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Month: August 2026

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By wonderfulwv 08/24/202608/24/2026 August / September 2026/State Parks/Wildlife/WVDNR

Hangin’ with the Herd

Elk Management Tours are back at Chief Logan State Park for 2026.  This story was originally published in the August / September 2026 issue of Wonderful West Virginia.Subscribe here. Photographed by Mark Bias Tomblin Wildlife Management Area has been the home of West Virginia’s elk population since the 2016 Elk Restoration

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By wonderfulwv 08/24/202608/24/2026 August / September 2026/Wildlife/WVDNR

Meet West Virginia’s Timber Rattlesnake

West Virginia’s most misunderstood predator.

By wonderfulwv 08/24/202608/24/2026 August / September 2026/Conservation

Medicine Waters

A century ago, the Cacapon River was essentially dead. Today it’s one of the cleanest rivers in West Virginia—and the people who love it intend to keep it that way.

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wonderfulwestvirginia

Exploring the beauty, adventure & outdoor heritage of West Virginia.
📸 Photography | 📖 Stories

Barn swallows are quick on the wing, which makes c Barn swallows are quick on the wing, which makes capturing one at just the right moment even more impressive. Another wonderful glimpse of West Virginia wildlife through the lens of our readers!

📸 “Baarn Swallow”
Photographed by Alan Tucker

#8thAnnualPhotographyIssue
Before you say “NOPE,” hear us out... 🐍👀 Timber r Before you say “NOPE,” hear us out... 🐍👀

Timber rattlesnakes might have an intimidating reputation, but these often-misunderstood predators play an important role in West Virginia’s forests. They help control populations of mice and other small mammals, typically prefer to avoid people, and can even return to the same den sites year after year.

So, what should you do if you cross paths with one? And what are biologists learning about their populations across the Mountain State?

📖 Click the link in our bio to meet West Virginia’s timber rattlesnake!

✍️ Written by Maddi Giles
📸 Photographed by Jackson Hildreth
This hover fly got its close-up thanks to one of o This hover fly got its close-up thanks to one of our talented reader photographers!

📸 "Hover Fly”
Photographed by Ron Rodeheaver

#8thAnnualPhotographyIssue
We think we found the stairway to Almost Heaven. 🌲 We think we found the stairway to Almost Heaven. 🌲☁️

📸 Stephanie Langnehs | Bickel Knob, WV

Where have you found your little piece of Almost Heaven? Send us your photos for a chance to be featured! Click the link in our bio.
We’re sad to learn of Charles Maurer’s passing. We’re sad to learn of Charles Maurer’s passing. 

He was a talented photographer who contributed many beautiful images to Wonderful over the years, from owls and eagles to squirrels and otters. Chuck was a consummate outdoorsman with a keen eye for detail and a big love of nature, and it was always a joy to feature his work, including this 2021 cover. 

He’ll be missed by the staff and readers alike, and our thoughts are with his loved ones❤️
Slithering into the spotlight. 🐍📸 This watersnake Slithering into the spotlight. 🐍📸

This watersnake is one of the wild West Virginia moments captured by our readers and featured in this year’s photography issue.

📸 “Common Watersnake”
Photographed by Christina Craven

#8thAnnualPhotographyIssue
Some days are better measured in paddle strokes. 🛶 Some days are better measured in paddle strokes. 🛶🌿

“End of the Paddle” captures the quiet reward at the end of a day on the water—the canoe docked, the paddles put away, and nowhere left to rush off to.

📸 Susan Hill | Alderson, WV
Another wonderful look at the wildlife that calls Another wonderful look at the wildlife that calls the Mountain State home. 📸🌿

📸 “White-tailed Deer”
Photographed by Harley Beale

#8thannualphotographyissue
Just two pretty things having a moment. 🦋🌸 Robert Just two pretty things having a moment. 🦋🌸

Robert K. McDaniel II caught this butterfly stopping for a little flower break in Philippi.

📸 Have a wonderful West Virginia moment to share? Send us your photos for a chance to be featured! Click the link in our bio.
Right place, right time, camera ready. 👀📸 We love Right place, right time, camera ready. 👀📸

We love seeing the wild moments our readers manage to capture across West Virginia. Thank you for submitted this photo for our 8th annual photography issue!

📸 “Yellow Garden Spider”
Photographed by Kristy Nicholson
Want to hang with the herd? 🦌🍂 West Virginia’s el Want to hang with the herd? 🦌🍂

West Virginia’s elk have been making themselves at home in the southern coalfields for a decade—and this fall, you can head into their habitat for a chance to see (or hear!) them for yourself. The 2026 Elk Management Tours are returning to Chief Logan State Park this September and October, taking visitors into Tomblin Wildlife Management Area with a park naturalist in search of these impressive Mountain State residents.

Spots fill up fast, so don’t wait too long to plan your trip!!!

📖 Click the link in our bio to read more and see the 2026 tour dates.
Lydia Brunty captured the calm settling back over Lydia Brunty captured the calm settling back over Talcott after a summer storm—a quiet Mountain State moment worth stopping for.

📸 Caught a wonderful West Virginia moment of your own? Send us your photos for a chance to be featured! Click the link in our bio.
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Barn swallows are quick on the wing, which makes capturing one at just the right moment even more impressive. Another wonderful glimpse of West Virginia

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Twenty-five years later, we remember the lives lost, the heroes who answered the call, and the countless lives forever changed by September 11, 2001. We

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Before you say “NOPE,” hear us out... 🐍👀 Timber rattlesnakes might have an intimidating reputation, but these often-misunderstood predators play an important role in West

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This hover fly got its close-up thanks to one of our talented reader photographers! 📸 "Hover Fly” Photographed by Ron Rodeheaver #8thAnnualPhotographyIssue

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We think we found the stairway to Almost Heaven. 🌲☁️ 📸 Stephanie Langnehs | Bickel Knob, WV Where have you found your little piece of

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By wonderfulwv 09/11/202609/11/2026 August / September 2026/Events

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August / September 2026/Wildlife

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August / September 2026/State Parks/Wildlife/WVDNR

Hangin’ with the Herd

Wonderful West Virginia Magazine

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Wonderful West Virginia Magazine
Wonderful West Virginia Magazine

Showcasing the best of West Virginia

Pickin’ Out Asphalt

The Fight Continues

Wings Through West Virginia

Hangin’ with the Herd

Meet West Virginia’s Timber Rattlesnake

Medicine Waters

Frontier Forts

Where Two  Waters Meet

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