A mile down into the gorge from the trailhead off Kaymoor Road, the Cunard Trail brings you out on a steep wooded slope scattered with the remains of an early 20th-century coal operation: rusting tipple skeletons, brick coke ovens half-eaten by the forest, the foundations of houses and a school. A 821-step iron staircase plunges from the upper bench down to the riverside processing area.
The hike is steep — the climb back up is the hardest part of any day on a New River trail — but the ruins are extraordinary and the views constant. Allow three to four hours round trip. Wear good shoes and bring water.