Breathtaking Views in West Virginia | Old Mine Rd & The Mower Tract | Monongahela National Forest

[@garyseven8143]

Wow! That aerial scenery is simply stunning. I completely agree with you that it doesn't even look like the east coast.

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thank you for the kind words!

[@PapawGrandmaAdventures]

We can't wait! We will be heading in that direction next weekend for two weeks of exploration. Hopefully, we will find some awesome sites as well.

[@DefiantOffroad]

There were a handful of really great ones on Old Mine Rd. Definitely check them out!

[@PapawGrandmaAdventures]

@DefiantOffroad We very well might.....we don't really have any locations set in stone starting in the Northern part of the Monongahela and working south between there and the George Washington Jefferson NF until it's time to head home.

[@DefiantOffroad]

In the Monongahela, I strongly recommend the Canaan Loop and Canyon Rim Rd, and of course Old Mine Rd. I'd also hit Flagpole Knob, for the views.

[@PapawGrandmaAdventures]

@DefiantOffroad Thanks for the suggestions. I truly appreciate it.

[@DefiantOffroad]

No problem! Thanks for watching! Not to plug my own channel more, but I have videos of a lot of the trails in the area that you're talking about going to ;)

[@ExploreX4]

Very nice, drone shots add a great perspective, will try to find time to drive along here when I’m in the area

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thanks! You won't regret going out there!

[@MarkHoward-o6z]

That place looks absolutely incredible! Your drone shots are on point.

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thanks! It's unlike any other place I've seen on the east coast.

[@vincebroady]

Great video. Beautiful location. West Virginia has so much potential to be the Utah of the region in terms of camping, hiking, mountain biking, skiing, and trail exploring. They can bring in so much adventure tourism with their pristine forests and abundant nature. Such a beautiful state!

[@DefiantOffroad]

Agreed!

[@olddominion4x4-ew5ho]

This is a really good way of putting it. West Virginia could absolutely be the premier offroading/overlanding destination east of the Mississippi, if only the state saw the potential...

[@peterspenultimatepentastar7068]

That horsefly was buggin' ya! lol! Fantastic video and scenery!

[@DefiantOffroad]

For real! I actually reshot that part afterwards, but ended up keeping the first version. I figured that leaving it in there added a bit of humor.

[@thehighwayman2214]

I've never seen this place before. It looks incredible out there, and I'm definitely going to have to check it out. Thanks for showing this place to us!

[@DefiantOffroad]

It was a massive surprise to us! I wasn't expecting much and what we got was amazing. Definitely head out there!

[@OverlandingTheEast-x3u]

I just found my way to your channel and i've been watching your videos all evening. This is good stuff! I love that your videos focus more on the scenery and location, and less on climbing over stuff and mudding. Keep up the good work!

[@DefiantOffroad]

Welcome! I'm glad that you are enjoying the videos! I enjoy hitting a technical trail here and there, but these days I really enjoy just exploring and seeing epic scenery more.

[@joshuamikol]

Homesick now ! lol. Love the video work with the drone. Wish you would have got the sunrise. I would have had a morning run.(Beautiful scenery). Night vision camera setup for wildlife would be pretty awesome too. The camp set up for both the Xterra and Jeep is Badass. I'm Jealous.

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thanks. It's really scenic out there! One of the best campsites I"ve been to on the east coast!

[@OJCoz]

Thank you for sharing! Ill be visiting that place soon now :)

[@DefiantOffroad]

It's definitely worth going. The camp sites were amazing.

[@garretlewis4103]

Ok, you “sold me”. Definitely need to add this to the list of places to go.

[@DefiantOffroad]

You won't be disappointed!

[@olddominion4x4-ew5ho]

I wound up out there a few months ago. I didn't camp, but the campsites were top-notch. I'll definitely return to camp at some point.

[@DefiantOffroad]

They're definitely great sites!

[@richardsatchellesq-ce7fc]

Great video. The drone shots were amazing.

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thanks! Getting decent drone shots is a lot easier when you're not having to constantly worry about branches!

