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. 3 No. 5
May 2004

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

May
AROUND THE COUNTY
Star Lab € Every Thursday at 2:00 p.m., NRAO, Green Bank 456-2150 Limited space: 15 participants/program. Who cares if it's cloudy! Guests will gather inside a portable planetarium for a fascinating look at the sky above.
NRAO, Green Bank . 456-2150. Public Tours Spring: Open Weds.-Sunday 10 AM- 5 PM. Free tours at 11 AM, 1 PM and 3 PM. Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day, Open Daily. Free tours begin at the top of the hour: 9 AM - 6 PM. Group Tours: Motor Coach Groups, School Groups and Youth Groups, Civic Clubs, Amateur Astronomers are welcome! Please contact us for reservations. Call 304-456-2164 or email gbt-tours@nrao.edu.
Solar Viewing € NRAO, Green Bank. 456-2150. Offered every sunny day at 2:45 PM at the science center. Get a SAFE peek at the Sun through an optical telescope... and observe the sun with a radio telescope!! Free, no reservations required!
May 1 € Opening Day for the Cheat Salamander Rail Bus € Cheat Mountain. 1-877-686-7245. Come ride the rollicking Salamander!
May 1 € Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad € Durbin. 1-877-686-7245. The 2004 season begins. Come enjoy the train rides, quaint villages, fun shopping and incomparable scenery.
May 7 € Science Film Fest € NRAO, Green Bank. 456-2150. The show starts at 6:30, and will be science or sci-fi based. FREE to the public. Call for movie title.
May 7 - 8 € Moonlight Fire on the Greenbrier Rail Excursion € Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad. 1-877-686-7245. Offered on full moon nights during the season, this late evening excursion aboard the steam-powered Climax train begins with a buffet dinner at the Durbin Depot followed by a trip along the beautiful, moonlit Greenbrier River. See the stars in this remote wilderness, far from ambient light, and follow the reflection of the moon shining on the river. Train departs the depot at 8 p.m. For information and reservations, call toll-free, or visit www.mountain rail.com.
May 8 € Birding & Wildflower Train € Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. 1-800-CALL-WVA or 456-4300. Ride the train up the mountain where naturalist guides will take you on a special birding or wildflower hike. Bring your cameras and your hiking boots and be at the train by 6:30 a.m. Call for reservations.
May 12 € High Tech Wednesday € NRAO, Green Bank. 456-2150. 3:30 PM. $3.00/person Limited space: 15 participants/program. Participants will be guided through areas of NRAO normally off limits to visitors, like labs where sensitive receivers are designed and built.
May 15 € Star Party € NRAO. 456-2150. All star parties begin 30 minutes before dark. FREE! NRAO staff will orient guests to starry sky. Bring optical telescopes and binoculars. Cloudy weather will cancel this program. Orientation at the tour center.
May 21 - 22 € The Rainmaker € Opera House in Marlinton. 800-336-7009 The Pocahontas County Drama Workshop present its spring production of Richard Nash's The Rainmaker. In the Western grasslands in the time of a paralyzing drought, we discover a girl whose father and two brothers are worried as much about her becoming an old maid as they are about their dying cattle. All their schemes to marry her off are dying a slow death in the devastating heat when suddenly a picaresque character with a fancy way of talking and a highfalutin' history shows up and claims that he can bring rain for a hundred dollars. The men of the family get sucked into the con manąs schemes, setting about banging on bass drums and other foolishness to help rattle the sky. Meanwhile The Rainmaker turns his best magic on the girl to undo her notions that she is too plain to attract a beau of her own. Show time is 8 p. m. both evenings and the $7.00 tickets are available at the door.
May 21 - 23 € Rail Fan Weekend € Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. 1-800-CALL-WVA or 456-4300. Railroad buffs enjoy a weekend of train excursions. Reservations required.
May 28 € Murder Mystery Train € Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. 1-800-CALL-WVA or 456-4300. Come enjoy this who-done-it train ride to Whittaker; includes dinner and entertainment. Train departs at 5 p.m. Make your reservations early; you won't want to miss this one!
May 28 € Season Opens € Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. 800-CALL-WVA or 456-4300. The season opens for the Cass Scenic Railroad train excursions. Come enjoy the history of the old logging town, visit the country store and take a walking tour. Call for more information.
May 29 € Fiddles and Vittles Special Train € Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. 800-CALL-WVA or 456-4300. New features this year---take a train ride to Whittaker Station and enjoy dinner and live bluegrass music along the way.
May 29 - 30 € Rail & Trail Festival € Durbin . 877-686-7245. 3rd Annual Rail and Trail Festival weekend celebrates the anniversary of the arrival of the first steam engine to Durbin. Entertainment will be provided. Crafts and food will be sold.

