on an observation deck, watching...

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This Riverside West Virginia Town Packs More Centuries-Old History Into Its Brick Streets Than Cities Ten Times Its Size

Some places in West Virginia look small on a map but hold more stories than towns many times their size. Tucked where two rivers rush together, this little riverside spot surprised...

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Folks Cross Half Of West Virginia Just To Bite Into The Pepperoni Rolls At These 6 Old Bakeries

Every so often you stumble onto a spot so unassuming from the outside that you almost drive right past it, only to walk out clutching a warm paper bag you cannot stop thinking...

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This West Virginia Stone Bridge Was Laid in 1832—And You Can Still Walk Across Its Three Arches Today

Somewhere in West Virginia, tucked along a quiet creek, sits a stone crossing so old it feels like stepping into another century. You could drive right past it, never guessing...

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This West Virginia Speedway Was Written Off As A Lost Racetrack Until Locals Roared It Back To Life

Some places in West Virginia get quietly forgotten, left to weeds and rust until everyone assumes they are gone for good. That almost happened to a stretch of clay oval that once...

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This West Virginia Humane Society Gives Homeless Dogs and Cats a Real Second Chance at a Home

Tucked along a quiet road in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle sits a place that most folks drive right past without a second thought. Behind its modest doors, though, lives a...

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This Quiet West Virginia Town Lets Retirees Live Comfortably On A Social Security Check Alone

Some of the best places to grow older aren't the ones splashed across glossy retirement brochures. Tucked into the mountains of West Virginia sits a small county seat where a monthly...

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This Homey West Virginia Italian Restaurant Serves Lasagna So Rich It Deserves A Standing Ovation

Some of the best meals in West Virginia hide behind ordinary walls, waiting for hungry folks to wander in and be surprised. There's a little Italian spot where the smell of garlic...

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7 Signs You’re a True West Virginia Mountaineer Beyond Knowing Every Word to Country Roads

You've sung along to that famous tune more times than you can count, feeling proud every single time. But belonging to West Virginia goes way deeper than remembering the words...

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This West Virginia Bookshop Fills An Old Building With Rare Finds You Browse All Afternoon

Some places sneak up on you. You wander into a downtown storefront expecting a quick browse, and hours later you're still there, coffee in hand and a stack of books at your feet.

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This West Virginia Hot Dog Stop Lets You Grab A Seat Inside Retired School Buses

Some of the best meals happen at places you almost drive right past. Tucked along a quiet river road in West Virginia, there's a spot where the smell of grilled goodness pulls...

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This Quiet West Virginia Park Is The Real Birthplace Of The John Henry Legend

Some places in West Virginia don't shout for attention, yet they hold stories big enough to fill a whole country's memory. Tucked along a winding mountain road, this peaceful spot...

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This Gorgeous West Virginia Town Is The One Most Travelers Have Never Heard Of

Some places sneak up on you. You roll into town expecting nothing special, and before long you're wandering brick sidewalks, peeking into old storefronts, and wondering why nobody...

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This Beautifully Forgotten West Virginia Shop Is Packed With Antiques And Primitives You’ll Linger Over For Hours

Some places in West Virginia look small and quiet from the sidewalk, then swallow up your whole afternoon once you step inside. That is exactly the surprise waiting behind an unassuming...

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This Underrated West Virginia Town Is Made For An Easy, Unhurried Weekend Drive

Some of the best weekends in West Virginia start without a plan at all. Picture yourself easing off a mountain highway, the road curving alongside a slow river, and stumbling onto...

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This Tiny West Virginia Town Is An Antique Hunter’s Paradise You Can Explore For Days

Some places surprise you the moment you slow down and start poking around. Tucked into the mountains of West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle sits a small town where old brick buildings...

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This West Virginia Shop Scoops Homemade Ice Cream Locals Call Some of the Best in the State

Some of the sweetest surprises in West Virginia don't announce themselves with flashing signs. Tucked onto a corner of a downtown street, there's a little shop where the ice cream...

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This Massive West Virginia Antique Shop Lets You Lose Yourself For Hours Among The Past

Sometimes the best surprises in West Virginia hide behind a plain storefront on a quiet street. You walk in expecting to peek around for ten minutes, and suddenly two hours have...

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This West Virginia Children’s Museum Is A Hidden Wonderland With 4 Floors Of STEAM Play

Some places make you wonder why you did not visit sooner. This West Virginia museum is one of them. Four floors of hands-on exhibits...

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This Iconic West Virginia Italian Restaurant Has Served Unforgettable Pasta For Over Half A Century

Some of the best meals in West Virginia hide behind the plainest doors, and this little roadside spot is proof. From the outside, you might just drive right past it, but step inside...

