Mountwood Park, a 2,600-acre recreational park in eastern Wood County, is located 12 miles east of Parkersburg, West Virginia. Though known especially as a mountain-biking destination, it includes a 50-acre lake and cabins, campgrounds, picnic areas, and more than 50 miles of woodland hiking, biking, and horseback-riding trails. The park also includes a 600-acre area of ATV (all-terrain vehicle) trails separate from the principal recreational area.
Though principally forested, remnants of the oil-boom town of Volcano, West Virginia, may be explored in and near the park. An estimated 5,000 people lived here among towering oil derricks until 1879 when a fire swept through the community, destroying its saloons, bowling alleys, and opera houses. An endless-cable system for pumping oil was invented at Volcano, which was named for gas flares, which lit the sky like a volcano at night. For more information, visit the park website.
Map showing Mountwood Park