On The Mountain
For more info about any events at Snowshoe, call 877-441-4FUN.

None Submitted

Center: The railroad that takes hikers from the High Falls of the Cheat to Greenbrier Junction, the northern terminus of the West Fork Trail. Left: Maribeth Saleem crosses a footbridge on the High Falls trail, not far from its junction with the West Fork Trail. Right: The 0.2 mile tunnel through Shavers Mountain found along the West Fork Trail near Glady.
Photos by Drew Tanner

Rails to trail:
West Fork offers glimpses of the wild and the wonderful
Drew Tanner
Staff Writer
      From Greenbrier Junction on the Shavers Fork to the town of Durbin run 25.5 miles of abandoned railroad right-of-way known as the West Fork Trail. The US Forest Service purchased the right-of-way from CSX in 1985. The rails and ties were removed by CSX, trestles restored and a gravel base laid, suitable for hiking, cycling and cross-country skiing.
      The West Fork Trail runs roughly parallel to the Allegheny Trail, which traverses Shavers Mountain and Gaudineer Knob on its route from Glady to Durbin. Between the two trails are connector trails that allow for a variety of day-hike and backpacking loops.
      I first heard of the trails in a Backpacker Magazine article while I was still living in Ohio. The article suggested a loop on the southern half of the trail that included Gaudineer Knob and the Gaudineer scenic area. Since then, my fiancee, Maribeth, and I have visited Gaudineer Knob to admire the towering stand of virgin red spruce, maple, cherry and birch in a 140-acre tract that survived by sheer luck due to a land-surveying mistake. Having already visited that area, we ventured to see what the northern half of the West Fork Trail/Allegheny Trail network had to offer.
      After consulting the Monongahela National Forest Hiking Guide by Allen de Hart and Bruce Sundquist and the topographic maps that cover the northern portion of the area (Beverly East and Glady), we chose a route that would start with the High Falls Trail, continue on the railroad right-of-way to Greenbrier Junction and pick up the West Fork Trail the rest of the way back to its junction with the High Falls Trail for a total loop of 12 miles.
      Access to the High Falls trailhead is via Forest Road 44, which runs between Glady and Durbin. From Forest Road 44, the first portion of the High Falls Trail took us through open fields and areas of scattered hawthorne on the remnant of a mostly flat, overgrown road.
      It wasn't long before we came to the junction with the West Fork Trail, our return route, marked by a sign that indicated four miles to Glady, 18 to Durbin. At this point, the Hiking Guide tells the reader to "look up to the saddle on Shavers Mountain. This is where you are going." Soon enough, the trail started its ascent up Shavers Mountain through hardwood forest. Atop Shavers Mountain, at the saddle where the Allegheny Trail intersects the High Falls Trail, the feel of the forest changed dramatically. Several large fir and hemlock shaded the area, which was still damp from the last patches of melting snow at an elevation of 3600 feet. A carpet of ferns and moss was already emerging.
      From the saddle, the trail descended through a forest of birch and cherry to the railroad that follows the Shavers Fork to the High Falls of Cheat. This is the same railroad that continues to Greenbrier Junction to pick up the north end of the West Fork Trail.
      Following the railroad for half a mile, we came to the High Falls. The area had picnic tables, a shelter, toilets, campsite areas and short trails offering two views of the 15-foot falls. Anxious to rest our feet for a moment, Maribeth and I made sure to pause and take in the falls, which resemble a miniature Niagara.

