Mountain Times ~ Supplement to the Pocahontas Times ~ SnowShoe, Slatyfork, Green Bank, Cass, WV

Focusing on the resort and tourist community of Slaty Fork, Snowshoe Mountain, Cass and Green Bank

Vol. 4 No. 12
December 2005

Serving SnowShoe Mountain, Slaty Fork, Green Bank and Cass
"News you can resort to"

Second Section of
The Pocahontas Times
Post Office No. 436-640
ISSN No. 07388373

Upcoming Events Around the Mountain Resort

OCTOBER
AROUND THE COUNTY
Dec. 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 € Star Lab € National Radio Astronomy Observatory, Green Bank 304-456-2150. Gather at the planetarium balloon every Thursday for a unique look at the sky. There is a $3.00 charge per person and reservations are suggested.
Dec. 2 € Christmas Parade (7 p.m.) € Marlinton 800-336-7009. Get into the spirit of Christmas, enjoy the parade and watch Santa arrive in town. You can do some shopping and visit the local craft show while enjoying all the lovely Christmas decorations. Most shops open late!
Dec. 2, 3 € Holiday Craft Show € Opera House, Marlinton 304-799-6645. Local artisans show their wares so you can get your holiday shopping done early. Beautiful gifts of pottery, art work, hand sewn items, jewelry, hand-made holiday decorations, and numerous other arts and crafts.
Dec. 2 € Film Fest Friday € NRAO, Green Bank 304-456-2150. Come on out and enjoy a great sci-fi movie and then discuss the film with NRAO staff. Begins at 6:30 p.m.
Dec. 2 € Open House (6-8 p.m.) € Pocahontas County Visitors Center, The Historic Depot, Marlinton 800-336-7009, 304-799-4636. Come by and celebrate the holiday season with us in the beautifully decorated historic depot on Fourth Avenue. Enjoy all the lovely Christmas decorations, watch the Christmas Parade and have a cup of egg nog or hot apple cider.
Dec. 14 € High Tech Wednesday € NRAO, Green Bank 304-456-2150. Join us for a guided tour through parts of NRAO normally off limits to visitors like lab areas where sensitive receivers are designed and built. Space is limited to 15; cost is $3.00 so make reservations early.
Dec. 31 € New Year's Eve Dance with Sweety, 9p.m. € Opera House, Marlinton 304-799-6645. We're ringing in the New Year with Sweety, a dynamic Greenbrier Valley-based group that plays free-spirited blues with rock n' roll undertones. The event is FREE, casual, family friendly and alcohol-free.

On The Mountain

For more info about any events at Snowshoe, call 877-441-4FUN or visit online at www.snowshoemtn.com
Dec. 9 - 11 € Snowshoe Demo Days € Kick off the season with this great weekend of skiing and snowboarding. Take advantage of early snow conditions and three days of free equipment demos from the top ski and snowboard manufacturers. Fun, games and live entertainment.
Dec. 16 € Silver Creek opens € Weather permitting, the Silver Creek area will open for the season. If Old Man Winter cooperates, the Ruckus Ridge Tubing Hill will also be opening on this date. We have some exciting things in store for the Terrain Parks at Silver Creek this year!
Dec. 18 - 20 € College Road Trip Package € Finals are over and it's time to party! Head to Snowshoe Mountain after first semester finals and enjoy a week of great skiing and snowboarding packed full of happy hour parties, live entertainment and much more.
Dec. 21 - 25 € Christmas Holidays at Snowshoe € Treat your family to a white Christmas at Snowshoe Mountain and enjoy a week packed full of great fun for all. From skiing and riding with Santa, Ms. Claus and Frosty to our Christmas Eve Party and Buffet, your family will be treated to memories that will last a lifetime.
Dec. 26 - Jan. 1 € Holiday Week € Ring in the New Year at Snowshoe Mountain with an entire week of great skiing and riding, exciting activities and much more. It's the perfect time to gather the family and friends for a long week at Snowshoe.
Dec. 31 € New Year's Eve Bash € Make your reservations early for our New Year's Eve parties. Great options are available for both young and old. Party Central Reservation Hotline opens on November 1. Call 877-441-4FUN and press Option #3 for reservations.

Great furniture, candles and pictures are just a few of the gifts for your home the store has on hand and can ship to your location, above.

Photos by Pam Pritt.

"Have you seen the Mock Turtle yet?"

Treasures galore at The Rabbit Hole

Pamela Pritt
Managing Editor
      When Alice fell down the rabbit hole and into Wonderland, she didn't know what she was going to find. Shoppers at The Rabbit Hole at the intersection of Rt. 219 and Rt. 66 may feel the same way. Billed as "unusual and wondrous gifts," the store doesn't disappoint in color, texture, aroma or variety.

The Rabbit Hole sells unique foodstuff in its cavalcade of wares.
Photos by Pam Pritt.

