Batoff Mountain

From West Virginia (WV) Cyclopedia

Batoff Mountain, in north-central Raleigh County (near its border with southern Fayette County), rises to 2,594 feet above sea level on the southwestern rim of the New River Gorge about 5.3 miles NE of Beckley, WV. The term "mountain" in regard to Batoff is less descriptive of general elevation than its dramatic rise of more than 1,100 feet from the New River to the tablelands to its southwest. "Batoff" may be a corruption of the French word "batteau," a kind of flat-bottomed boat. Some sources claim batteaux were floated down the river from Hinton, WV, in the early 1800s, but such craft would often wreck among the rapids near the foot of the mountain.

After the advent of the automobile, the highway (WV-41) that descends the winding course along the south face of Batoff Mountain, along Batoff Creek (tributary of Piney Creek), became confused with the term "bad-off," as it seemed to described the route in the minds of many motorists. As a result, the name is occasionally misspelled "Badoff Mountain."

Topo Map (http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?lat=37.83861&lon=-81.15028) of summit on Batoff Mountain