Hatfield-McCoy Mountains

The Hatfield-McCoy Mountains region covers the southern coalfields along the Tug Fork and the upper Guyandotte — five counties (Boone, Lincoln, Logan, Mingo, Wayne) where the steep ridges and narrow hollows that defined the famous 19th-century feud still shape the landscape. The terrain is some of the most folded and forested in the state: tight river valleys, sharp ridge lines, and old company towns built into the bottoms. Logan, Williamson, and Madison handle the major coal-camp histories; Hamlin and Branchland run Lincoln County; Wayne and Kenova sit on the Big Sandy at the Kentucky border. The Hatfield-McCoy Trails — a connected ATV and dirt-bike system that crosses several counties — has become the region’s biggest visitor anchor. The West Virginia Mine Wars Museum in Matewan and the Tug Valley feud sites preserve the labor and family-feud histories. Trips here run on the trails. Riders stage out of Logan, Gilbert, Matewan, or Williamson to access the named loops — Bearwallow, Buffalo Mountain, Indian Ridge, Pinnacle Creek. Spring and fall are the comfortable riding seasons; the trail towns have built lodging and fuel infrastructure around the riders’ calendar.