      Jo Debra Gandee, long a Snowshoe-area entrepreneur, and her daughter, Rachel Fanning, have opened the shop, not to compete with anything else, but to complement what is already in the area. Gifts at The Rabbit Hole are not souvenirs, Gandee is quick to point out. Instead, The Rabbit Hole offers "gifts for the homeowner and gifts for the home," she said.
      Truly, any item in The Rabbit Hole will give your house a more homey atmosphere flavored with your own style. But don't look for anything mundane or everyday; it's all about the unique here. Champagne bottle openers. Paté knives. Wax urns that are actually candles. Smooth white rocks with colored pencils for writing names on place settings. Goats milk soap. Furniture pieces, large and small. Wrought iron lamps. Cloth napkins and placemats reminiscent of the Coté d' Azur.
      When it comes to shopping, Gandee and Fanning have done theirs well, so you can do yours well and locally.

Gifts for the kitchen, including a champagne bottle opener, cheese boards and napkins and placemats make shopping for someone who has everything a little easier.
Photos by Pam Pritt.

      Gandee also has what her daughter calls a "knack" for flower arranging, thus another facet of The Rabbit Hole. Although she didn't go to any sort of formal training, it's something she always wanted to do because she herself always wanted flowers in her house.
      "Beautiful flowers make you feel better," she said.
      But if you want something ordinary, don't come here, she said, "you have to be ready to do something unusual. I can't do typical, maybe you have to study that."
      Indeed, the work she has on display uses a variety of flowers, fruit and woody elements, along with a splash of ribbon to complete the look of your room.
      The Rabbit Hole will deliver within seven miles of the store, including to the top of Snowshoe Mountain Resort.

Wonderful scented candles adorn this hearth, all ready for Christmas with stockings hung with care by Jo Debra Gandee and her daughter, Rachel Fanning.
Photos by Pam Pritt.

      What's a gift without a greeting?

The Christmas tree is already decorated with unusual ornaments, no need to stress this holiday. Just pick up tree, gifts and everything you need at The Rabbit Hole.
Photos by Pam Pritt.

      Local artists have produced distinctive note cards featuring local scenes. All are blank inside for your own message to be added.
      A book exchange in the back of the store offers another much-needed service. Texts run from biography to science fiction and romance to adventure and are available for exchange or purchase.
      Whether it's a gift for someone else's home or your own, flowers for your sweetheart or your foyer, a book to read or a place to share yours, The Rabbit Hole is full of opportunity.
      Just like Wonderland.

Local favorites Sweety will lay it down New Year's Eve at the Opera House. Reservations are not required.
Photo courtesy Christine Campbell.

Sweety rings in the New Year at the Opera House Barbara Elliott
Contributing Writer
      The Pocahontas County Opera House in Marlinton will ring in 2006 with the music of Sweety, a dynamic Greenbrier Valley based group that plays free-spirited blues with rock n' roll undertones. The band will perform from 9 p.m. until half past midnight at the Opera House, which is located at 818 Third Avenue in Marlinton.
      Sweety is comprised of Christine Campbell on vocals, Bill Chapham on keyboard, Michael "Mac" McIntire on lead guitar, Butch White on drums, Andrew Ianni on bass, and Walt King on the soundboard. The group, which will mark its two-year anniversary in January, won the title of Budweiser True Blue Music Band in this district in 2004 and 2005. They will have your toes tapping, your fingers snapping and your spirits soaring into 2006.
      The New Year's Eve celebration will be casual, family-friendly and alcohol-free. There is no charge for admission and reservations are not required. The building is handicapped-accessible. For further information call 800-336-7009, (304) 799-6645, or visit www.pocahontasopera house.org
      The Opera House is located at 818 Third Avenue in Marlinton. Photo courtesy Christine Campbell.

A grilled cheese sandwich and potato soup at the Hermitage makes for lunch that will warm you up and leave you feeling satisfied.
Photos by Drew Tanner

ADVENTURES IN GOOD EATING

Watch out mom...
Hermitage offers home cooking morning, noon and night
Drew Tanner
Staff Writer
      Under new management this fall, Bartow's Hermitage Restaurant now offers a new and expanded menu that showcases plenty of comfort food as well as hearty dinners.
      Benny Simmons and daughter Kay Murphy have reopened the Hermitage Restaurant with extended hours for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. In November, hunters could stop in and grab breakfast as early as 4 a.m. on Monday and Tuesday before heading off to bag their deer.
      In doing this dining review, I found myself going back to the restaurant for seconds.
      The first time around, my wife, Maribeth, and I stopped in for dinner. With several inches of early snow on the ground, the day's special of turkey, stuffing, green beans, mashed potatoes and gravy sounded like just the ticket to me.
      Sure, it was October, but who can turn down Thanksgiving dinner?
      Kay later told me, fittingly, that she planned on keeping the restaurant open for Thanksgiving.
      Maribeth opted for oven-broiled trout that came with a salad with large, homemade croutons, rolls and a side of green beans.
      Even though my mom has a subscription to the paper, I'd venture to say the turkey, stuffing and fixin's would give her a run for her money. The turkey was moist, the stuffing flavorful and the gravy and mashed potatoes just right.
      Maribeth's trout (seeing the large fillet on her plate, I had to try a bite) was well-seasoned with pepper, rosemary and lemon.
      By the end of the meal we were more than satisfied. I would have to come back another time for one of the slices of pie sitting in the case across from our booth.

