The C&O Railway Heritage Center is a railway heritage museum, interpretive, educational, and visitor's center that tells the story of the C&O Railway: the people, the places, and the technology. The story is the essential American story of how our nation grew, how we lived and worked, and how we were all connected together by twin rails of steel. The purpose of this center is also to honor the memory and contribution of those who worked every day to make this possible. Visit Website

The Outside Family Vacation Guide named Virginia’s Douthat State Park one of the nation's 10 best. The park, which straddles Bath and Alleghany counties, is on the National Register of Historic Places. Douthat is one of the original six Virginia State Parks that opened June 15, 1936. It's nestled in the Allegheny Mountains and features some of Virginia’s most outstanding scenery. In addition, a 50-acre lake offers swimming, boating and seasonal trout fishing. Visit Website

The venerable Humpback Bridge lays claim to being the oldest of Virginia's remaining covered bridges. Located in Alleghany County, just west of Covington, it was built in 1857. It was part of the James River and Kanawha Turnpike and succeeds three other bridges at the site. It stretchesover Dunlap Creek, a tributary of the Jackson River that joins the Cowpasture River near Iron Gate to form the James River. Visit Website

Up in the Alleghany Highlands, nestled into a canyon once called Kincaid Gorge, lies Gathright Dam. This massive earthen structure backs up the Jackson River for over 12 miles, forming Lake Moomaw. The idea for a lake above the City of Covington was hatched just after World War II, but the project was not completed until the early 1980's. The project was pushed forward by Covington businessman Benjamin Moomaw, after which the lake was named. Visit Website

Roaring Run Furnace and Picnic Area are in Botetourt County. Roaring Run Furnace is a 19th century iron furnace on National Register of Historic Places. Informational signs explain the turn of the century furnace operation. Trails run along old tram lines. Roaring Run Creek is well know for trout fishing. Roaring Run is set among large hemlocks and birches on the creek's edge. Visit Website

The Stonewall Masonic Theatre is a three-story Beaux Arts brick building with a plastered facade, a cove ceiling lobby and an original performance hall with a stage and balcony. Once the oldest continuously operating theater in Virginia, it now serves as the Alleghany Highlands Center for the Performing Arts. 510 Main St., Clifton Forge, Virginia 540.863.9606 Directions

For more than twenty years, the Virginia Horse Center has been the crowning jewel of the Commonwealth’s $1.46 billion equine industry. Known throughout the country and internationally, the Virginia Horse Center serves as a venue for more than 100 events a year including horse shows, clinics, rodeos, workshops, and community events. Visit Website