Mule Hollow - Swim near Elkins, West Virginia
Volga, WV 26238, USA,Elkins,Virginia
38.7996, -79.7512
10.1 miles SE of Elkins, West Virginia
Address: Volga, WV 26238, USA
GPS: 38°47'58.6"N 79°45'4.3"W
Maps | Directions
State: Virginia
Trails/Routes: 1.2 mi

State Park

Swim

Mule Hollow is a more private swimming hole just outside of Bemis. The swimming hole itself is located in Shaver's Fork river, and is a deep pool with little current from the river felt as you swim in it. There are large, flat rocks surrounding the pool that are perfect to get some sun on or place your personal items. To get to Mule Hollow, you have to walk along some train tracks. These tracks may have nails, or other sharp objects poking out or around it so wear sturdy shoes to prevent injury. You will walk on these tracks for about a mile. Because this area is a little more obscure and difficult to get to, it doesn't get as many visitors which makes it the perfect place for you to go if you don't enjoy lots of shouting and just want to enjoy the nature around you. A large rock hangs over the pool that you can swim underneath to get some cover from the warm sun. This area is best during the summer time, specifically in July. The water is refreshing and warm from the sun rays. Make sure to bring sunscreen and water with you!

 

 

 

525 Written by tward

More Information

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  1. Plan Ahead and Prepare
  2. Travel & camp on durable surfaces
  3. Dispose of waste properly
  4. Leave what you find
  5. Minimize campfire impacts
  6. Respect wildlife
  7. Be considerate of other visitors

Directions

From Elkins, West Virginia

  1. Head north on Henry Ave toward Randolph Ave/Seneca Trail (72 ft)
  2. Turn right onto Randolph Ave/Seneca Trail
    Pass by Hardee's (on the left in 0.4 mi)
    (0.7 mi)
  3. Turn left onto US-33 E (12.0 mi)
  4. Turn right onto Glady Road (9.4 mi)
  5. Turn right onto Bemis Rd (2.1 mi)
  6. Turn left
    Restricted usage road
    (0.4 mi)
or

To get to Mule Hollow, go to the train tracks in Bemis and walk south along the railroad tracks (there is no trail to here) for about 1 mile (25-30 minutes). Watch out for the excursion trains several times a day - be careful. (The excursion trains DO NOT stop at Mule Hollow - you have to walk.) Follow the tracks, which will begin to follow the river closely after a while, until you reach an almost hidden, steep little trail on the left with a small tree stump at the top (the trail is pretty steep so you might want to bring a rope) and you're there.Courtesy of swimmingholes.org

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Guest Review/Comments

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Darrel Bickel

10/22/22 1:43 pm
That sounds like the place I swam in as a kid. We called it Mule Hole. The area with the 10-12 foot rock overhang was the main swim hole but upstream of this were a series of waterfalls that the river over the centuries had bored chutes and tubes in one could ride down and shoot out below the falls. I was in grade school and slim and trim then. But if you can get in same the size stays the same throughout. The main down side was the stone tunnels and slides could wear out denim shorts, pockets and all, in a few hours, regular bathing suits would last a fraction of that. If you did not bring some other pants going home would not have many stops. Mule Hole also had a mountain spring in the wall on the other, Eastern I think, side. I would hope it is still drinkable, but it was ice cold when it came out of that wall and ran done to the river. You do have to be able to swim back with a pitcher of water in your hand to enjoy it with meals. Now the current seemed calm in that deep hole that is about 20 feet deep, but I know one time I had started from the last falls base, and was going downstream to where a friend was on a rock and his face suddenly had a panic look as he pointed in my direction, when I began to drift back upstream I went to a freestyle stroke and beet the whirlpool pulling me toward it. So from time to time the current gets visible. Now a half mile or so up stream was a wide shallow area with sink holes. I think that was a river crossing point over a century back. I stepped into one of the sink spots and found a large wagon wheel rim, and rolled it back to the swim hole to show others. Well it was too big to bring home, at least six feet in diameter, and got left there. As I understand it was used by others to contain a camp fire on the rock and when they left for home, they pushed the fire and wagon wheel rim into the hole. It may be about 20 feet down in the swim hole, somewhere downstream, or somebody rolled it back to a vehicle and took it home for a pot rack or something. Before you go to get it you might want to remember it will be light in the water, but gets real heavy once it's above water. And take some extra cloths.
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Mule Hollow Swimming Hole by Mark Pirritano
BACKDIVE MULES HOLE BEMIS WV by Danny Morici 2013.07.17 Shavers Fork of the Cheat River, near B by klondike108
525

Added by tward

Trails

Distance ?

1.2 miles

Elevation Gain ?

62 feet

Real Ascent ?

96 feet

Real Descent ?

34 feet

Avg Grade (1°)

1%

Grade (-33° to 4°)

-66% to 6%

Elevation differences are scaled for emphasis. While the numbers are accurate, the cut-away shown here is not to scale.

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