Leave room for dessert! The Hermitage's variety of fresh pies will satisfy any sweet tooth.
Photos by Drew Tanner

      My chance at the pie came a couple of weeks later, while I was on another assignment in the area. This time, it was mid-day and cool and rainy outside "soup and sandwich weather."
      The special? Potato soup and grilled cheese. A fellow reporter and I grabbed a booth and waited anxiously. When Kay brought out our plates, I felt like a 10-year-old back in my mom's kitchen.
      My colleague and I exchanged a lot of "yums" and "mmms" over that lunch. The soup was thick and hearty, with plenty of chunky bits of potato. And we still had room for pie.
      She went for the bumbleberry something like strawberry-rhubarb and I chose pecan. Again, most of the conversation centered around the food before us.
      At both dinner time and at lunch, the food was satisfying and easy on the wallet.
      The Hermitage Restaurant is located at the intersection of U.S. Route 250 and WV 92/28, 20 miles northeast of Snowshoe.
      Hours during the winter are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.

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In celebration of Mountain Times 4rd year online,
we thought you'd like to review the earlier postings.
Feb. 2002 | March 2002 | Apr. 2002 | May 2002 | June 2002
July 2002 | Aug. 2002 | Sept. 2002 | Oct. 2002 | Nov. 2002
Jan. 2003 | Feb. 2003 | March 2003 | Apr. 2003 | May 2003 | June 2003
July 2003 | Aug. 2003 | Sept. 2003 | Oct. 2003 | Nov. 2003 | Dec. 2003
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July 2004 | August 2004 | Sept. 2004 | Oct. 2004 | Nov. 2004 | Dec. 2004

Jan. 2005 | Feb. 2005 | Mar. 2005 | Apr. 2005 | May 2005 | June 2005
July 2005 | August 2005 | Sept. 2005 | Oct. 2005 | Nov. 2005
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Building Supplies
Gas 'n Groceries
Gifts is sponsored by the advertisers
you see on our pages. Please take time
to patronize their businesses!

Outfitters
Restaurants
Realestate

Burton ~ Salomon ~ Nitro ~ New and Used Demos Come talk to the resort's most
experienced snowboard outfitters.
Store Sale 20 - 50% OFF
Ski and Snowboard Rentals and Sales
1 mile south of WV 66 ~ 304 572-4173

Open Daily 7:30 am - 11 pm, Later on Friday

Largest Ski and Snowboard Rental Co. in the Southeast 304 572-1234
Located at the corner of Rt. 219 and Rt. 66
LOWER RATES ~ FRIENDLY SERVICE
All Ski & Snowboard Clothing and Equipment
ON SALE!!!
Entire 2nd Floor DISCOUNTED

SNOWBOARD & SKI RENTALS
Great Quality, Great Prices
Daily 7:30 am - 11 pm
Friday 7:30 am - 2 am    304 572-1200

Restaurant
at the Inn at SnowShoe ~ EVERY WEEKEND ~
SHOW COOKERY & BUFFET STATION
Room service available 6:30 am- 1 am
Lounge hours
Mon. - Fri. 4:30 pm - 1 am
Sat. amd Sun. 1 pm to 1 am
Menu Items available daily 'til 1 am
~ 304 572-1000 ~

Open 7 AM until 9 PM
Home of the $4 breakfast!
Located on the corner of
Rt. 219 and Rt. 66

An intimate off-mountain dining experience
Featuring an International Buffet with
live local music each Thursday nite.
5 miles south of WV 66 on US 219
Open Thursday thru Monday evenings
For reservations call:     304 572-3771
Privately owned and operated Since 1982

Douglas S. Keith, Broker
Christine Butler, Assoc. Broker
Beverly Figg, GRI ~ Matt Matthews
Raymond Godwin     304 572-5687
P.O. Box 364 Snowshoe, WV 26209
Visit our Office in Shaver's Centre, Snowshoe Mountain

Presenting the Height of Luxury
Allegheny Springs at Snowshoe Mountain
Yours to own 1-800-489-1943

Mountain Country Properties
304 572-4663      mcpinfo@sunlitsurf.com
David Curtis, Broker
Sales Associates: Jeanette Canada, Bet Curtis P.O. Box 7
Slaty Fork, WV 26291
on Rt. 219, about 1 mile south
of Rt. 66 intersection.

Glades Hardware

Marlinton WV
304 799-4912

Calhoun & Kipp
Unique Items from around the world.
Mon. thru Sat. 10 am 'til 9 pm
Sunday 9 am 'til 8 pm
304 572-5250

shgiven@pocahontastimes.com

Eight Rivers Web Designs Last update December 6, 2005
by Michael Condon omb00875@mail.wvnet.edu

	Douglas S. Keith, Broker Christine Butler, Assoc. Broker Beverly Figg, GRI ~ Matt Matthews Raymond Godwin 304 572-5687 P.O. Box 364 Snowshoe, WV 26209
Visit our Office in Shaver's Centre, Snowshoe Mountain