The Bluestone was the first West Virginia river to enter the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, designated on October 26, 1988, and it remains one of the less-traveled NPS river units in the East. The park protects a 10.5-mile segment of the Bluestone River running through a deep, rugged gorge in Summers and Mercer counties of southern West Virginia. It lies roughly 5 miles south of New River Gorge National Park and Preserve and is administered by the same park staff. The river is named for the blue-tinted limestone streambed at its headwaters on East River Mountain near Bluefield, Virginia. In Shawnee and Delaware usage the river was called Momongosenka, "Big Stone River," a reference to the boulder-strewn lower gorge through which ancient foot trails once ran. The gorge is the entire character of the park. The river drops from around 3,500 feet at its source to 1,409 feet at Bluestone Lake near Hinton, and over the last 10 miles it carves a corridor roughly 1,000 feet deep through the southern Appalachians. Oaks and hickories hold the ridgetops; birch and sycamore line the river; wildflowers, ferns, and mixed hardwoods fill the slopes in between. Because the gorge has no direct road access anywhere along its length, the Bluestone feels remoter than its small acreage might suggest. Several plants found in the Bluestone gorge are curiously absent from the adjacent New, Meadow, and Gauley gorges, a floral distinction still not fully explained. Management is genuinely shared. The federal designation rests inside a broader footprint held by Pipestem Resort State Park at the upstream end, Bluestone State Park at the downstream end, and the Bluestone Wildlife Management Area in between. The state-managed WMA features wild turkey as the headline species and is considered one of the best turkey habitats in the East. Hunting is permitted on WMA lands (not in the state parks); hunters should wear blaze orange during seasons. Visitor access comes at the two ends. The downstream approach is through Bluestone State Park at the confluence with Bluestone Lake. The upstream approach is the seasonal aerial tram at Pipestem Resort State Park, which drops visitors more than 1,000 vertical feet to the gorge floor and can shuttle bicycles, canoes, and kayaks for an additional charge. The 9.5-mile Bluestone Turnpike Trail, a former riverbank road built up from an older Indian trail, runs the length of the park between the two state parks. Paddling is limited and seasonal, best in spring when water levels are up. Smallmouth bass and bluegill are the target gamefish. Park administration is based at Glen Jean, WV.