The High Falls of the Cheat -- a hiker's reward for traversing up and over Shavers Mountain. A beautiful destination in itself, or as a side trip from the West Fork or Allegheny Trails.
Photo by Drew Tanner

      Satisfied with our brief rest, we continued on along the railroad grade, keeping our eyes open for Greenbrier Junction. Just one and a half miles later, we came to the junction, just before the grade crosses over the Shavers Fork to Elk River Junction.
      While there is no mention of it in the Hiking Guide, we later learned that the section of rail between the High Falls and Greenbrier Junction is still in use by the Durbin and Greenbrier Valley Railroad's Tygart Flyer and Cheat Mountain Salamander excursion trains.
      The West Fork Trail is easy and level--a forgiving trail for the first hike of the season. Between Greenbrier Junction and the tunnel near Glady, the trail follows the Shavers Fork, which can't be seen from the trail but can be heard roaring through the valley.
      Along the way between Greenbrier Junction and Cheat Junction are several campsites, many with stone fire rings. It's best to use these sites and not venture too far from the trail, since much of the property on either side of the former railroad right-of-way is posted as privately owned.
      Just past Cheat Junction we found a clear, level spot with a fire ring that served us well for the night. In the morning we were greeted by bird songs, heavy dew and beautiful light as the sun rose over Shavers Mountain.
      Setting off on day two of our trek, it wasn't long before Maribeth and I could see through the trees to the small town of Bemis tucked in the valley along the Shavers Fork. Soon after, we reached the tunnel that passes through Shavers Mountain. The USFS advises against passing through the tunnel for safety reasons, and the section is easily bypassed along County Roads 22 and 27, which quickly took us to the other side of the 0.2 mile tunnel and back to the trail near Glady.
      On the four miles between Glady and the junction with the High Falls Trail, we were treated to gorgeous views of pasture land, forest, and rolling green hills and the Middle Mountain area.
      From the High Falls Trail junction, it was an easy half-mile back to the trailhead on the same overgrown road that we enjoyed the day before when we started.
      Certainly, as spring gets underway, this will be a beautiful area for wildflowers. It will be equally beautiful in the fall as the leaves turn. As for wildlife, we spotted deer and ruffed grouse, a variety of birds and signs of bears along the way.
      The route that we chose was just one of several great opportunities for loop hikes in the area. The options range from day or over-night hikes to multi-day possibilities that would take in most of the West Fork and Allegheny Trails.
      Additionally, the southern half of the West Fork Trail has much to offer, with over 12 more miles that pass by glades, wildflower meadows, beaver dams and views of the Greenbrier River.
      Maps of the area and more information are available from the Greenbrier Ranger Station in Bartow.

Visitors to the Nature Center will find a variety of interactive, educational exhibits in addition to regular programs on snakes and raptors.
Photo by Drew Tanner

"Unusual, educational, informative and entertaining"
Cranberry Mountain Nature Center
Drew Tanner
Staff Writer
      Just off the Highland Scenic Highway on top of Cranberry Mountain, visitors will find what Jo Santiago describes as "a magical place."
      And she should know.
      Located near the Cranberry Glades, Wilderness and Backcountry, the Falls of Hills Creek and along the Highland Scenic Highway, the Cranberry Mountain Nature Center draws 50,000 to 70,000 visitors each year, according to Santiago, the Center's director.
      From Memorial Day to Labor day, the Nature Center offers a variety of programs. In Santiago's words, one of the goals of the Nature Center is to offer programs that are "unusual, educational, informative and entertaining." Santiago herself conducts a raptor program, by reservation, featuring a redtail hawk that is in her care. Roy Moose, a former Richwood High School science teacher, conducts a program featuring both poisonous and non-poisonous snakes of West Virginia.
      Moose's program runs on Saturdays and Sundays at 1:00 p.m. Following the snake program, visitors can enjoy a tour of the Cranberry Glades Botanical Area, also each Saturday and Sunday, at 2 p.m.
      When asked what time of year is best to visit the Cranberry Glades, Santiago tells visitors, "it's like a theater where the curtain never goes down." She describes a constant, unfolding drama and changes of cast as the seasons change and varieties of plants come and go.

