Oldest of West Virginia's state forests, Seneca borders the beautiful Greenbrier River in Pocahontas County. The forest offers pioneer guest cabins; a four(4) acre lake for trout, bass and bluegill fishing; a small campground and 11,684 acres of lush woodlands for hiking, hunting or communing with nature. The lake and forest are named after the Indian tribe which once roamed the area. Seneca's large size and modest development make it a great place to find peace and solitude.

Cabins Overnight guests at Seneca State Forest may select from among eight completely furnished pioneer cabins. Designed to provide a glimpse of pioneer life, these cabins feature fireplaces, gas lights and woodburning cookstoves. Although they do not have running water or electricity, they have gas refrigerator/freezers, water from hand-pumped wells and vault toilets. One recently constructed accessible cabin includes supplementary gas heat.

All cabins are fully equipped for housekeeping, including: Cooking, eating, and fireplace utensils, firewood, kindling, matches, outdoor charcoal grill, picnic table, porch swing, pots, pans, dinnerware, beds, linens, blankets, towel sets, toilet paper, soap, dish detergent, and other cleaning supplies.

here are coin operated showers (two private units with full modern bathrooms, one of which is wheelchair accessible), and a coin operated laundry, all located at the forest office.

Cots and cribs/high chairs are available for an additional charge and may be reserved in advance to avoid a handling fee.

Camping

Another option for overnight visitors at the forest is the beautiful rustic camping area. This well designed campground consists of 10 large, secluded sites (one of which is wheelchair accessible) in a wooded setting, with picnic tables, level tent/trailer pads, and fireplaces. Virtually any size or type of camping unit can be accommodated, but the campground is especially well suited to tents. Seneca's campground is often mentioned by tenters as being one of the best they've seen. A handpumped well for drinking water and vault toilets are centrally located in the campground. Firewood is available for sale, and campers may use the coin operated shower and laundry facilities described under the cabins heading and which are ? mile from the campground.

Campsites are cleaned after each use by forest personnel.There is no RV dumping facility at Seneca.

The campground is open from April 1st to early December. Reservations are not accepted for the campground, but it does not often fill to capacity anyway. Guests planning on arriving late on a summer weekend, particularly a holiday weekend, may wish to call ahead to check on availability and inquire about alternate campgrounds (there are several in the area) should Seneca fill up. Rest assured that there are always campsites available somewhere close by.

Golfing is available on Rt 219 just south of Marlinton at the Pocahontas Country Club, or north of Marlinton at Snowshoe's Hawthorne Valley 18-hole course.