Episode Details

Episode 50.

Everybody talks about heading West when they want to disappear, but Appalachia still has plenty of places where the pavement ends, cell service disappears, and you can get surprisingly far away from civilization.

In this episode of the CAMO Convoy Podcast, Nick and Aaron dig into some of the best hidden, forgotten, and downright wild places left to explore in the East.

We’re talking remote forest roads, legitimate four wheel drive terrain, dispersed camping, elk country, abandoned railroad tunnels, tiny mountain towns, deep West Virginia backcountry, and places most people drive right past without realizing what’s hiding there.

We also grade each area for both OFF ROAD and OVERLAND potential, because a great wheeling destination and a great overland destination aren’t always the same thing.

PLACES WE COVER:

• Sinnemahoning and the Pennsylvania Wilds
• Hammersley Wild Area and Susquehannock State Forest
• George Washington National Forest
• Bald Eagle State Forest
• Vinton County, Ohio
• Monongahela National Forest and Pocahontas County, West Virginia

Vinton County in particular might surprise you. Some of the best wheeling on the entire list is hiding on old Appalachian backroads in southeastern Ohio. And on the other end of the spectrum, Hammersley contains the largest roadless area in Pennsylvania, where the truck gets you to the edge and the real exploration starts on foot.

HELP KEEP THE DBBB OPEN

A road on the Daniel Boone Backcountry Byway in Owsley County, Kentucky is currently being considered for closure.

If you support continued legal motorized access, please respectfully contact the county officials below and explain why the DBBB, adventure tourism, off roading, and the money travelers spend in small Appalachian communities matter.

Owsley County Judge Executive Zeke Little Jr.
Phone: 606 593 6202
Email: zekelittlejr@yahoo.com
Mail: P.O. Box 749, Booneville, KY 41314

Owsley County Attorney Henley McIntosh
Phone: 606 593 6233
Mail: 100 Mulberry Street, P.O. Box 68, Booneville, KY 41314

Keep it respectful. The goal is to show these communities that responsible motorized recreation brings people, money, and support into rural Appalachia.

If you’ve explored any of these areas, drop your favorite destination in the comments. And if there’s a forgotten corner of Appalachia we missed, tell us where we need to go next.

Subscribe for more overlanding, off road travel, Appalachian exploration, gear, trips, and questionable decisions from the CAMO crew.

LOST APPALACHIA. THE LAST WILD EAST.