The Cranberry Mountain Nature Center, as seen near the Highland Scenic Highway, hosts a variety of programs and a friendly, informative staff.
Photo by Drew Tanner

      Other popular events at the Cranberry Mountain Nature Center include Kids' Night, featuring Santiago's raptor program and Moose's snake program and a visit by Smokey the Bear. In addition, the Nature Center hosts a biennial Haunted Night featuring "tales of the ghostly and the ghastly" and local lore.
      Santiago also hopes to continue offering story-telling at the Nature Center, similar to last season's living history programs on "Pioneer Culture and Heritage" and "Native American and Early Explorer Trails."
      The Nature Center also features an exhibit hall, with several new exhibits to come throughout this season. The Center's most popular interactive exhibit, on animal trails, features a sandbox with life-size animal footprint 'stamps' that visitors can use to identify the paw-prints they saw on the trail earlier in the day. It's also just fun to play in the sand and create your own animal trail.
      New exhibits will include "Get the Scoop on the Poop," which will educate visitors on how to identify animal scat they might find on forest trails. Santiago is also looking forward to the installation of a new exhibit on soil, featuring a cross-section of earth taken near the Cranberry Glades area, and an exhibit on bears and bear safety, featuring life-size cut outs of a polar bear, Kodiak bear, grizzly and black bears. Visitors to the Nature Center will also find a variety of mounted animals that can be found in the area including black bears, bobcat, beaver, deer, otter, mink, ruffed grouse and fox, to name a few.
      As the Monongahela National Forest's headquarters for Conservation Education and Outreach, much of the Cranberry Mountain Nature Center's work is done on the road. Santiago estimates that she has done 250 to 300 programs each year, for a total audience of 65,000 to 70,000 in the past eight years. Last year alone, the outreach programs of the Nature Center served approximately 16,300 people, all in small group settings, covering seven states and Washington D.C.
      The outreach programs focus on reaching under-served children, according to Santiago, and visit both urban and rural schools, centers for delinquent youth and hospitalized youth as well as senior centers and prisons.
      On the road, Santiago and Moose use their programs to instill an appreciation for wildlife and the interconnectedness of ecosystems and to open children up to their own potential. By being a positive role model and building a personal connection between the animals in the programs and the children in the audience, Santiago sees her work as "an investment of the future... We're encouraging kids to take a proactive stance on the environment."
      The Cranberry Mountain Nature Center is open to visitors from April 1 through October 31, 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. and Thursday through Sunday from 9:00a.m. until 5:00 p.m. during the month of November. To request a program or arrange a tour, call (304)653-4826.

Rows and rows of picket fences mark backyard boundaries at the cottages at Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. There are 16 houses available for vacationers to rent year round for as little as a two or three day minimum stay.
Photo by Gail Hyer

Cass cottages afford a glimpse of history as well as lodging
Gail Hyer
Contributing Writer
      Are you looking for a truly unique lodging experience during your stay in Pocahontas County? Sleeping out on the cold ground in a tent is an option, but not a good one once you've reached the age of 40. If you and your family are looking for a great overnight experience, try the cottages at Cass.
      Cass Scenic Railroad State Park personnel refer to the housing at Cass as "cottages" but it is undoubtedly a misnomer. The two-story structures are actually good sized houses, about 1200 square feet, which can easily sleep a group of eight to 10 people the perfect size for your cycling or ski group.
      The-turn-of-the-century houses are situated in the heart of family fun, wild and wonderful Pocahontas County. Guests can walk to the train depot to board an authentic Shay steam locomotive-driven train, or to the Greenbrier River where fishing, swimming or just a lazy float down the river are all options. The northern terminus to the Greenbrier River Trail, which accommodates hiking, cycling or horses, is less than a mile away. Measuring 78 miles in length, the crushed limestone trail offers a unique challenge for the whole family.
      For both winter and summer fun, the renowned Snowshoe Mountain Resort is only 10 miles away. Still looking for something to do? An easy four mile ride gets you to the wonder of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Green Bank, home of the world's largest movable object, the Green Bank Telescope.