[@Crawling5thGen-ih3cm]

Oh snap, I get the first comment! Nice seeing the Xterra again! That campsite was awesome.

[@DefiantOffroad]

The campsite was legit. There was another one that was equally as awesome, so we had a hard time deciding on which one to take. You'll be seeing more of Andy's Xterra in future videos!

[@overlander948]

Wow, what a great looking area! I saw that trail on OnX a while back, but it didn't look very interesting in the app. I guess that's not the case! Fantastic video!

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thanks, buddy. It really was great out there. I'll admit, when I took my first glance at it online, I didn't think much of either. It turned out to be a fantastic place to camp though.

[@StevenHellwig-xf8nd]

Good one. Those drone shots are 🔥🔥🔥

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thank you. I feel a lot more comfortable flying when the area is more open like it was here. When I've got a tree canopy to deal with, I get squeamish when it comes to flying, so I feel that my shots look a lot more "basic" then.

[@trevorthomas5552]

We call this place “Mine-tana”. It is also part of the Snowshoe Highlands Ride Center and has top notch Mtb trails all over the area.

[@DefiantOffroad]

Awesome! Thanks for the info!

[@ohnoadventures]

Very good video 👍 👍😃

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thank you! It was alot of fun to make. 😁

[@arecbarrwin6346]

Great video!

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thanks!

[@therubiconcrossed2308]

awesome video!

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thanks!

[@garretlewis4103]

Hampton Rhodes……fellow Virginian. We live up near Kings Dominion.

[@DefiantOffroad]

Right on. Maybe we'll cross paths on the trails one day!

[@garretlewis4103]

@@DefiantOffroad 👍

[@jku4488-eh3kd]

awesome video! the aerial shots were epic. how is the trail, overall? how do you like that novsight tent? i've never used a wedge-style tent like that. how is it to open?

[@DefiantOffroad]

The trail is just a gravel road. Any car can make it down. There's seriously paved roads here in Hampton Roads that are bumpier. The tent is great! Opening it is super-easy. The gas-shocks on it make it really easy to open. I have back problems, and it's no issue at all to open...takes minimal effort.

[@DirtRoadTraveler-bd9px]

I love your Jeep. It's very similar to what I'm aiming for, for my set up. I'm trying to decide on what style tent to go with. I like yours, but I also like the one on the xterra. Any advice on which way to go?

[@DefiantOffroad]

Thanks. I value function over form, so my setup is rather minimalist compared to the more elaborate setups that a lot of other people go with. Looking at your thumbnail pic, it looks like you've got a JK, so which way you go with an RTT is going to be limited by the hard top and which rack you go with. I love Andy's tent. It's super spacious, but it's also 250lbs, compared to the 150lbs of my Novsight tent. My rack (also novsight) has a static load limit of 700lbs, but I still try to keep the weight up there as low as I can. Andy's tent is also a good bit taller than mine when closed, making it less aerodynamic, which is another consideration.

[@DirtRoadTraveler-bd9px]

oh wow i didn't even think about the weight difference. I'm looking at novsight's website now. it's the zebra tent that you have? how do you like it so far?

[@DefiantOffroad]

It's a good tent. I'm particularly impressed with its waterproofing. I've been in heavy rain with it and not a drop got in.

[@zowie740]

Can a rv make it to where you camped?

[@DefiantOffroad]

It can make it along Old Mine Rd no problem. Up to that specific campsite might be problematic, depending on ground clearance. There's plenty of great sites along Old Mine though

[@JayCeeGee]

one by one all my favorite spots here continue to get burnt up and spot blasted. So much harder to get spots anywhere and so much more destruction and trash over the last few years. I know they’re by no means anybody’s and they belong to all of us, just wish there weren’t so many bad apples out there

[@DefiantOffroad]

Trashing a trail/campsite is one of my biggest pet peeves. This area was surprisingly clean though. I don't recall seeing any litter along the trail itself (I generally pick up trash a long trails). The campsite that we stayed in had some trash in it, but it was largely confined to the fire ring, so it was an easy cleanup. I think that the most trashed place I've ever visited was the New Jersey Pine Barrens. That place was outright disgusting in spots.