 The gap on I-64 between Sam Black Church and Charleston forced east–west traffic to use a scenic but treacherous section of US 60 known as the Midland Trail through Rainelle and Ansted before the road descended Gauley Mountain at Hawk's Nest to the Kanawha River Valley to reach Charleston.There were terrible accidents along this stretch and lengthy delays as trucks negotiated the major grades.Studies were undertaken to upgrade the highway in the early-1970s.