Cottages feature door-front parking along the boardwalks.
Photo by Gail Hyer

      Once serving as the company houses for the railroad and logging operations in Cass, these inviting cottages are tucked under huge, century-old shade trees where the avenues are decorated with rows and rows of snow-white picket fences. Now the folks who come to ski at Snowshoe Mountain or ride the trains in the warm weather bring back laughter and flurry to the village and the houses. One can almost hear the faint echoes of earlier families, going about their daily routines, making new lives for themselves in a new world.
      From the moment you enter the front door, you know you are somewhere special. There are gleaming hardwood floors throughout the first floor. It becomes immediately apparent that even though these structures date back to the early 1900s, this is not "roughing it."
      The kitchen is spacious and filled with sunlight through the many windows. It's fully equipped, boasting everything you'll want or need to prepare a hearty breakfast for your family before the day's outing, or dinner at the end of the day.

Double beds in sun-filled rooms are topped by colorful quilts.
Photo by Gail Hyer

      Exiting the kitchen there is a generous dining room containing an oversized dining table with enough chairs to accommodate a large family or group. Sitting there you cannot help but imagine a turn-of-the- century family, the head who worked for the mill or railroad, having Sunday dinner and giving thanks for their good fortune.
      There was not much recreation time in the days of early Cass, as there was so much hard work to be done from one day to another. However, families may have sat around the dining room table and helped the children with multiplication tables or perhaps, a good game of fox and geese.
      The living room is surrounded by several windows, allowing generous light. For the cottages on Front Street, this enables a beautiful view of the Greenbrier River. The room is furnished with a large couch, and several overstuffed chairs. The solid pine furniture is clean and comfortable. On the second floor there are three bedrooms, two of which are very large. Both of the larger bedrooms are furnished with double beds and full matching dressers and each has a roll out bed in the room's closet. The smaller room is equipped with a set of bunk beds, perfect for kids. The soft white curtains, vases of flowers, and brightly covered bed quilts give a homey feeling to each bedroom.

Due to the town's hill nature, boardwalks criss-cross steep terrain, making it easier for residents and boarders to get where they're going.
Photo by Gail Hyer

      Energy efficient wood stoves, available in four of the houses, and electric heaters provide heat, and one cottage is accessible to the disabled.
      There are no telephones in the cottages, but cable television was recently installed.
      There are 16 cottages available now, but there are plans to refurbish some of the remaining old houses as funding becomes available. Enjoy a stroll through Cass on the rebuilt boardwalk that takes you by many of the old houses in their original state and also by the Cass Country Store and Lefty's Barber Shop.
      Open year-round, the cottages are rented at a two day minimum and 3 day minimum on holiday weekends, up to a maximum of two weeks. Guests are guaranteed no later than 4 p.m. check-in and check out is required by 10 a.m. No pets are allowed in cottages.
      Reservations may be made by calling or writing Cass Scenic Railroad directly, or by dialing toll free: 1 800 CALL WVA (800-225-5982). The Cass office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. seven days a week, in the summer season, and 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Mon. - Sat. and 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Sundays the winter season.

Most houses have a swing on the front porch, perfect to enjoy cool breezes in spring and summer.
Photo by Ed Jett

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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
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July 2003 | Aug. 2003 | Sept. 2003 | Oct. 2003 | Nov. 2003 | Dec. 2003
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Outfitters
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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 mike 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
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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
route66@neumedia.net

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

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	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