New River Gorge National Park: Sandstone Falls Recreation Area

Sandstone Falls is a must-see when visiting the New River Gorge National Park. From the National Park Service website, "The largest waterfall on the New River, Sandstone Falls spans the river where it is 1500 feet wide. Divided by a series of islands, the river drops 10 to 25 feet." By volume, It's one of the largest waterfalls in the US.

The boardwalk is a wheel-chair accessible way to view the falls and the surrounding foliage.

At the southeast section of the boardwalk are some stairs that lead to a dirt path. A short hike through the woods and over boulders takes you to the closest and most scenic views of the falls. After about a third of the way, the trail disappears so you just have to find your way. At the southern tip of the island, the water gushes in torrents about ten feet below. There are no railings here so great caution is needed if traveling with children. The roar and spray of the falls here combined with the seclusion of the location, make this one of the gems of New River Gorge National Park.

Lovely drive through Hinton and back up along the New River. Beautiful falls and nice boardwalk. We visited in late fall so probably not as much flow during other times. Easy to navigate boardwalk trail and very informative. Look for the rock wedged in the tree!

Beautiful park that the whole family can enjoy for about an hour or so. The boardwalk is easy for young to old, and has great views of the river and falls. The trail is optional, and worth checking out if you have time, but not worth it on its own. You can make your stay longer if you hang out at the "beach", but it probably gets crowded on sunny/hot days in the summer.

Absolutely beautiful. Planked walking path with viewpoints. If your more adventurous you can go off trail to get closer to the water. Saw some people fishing and others jumping from the higher level to the lower pool in a somewhat mellow area. NOT THAT I RECOMMEND DOING THIS.

Definitely worth going to!!

If your able to hike to end of island to the front view of the falls, you'll be rewarded with a view you can't get from the rest of the area.

The Sandstone Falls are a must see. You can view them from the East side of the river at the Sandstone Falls Overlook but the Best view is from the West side. It takes a bit of a drive but is well worth it there is an easy boardwalk and path to get down to the river bust the view of the falls from there are magnificent. Well worth the time. A must see.

It is a very nice place, but it is not very big

Great place. The falls are not very tall. However, they extend 1500 feet across the entire river. Not possible to see it all at once. But there is a boardwalk that takes you over a few islands so you can see the falls. There are opportunities to walk on the islands to get closer to the waterfall as well. Also there is a small looping hiking trail on one of the islands.

Beautiful falls and a very nice boardwalk leading out close to view the falls and river.

A beautiful place to stop with a hiking trail that includes a boardwalk across the river so that you can get close up views of the waterfalls. There are also openings and trails off of the main trail that allows you to go down to the water, if you wish. I have trouble with my foot, but I had no trouble walking these trails. They are very well kept, wide, and usable for people of varying degrees of mobility. The parking lot included a bathroom. A gorgeous place to stop and spend some time!

Great views to experience. Plenty of walking trails to explore

Highly, highly recommend, the bridge is a must see and the views are spectacular

Short walk to the waterfalls, but it was so far away. We decided to cross multiple streams to get to the general view of the water. It was amazing!!

This is a lovely surprise I encountered while meandering off a drive to Irish Mountain. It is apparent that a good deal of thought went into planning the boardwalk so as to not disturb too much of the natural elements of the area. I was thrilled to see the geographic formation, the river churning a late winter wash, and indigenous plants. I expected seeing some results of acid rain and other environmental onslaught, but I did not expect to see the amount of human-created debris I encountered. Wash-off from high water, yes, but I'm speaking of freshly dumped trash in the parking lot and dog feces on the boardwalk. Come on, people! This is ours to enjoy and showcase. A lovely lady sat writing at one of the picnic tables, my husband and I watched a beaver readying a worksite, and a family of about 5 dumped their drink containers in the parking lot. I picked them up. The pet owner I did not see. Maybe a pet waste bag dispenser on site would remind people of the responsibility of pet ownership AND stewardship of our beautiful resources?? In spite of my rant, this was a gorgeous place to be on a chilly February afternoon!

I have a bilateral hip and knee disability that has slowed me down exponentially. I love the stable wooden boardwalk that allows me the freedom to still be outdoors in nature, however slow I may hobble, to see the spectacular falls and woodlands here. The bathrooms are clean and the stairs to get up to them, however relatively short they are give my legs an ouch. The beautiful memories my son and I have made enjoying this place is impressioned in our hearts. It's nice to go at different times of the year to see the changes in water levels and trees. Peaceful bliss to sit on the bench and inhale the mist of the falls water. We love to go here and again I'm so thankful they have the wheelchair accessible boardwalk for people like me to feel somewhat "normal" still while managing severe osteoarthritis and having a bad knee. There's amazing waterfalls on the side of the road too that are spectacular.

Lots of nice views from the new boardwalk, although it's not quite finished yet. Sandstone Falls are beautiful and unique and there are plenty of places in which to get a great picture. And if you're lucky, some other waterfalls maybe flowing along the road coming into Sandstone.

The US’s newest national park and definitely a place to come and explore! Many different locations across the entire park and preserve. Views are amazing and lots of trails to hike.
A few places are closed because of the ongoing pandemic, but if you visit the National Park Service site, those are mentioned. Much of the park though is still open.

So beautiful and relaxing wish I could have stayed forever!! Would love to move to this area.

Nice place to visit and not too crowded. Dogs allowed on leash. Be sure you check Google maps for the best route. If your wanting to visit the whole park, it's difficult to get to another area from here, especially the main bridge. You have to back-track to get anywhere. Also, not much in the closet town.

Beautiful right off the road no hike needed to see falls but hike is available to do nice boardwalk trashcans and bathroom accessible too