USFS · West Virginia

Monongahela National Forest

The Monongahela National Forest is a national forest located in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, US. It protects over 921,000 acres of federally managed land within a 1,700,000 acres proclamation boundary that includes much of the Potomac Highlands Region and portions of 10 counties.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest1.7 million acresUSFSWV33 campgrounds within 10 mi52 Forest Service sites189 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StateWest Virginia
Size1.7 million acres
Forest Service code0921, region 09
Center point38.56° N, 79.89° W
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 11)

Boundary map

1 outline

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Monongahela National Forest20°30°40°50°60°70°January: 3.42 inches of precipitation, 16.0 inches of snowFebruary: 2.99 inches of precipitation, 17.2 inches of snowMarch: 4.09 inches of precipitation, 13.9 inches of snowApril: 3.81 inches of precipitation, 2.5 inches of snowMay: 4.87 inches of precipitation, 0.1 inches of snowJune: 3.94 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowJuly: 4.10 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowAugust: 3.62 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowSeptember: 3.49 inches of precipitation, 0.0 inches of snowOctober: 2.86 inches of precipitation, 0.6 inches of snowNovember: 2.92 inches of precipitation, 4.3 inches of snowDecember: 3.67 inches of precipitation, 12.8 inches of snowJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 26.2°F averageFebruary: 29.0°F averageMarch: 36.3°F averageApril: 47.4°F averageMay: 56.4°F averageJune: 63.5°F averageJuly: 66.9°F averageAugust: 65.7°F averageSeptember: 59.6°F averageOctober: 49.2°F averageNovember: 38.4°F averageDecember: 30.4°F average0 in5 in10 in15 in20 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Bartow 1S, 7 miles from the center point at 3,025 feet, station USC00460509 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 44 inches a year. The dotted line is average snowfall, about 67 inches a year on the same inches scale.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

26 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 7 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Bear Heaven Campground
First-comeWV
FS · Inside
Big Bend
Reservable46 sites
FS · Inside
Big Rock
Reservable5 sites
FS · Inside
Bishop Knob
Reservable54 sites
FS · Inside
Blue Bend Recreation Area
Reservable23 sites
FS · Inside
Blue Meadow
Reservable37 sites
FS · Inside
Cranberry Campground
Reservable28 sites
FS · Inside
Cranberry Glades Botanical Area
First-comeWV
Show 4 more

21 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 52

The Forest Service lists 52 recreation sites in this forest, among them 17 campgrounds, 7 viewpoints, 7 backpackings, 4 group camps. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 52

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 189 named trails in this forest, 653 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Fork Mountain Trail ↗21.4
West Fork Rail Trail ↗20.8
Middle Mountain Trail #608 ↗18
Pocahontas Trail ↗17.6
North-South Trail ↗16
Allegheny Mountain Trail ↗12.9
North Fork Mtn (Fr79-Judy) ↗12.1
Otter Creek Trail ↗11.4
Middle Fork Trail ↗10.2
Kennison Mountain Trail ↗9.5

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas. This trail list was copied from Trailhead Atlas on November 1, 2026 and is copied again on each weekly run. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 189 trails in Monongahela National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Recreation Area · 21 mi
Gauley River National Recreation Area
National Park & Preserve · 26 mi
New River Gorge National Park & Preserve
National Register listings within 15 miles · 166 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Guidebooks for Monongahela National Forest and West Virginia

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Five-Star Trails: West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest
    Johnny Molloy, 2022
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking West Virginia
    Mary T. Reed, 2013
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Explorer's Guide 50 Hikes in West Virginia
    Leonard M. Adkins, 2013
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Monongahela National Forest?

1.7 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Monongahela National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Monongahela National Forest in?

West Virginia.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Monongahela National Forest?

Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites. Check the forest page for closures. The federal campgrounds within ten miles are listed under Where to camp.

Source: Where to camp

How do I get to Monongahela National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 38.556° N, 79.893° W. Gauley River National Recreation Area is 21 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

Which national parks are near Monongahela National Forest?

Gauley River National Recreation Area (21 mi) and New River Gorge National Park & Preserve (26 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Monongahela National Forest?

The National Register has 166 listings within 15 miles, including Humpback Bridge and Boggs Mill.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • Description: Monongahela National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.