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This West Virginia Bookshop Pours Local Coffee And Has Cozy Seating Where You Read All Afternoon

Tucked into Morgantown near West Virginia University, there is a little shop where you can grab a warm cup of local coffee, pick out a used book, and sink into a comfy chair for...

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This Funky West Virginia Diner Makes Banana Splits That Make You Close Your Eyes

Right on Fairmont Avenue sits a diner that folks have loved for decades. The Poky Dot is bright, colorful, and famous for milkshakes and banana splits so big they almost seem like...

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This Civil War Hilltop Fort In West Virginia Has Views That Stretch Across Two Rivers And Two States

You do not come here for the fort. You come here for what the fort was built to protect: the view of two rivers merging below and two states unfolding beyond them.

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Put This Beautiful West Virginia Garden On Your List For A Relaxing Weekend Wander

Some places sneak up on you, and this one did exactly that for me. I expected a quick stop, maybe fifteen minutes of polite...

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12 Lesser-Known Hikes In West Virginia To Add To Your 2026 Bucket List

There is a stretch of Appalachian backcountry where the fog sits low in the valleys until almost noon, and the only sound for miles is water tumbling over sandstone.

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This Former Schoolhouse In West Virginia Is Now A Pizzeria With A Sweet Sauce That Keeps Locals Coming Back

Somewhere between the ridges of Preston County, the road bends past a brick building that looks far too grand to be a pizza shop.

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This West Virginia National Park Has So Many Snake Species Visitors Are Told To Watch Their Step

There's a spot in West Virginia where an ancient river has been grinding its way through the mountains for longer than almost any river on the continent.

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This West Virginia General Store Is A Quaint Treasure Trove Of Local Crafts, Antiques, And Homemade Food

There is a moment when you step inside and feel the warmth of a place that has been part of the valley for generations. The...

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This Historic West Virginia Church Looks Like It Belongs In A European Hill Town

I hate to be the one to break it to you, but this church might just be the most dramatic thing you see all year. You round...

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This Secret West Virginia Pizzeria Is So Good Customers Travel Hours To Eat Here

Listen, I am not saying you should drive hours for pizza. But I am also not saying you should not. This West Virginia spot...

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This West Virginia Mill Site Once Produced 15 Tons Of Wood Pulp Daily Before A Flood Swept It Away

Stand right here and try to imagine the roar. The thunder of multiple turbines churning out tons of wood pulp every single day. That...

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10 West Virginia Trout Fry Spots Where The Catch Of The Day Sells Out Fast

Fresh trout hitting a sizzling pan is a sound that stops conversations. In West Virginia, that sound means it is time to eat. The...

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This 1866 West Virginia Roundhouse Is The Oldest Domed Structure Of Its Kind In The World

Step inside this West Virginia roundhouse and prepare to have your mind blown. It is a massive circular brick building with...

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This 1894 West Virginia Grist Mill Is One Of The Last Turbine-Driven Mills In The United States

The water still rushes beneath this West Virginia grist mill, just like it did over a century ago. Built on the banks of a...

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This Former Bank In West Virginia Is Now A Massive Bookstore Where You Can Read In The Old Vault

Who knew a bank vault could be the coziest reading spot in town? This West Virginia bookstore is full of surprises. The shelves...

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Come Hungry Because This West Virginia Shop Serves Some Of The Best Pizzas And Homemade Ice Cream

You will smell it before you see it. Wood smoke. Baking dough. Something sweet drifting from the freezer.

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The West Virginia Site Where The Real Rocket Boys Launched Homemade Rockets In The 1950s

You can almost hear the whoosh of homemade rockets slicing through the West Virginia sky. This is where a group of teenage...

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This West Virginia Store Has Original Art Deco Fixtures And Has Been Family-Run Since 1887

A store that has been in the same family since 1887 does not need to try hard. It just needs to keep the doors open and the lights on.

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This Middle-Of-Nowhere West Virginia Diner Has Biscuits And Gravy So Good They Are A Local Legend

Let's be honest, most food described as "legendary" requires a massive salt shaker. Not this place. The biscuits and gravy...

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The Best West Virginia Fish Camps For Late Summer Lake Days

You know that feeling when summer starts to slip away and you are not quite ready to let go? The sun is still warm, the water...

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This West Virginia Theater Is A Historic Treasure That Rose From The Ashes Of A 1939 Fire

Fire swept through this West Virginia theater back in 1939. Most people would have called it a loss. But this building had...

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