Take a Hike: A Three-State Weekend Adventure for Families Who Love the Outdoors

This weekend adventure is not built for the couch.

If your family measures a good trip in muddy boots, trail snacks, and that particular kind of tired you only get from actually moving your body through beautiful places, we have your weekend planned. Appalachia's Front Porch, where Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia come together along the Ohio River, sits at the center of some of the most rewarding hiking terrain in the region. And the best part? You can hit three states, three sets of trails, and three very good dinners without ever driving more than thirty minutes between stops.

Pack your bags. Here is how to do it.

Friday: West Virginia Warms You Up

Morning | Huntington Museum of Art Nature Trail

Before you even set foot inside a gallery, the Huntington Museum of Art earns its place on this itinerary with more than 40 acres of hillside woodlands and a well-marked trail system that most visitors walk right past on their way to the exhibits. That is their loss and your family's gain.

Six connected trails wind through the natural property, ranging from nearly flat to genuinely steep, so you can calibrate the challenge to your crew. The quarter-mile Teubert Foundation Sensory Trail is paved and accessible for all ages and abilities, while the C. Fred Edwards Conservatory at the trailhead offers a cool, lush pit stop full of subtropical plants that makes the kids feel like they just stepped into a rainforest. Trained nature docent volunteers lead guided tours for groups, so if you can time your visit to one, do it.

The museum is located at 2033 McCoy Road in Huntington, West Virginia.

Lunch | Butter It Up, Huntington, WV

After the trails, fuel up at Butter It Up at The Market, a farm-to-table cafe tucked into downtown Huntington at 809 3rd Ave. Everything is made fresh, sourced as locally as possible from regional farms, and the menu swings comfortably between hearty breakfast plates, avocado toast, smoothies, and lunch wraps. It is the kind of place where the food actually tastes like someone cooked it, because someone did. Stick around for a little while and do some local shopping inside while you’re there.

Evening | Beech Fork Lake State Park

Spend your Friday afternoon at Beech Fork Lake State Park, where eight trails cover just over fourteen miles of scenic woodland and lakeshore. The Lost Trail is the local favorite, a 3.1-mile route that hugs the edge of the lake and puts you right in the middle of one of the prettiest views in the park. If the timing is right, you might spot a great blue heron fishing in the shallows right alongside you.

The Overlook Trail is a shorter option at 2 miles, but the view it delivers over the lake and surrounding hills punches well above its length.

Check out the West Virginia Swings while you are there and don’t miss the most insta-worthy photo op of the day.

Dinner | Bahnhof WVrsthaus and Biergarten, Huntington, WV

End your Friday with schnitzel, sausages, and soft pretzels at Bahnhof WVrsthaus and Biergarten at 745 7th Ave in Huntington. Ranked among the top restaurants in the city on Tripadvisor, Bahnhof brings a full German beer hall experience to downtown Huntington, with a kids menu, indoor and outdoor seating, and enough hearty food to keep everyone satisfied before tomorrow's trails.

Saturday: Kentucky Gets Historical

Morning | Iron Ore Trail at Armco Park, Ashland, KY

Cross into Kentucky Saturday morning and head for Armco Park, one of the most underrated hiking spots in the region. The Iron Ore Trail covers 3.7 miles with 505 feet of elevation gain, making it a genuinely satisfying moderate hike for families with older kids or active younger ones.

What makes this trail special is what is underfoot, not just literally. Interpretive signs along the way tell the story of the iron ore that was once mined throughout this hillside, and in places you can spot remnants of the old Midland Trail brick road that was incorporated into the path. History and nature wrapped into one hike. The trail earns a 4.4-star rating on AllTrails with more than 500 reviews, which is not an accident.

The park was established in 1935 and multiple trailheads give you options for where to begin.

Lunch | The Crisp Dairy Treat, Ashland, KY

This is the kind of lunch stop that becomes the thing everybody talks about on the drive home. Crisp's Dairy Treat on State Route 716 in Ashland is a classic drive-up window operation, open for more than 50 years and still family-owned. The foot-long hot dogs are famous. The milkshakes and frozen treats hold their own. And the Tangerine Twist frozen yogurt is a local secret worth knowing about.

