MULLENS, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Among the winding roads and sprawling mountainscapes of Wyoming County can be found the vaguely secreted Twin Falls Resort State Park, a keystone attraction for areas such Pineville, Oceana, and beyond.
Despite signage displayed for express purpose of guiding would-be guests and explorers to the park site, the brief commute from the city of Mullens – active with commerce and relative public activity – to the site of the namesake twin falls feels a bit like stepping into another world altogether, almost as if one is in on some poorly concealed secret.
The area itself, on the day of this writer’s excursion, sat cloaked in shadows – cast both by the full and vibrant vegetation within which the trails can be found, and by ominous gray storm clouds hovering overhead which seemed almost to be monitoring the proceedings below while dispersing generous helpings of rainfall.
These types of conditions have been all but inevitable throughout Southern West Virginia during the Summer of 2022, with the thwarting and subsequent rescheduling of outdoor-based events having become abundantly typical in the months of the year’s hottest season.
The prevalence of such conditions on this day all but assured that this expedition would be a solitary one, but also that the falls from which the location takes its name were bound to be bustling fervently in accommodation of the recently levied storm.
The park area itself is a bit more apparent than that of the trails and titular falls, with an 18-hole golf course, swimming pull, and fully-functional Pioneer Farm offsetting the more natural exterior of the location’s 25+ miles of hiking trails.
The attraction’s history goes back to its 1964 donation by the Western Pocahontas Corporation and Pocahontas Land Corporation, at which time it housed little more than the Foley and Black Fork (Twin) Falls from which its name was taken.
Further development soon got underway, with cabins, swimming pools, and a golf course having been constructed in the late 1960s. The Twin Falls Resort State Park Lodge saw completion in 1970, and a pioneer homestead was later reconstructed.
Major renovations followed in 2011, which saw the addition of 27 additional rooms, as well as an indoor swimming pool and fitness center.
The trails themselves are extensive, ranging in difficulty and terrain, with many featuring rocky areas which require a certain amount of climbing to traverse – see the Rocky Road Trail.
The plant life throughout the park is expansive, particularly in the trail areas, with established and unestablished pathways boasting an abundance of greenery including maples, magnolia, rhododendron, and more.
A detour off the beaten path for some photos saw this writer navigating substantial thickets of plant wildlife in traversing various creek areas and hillside terrain.
Falls Trail is the destination point for those who come to catch a glimpse of the falls themselves. Rolling through various terrain and looping along the creek before curving back on itself on an old park road, the trail is of moderate difficulty and extends for a mile and a quarter, bridging the namesake falls which sit roughly half a mile from one another.
The waterfalls themselves were indubitably carrying out their response to the rainfall, which had endowed the currents not only with enough dirt and mud so as to affect the hue of the water itself, but with a forcefulness in their expulsion of the naturally occurring resource.
Removed from the elegant, level distribution of water by which one might consider relaxing with a good book, the falls were frantic and forceful in their duties, allowing for torrents of accumulated rain to blast into the awaiting body of water below.
There is plenty to see and do at Twin Falls Resort State Park, and what one does, as well as when one chooses to make the trip, should be contingent upon personal tastes as pertaining to what it is one hopes to accomplish on a given day.
In any case, the falls from which the attraction takes its name truly are a sight to behold, and this writer would recommend making the hike out to catch a glimpse – although it is suggested the journey be taken on a relatively dry day for those reluctant to fully immerse themselves in the natural elements.
More content from the LOOTPRESS Discover West Virginia Waterfalls series can be found here.Â
