The largest campground at a West Virginia state park is located at Beech Fork State Park, which has 275 campsites. Part of the popularity of Beech Fork and many of West Virginia’s state parks is the free activities planned by the naturalist and recreational programmer.
Melissa Cardina is the 2014 naturalist/recreation programmer at Beech Fork and she plans weekend activities at the park. Cardina is a graduate of Miami University (Ohio) in Kinesiology and Health and currently a graduate student at Marshall University studying Sports Management. She brings her educational interest in outdoor recreation to life at Beech Fork through programming activities.
Saturday June 7 is National Trails Day and Cardina has planned a “Lost Trail” hike beginning at 10:00 a.m. from the trail head behind campsite 84 in the Moxley Branch Campground area. It will be a 2.5 mile hike that is more strenuous and with some steep inclines. National Trails Day is a nationwide program promoting good health, exercise and hiking. To receive a certificate and patch for hiking at a state park or forest on June 7, 2014, download a log card from www.wvstateparks.com, record the miles hiked on a guided hike or hiking on your own, and send the information to the state parks central office or give to the naturalist to forward on your behalf.
Other activities planned on National Trails Day include a scavenger hunt at 2:00 p.m., volleyball at 3:00 p.m., and a Long Branch and Nature Trail Hike beginning at 5:00 p.m. Weekend activities at Beech Fork are posted as available on wvstateparks.com and on www.beechforksp.com.