No indoor seating, no pretense, just good food from a window and plenty of parking lot to eat it in.

Local Insider Tip: You order ice cream on one side of the building and food on the other. We recommend the footlong hotdog with sauce, mustard, onions, and slaw. Don’t forget to add onion rings and the seasonal tangerine twist ice cream cone.

Evening | Tap That Sports, Camp Landing, Ashland, KY

Saturday evening belongs to Camp Landing, Ashland's entertainment district built on the site of the former KYOVA Mall. Start at Tap That Sports, where eight world-class HD sports simulators run more than 75 multiplayer games and challenges. Golf, basketball, baseball, and a lot of things in between. A self-pour system with 48 taps handles the adult entertainment side of things, and the competitive energy in the room is absolutely contagious.

Local Tip: If you want to extend your evening at Tap That Sports, you can order your food from Backyard Pizza, walk down and pick it up, and bring it back to your stall and continue the fun.

Dinner | Backyard Pizza, Camp Landing, Ashland, KY

Stay put at Camp Landing and move over to Backyard Pizza for dinner. The wood-fired pizzas are the main event, built with quality toppings and that crispy-edged char that you can only get from a real pizza oven. A raw bar rounds out the menu for anyone craving something from the sea. The energy at Camp Landing on a Saturday night is a genuinely good time, and Backyard Pizza sits right in the middle of it.

Sunday: Ohio Sends You Home Happy

Morning | Lake Shore Trail at Lake Vesuvius, Ironton, OH

Save the best hike for last. The Lake Shore Trail in the Wayne National Forest circles a 143-acre lake in one of the most beautiful recreation areas in southern Ohio, located just six miles north of Ironton off State Route 93. The 8-mile loop stays close to the water for most of its length, winding past enormous rock outcrops, groves of old hemlock trees, and quiet inlets where the fishing is excellent.

The trail is rated easy-to-moderate and the terrain is varied enough to hold everyone's attention the whole way around. Over 25 miles of trails lace through the surrounding forest if your family wants to add distance.

This is the kind of place that earns a bookmark for next time.

Lunch | Patties and Pints, Ironton, OH

Walk into Patties and Pints at 211 Adams St in Ironton and the prohibition-era atmosphere does the greeting for you. Vintage photographs, antique cars, and newspaper headlines set the scene. The menu is straightforward and excellent: gourmet burgers built the right way, and 48 taps running domestic, craft, import, and cider options to round things out. It is a genuinely fun lunch stop with personality built right into the walls.

Evening | Spare Time Recreation, Ironton, OH

Nobody wants the weekend to end, so do not let it. Spare Time Recreation at 2216 S 3rd St in Ironton is a family entertainment center with bowling, skating, laser tag, and arcade games under one roof. Smoke-free, family-friendly, and the kind of place where a gutter ball still counts as a good time.

Dinner | The Armory Smokehouse, Ironton, OH

Close out the weekend at The Armory Smokehouse at 920 Vernon St, one of Ironton's most beloved restaurants and one of the most memorable dining rooms in the region. The building is a genuine renovated National Guard Armory, filled with military uniforms, photographs, and memorabilia that give the space a real sense of place.

The food is built for people who have been outside all day. Slow-smoked ribs, brisket, pulled pork, and chicken anchor the menu, with Certified Angus Beef steaks and burgers for good measure. Amish baked goods round out the meal in a way you will not expect but absolutely appreciate. More than 950 reviews and a 4.2-star rating tell the same story: this place delivers.

Lace Up and Come On In

Three states, three days, and enough trail miles to justify every bite along the way. That is the thing about Appalachia's Front Porch: the hiking is fun, the food is genuinely good, and the distance between all of it is almost suspiciously short.

The mountains and forests that shaped this region are still here, still beautiful, and still ready for whoever shows up with good shoes and a full water bottle. Come find out what all the fuss is about.

Save this itinerary, tag us in your trail photos, and share it with the family that needs a reason to get outside. Our door is always open.

Appalachia's Front Porch spans Boyd, Greenup, and Carter Counties in Kentucky; Lawrence County, Ohio; and Wayne and Cabell Counties in West Virginia.