Top Climbing Town in Climbing magazine. Photo from Secret Sandwich Society.
Now here is the really amazing thing: Fayetteville, our little town, has been on top 10 lists of all kinds— climbing towns, rafting towns, coolest towns, best small towns.
Reading this list makes me want to hit the road and see them all.
When you add these all up, it makes a very powerful statement about where we call home. If these weirdly diverse groups and categories can all agree (and they do) that’s a lot of fingers pointing in our direction from a bunch of very different angles.
And we are willing to share this wonderful place with you. Okay, when are you going to see firsthand why we are on so many top 10 lists?
Reminds me of a song. “The only way to the top is looking out for number 1, and thats me. I am looking out for number one.” Name that tune and who recorded it for a bunch of ossum free stuff with your next stay.
How to Bridge Day: Get here early to beat the crowds so you can eat!
Friday is Taste of Bridge Day. It is legendary, and for a good cause. You buy tickets, and these tickets get you sample-sized bites of all the local restaurants’ best stuff! There is a full bar, and our local brewery Bridge Brew Works shows off their stuff.
The fall weather will be fine this weekend!
The venue is the campus of our friends at Adventures On The Gorge. They have a wonderful setting for this kind of event. You do want to get in early and try as many different types of dishes and you can, because the crowd favorites and the winners will run out before its over.
You will want to get back to your cabin at Opossum Creek Retreat at a reasonable hour to be well-rested for Bridge Day itself.
Yes, I am sure this is why you are planning to come all the way to Fayette County, West Virginia: to eat your way through the weekend. But hear me out.
Let’s start with the morning rush. Everyone loves pancakes, and funnel cakes are pancakes on steroids, really. I volunteer on Bridge Day, getting up before dawn to set up the Chamber’s tent and both… not because I am civic-minded, nope! I do it just so I can get behind the gates and get to one of these crazy concoctions bright and early. Plus, you get to eat them with your hands, and that makes everything better! Come to think of it, everything today is finger food!
Now it’s time to walk out on the bridge, and maybe cross the bridge and have lunch! Or second breakfast. Now it gets much harder to decide: turkey legs? Yes. Gyros? Yes. Massive hoagie with french fries? YES. Wait, prime rib sandwich or fajitas or BBQ? I need more days! Or help. It is really good to bring help so you can divide and conquer, each ordering something different and sharing tastes.
Yum, funnel cake!
Okay, time for more walking back across the bridge, stopping to take part in the spectacle, enjoying the views and the people. Now, it’s time for a sweet snack. Kettle corn or hand-squeezed lemonade, maybe a carmel apple, or— you guessed it— funnel cake!
Once the festival closes, take the quick trek over to downtown Fayetteville, where the fun is just getting started. And by fun, I of course mean food! Sample the entires in the chili cook-off while you enjoy the live music.
Then take the long walk back to the car after pounding the pavement all day. You will be so glad you have a hot tub and a cozy cabin to recover in.
Day 3 is the best! Sleep in, take a driving tour into the gorge you were peering down on yesterday, maybe a hike out to long point or diamond point. And go find that full-size serving of your favorite taste from the Taste of Bridge Day and enjoy! You have earned it.
The fungus fairy is very busy this time of year here in The New River Gorge National River Area.
The grounds around Opossum Creek Retreat are rich with mushrooms. Big or small, I like them all— from dull, plain old toadstools to the dazzling, even other-worldly. Fungus and Mushrooms have always had the power to pique our imagination.
My kids used to make these into worlds filled with mystical creatures and magic.
False Chanterelle Mushroom at Opossum Creek Retreat in The New River Gorge National River.
I just like the color of this one.
Yep, coral. Just like in the ocean, only a fungus.
These are not the type people eat (It was a light year for those), but I am sure something eats them. Turtles love mushrooms. So do turkeys.
If you would like to spend some time strolling in the woods relaxing and letting your imagination run wild, we can help.
The President of the birding world, and First Lady, did not stop on their cross-country move just to stay in a cabin. They wanted the world-class New River to wash away the trials and tribulations of moving an international organization to a new home.
Some of the best rock climbing gear companies have their vans in Fayetteville all year round, not because it’s a huge metropolitan market, but because the world-class mountaineers, they love to live here in one of America’s coolest small towns.
When the gates open on Summersville Dam this weekend, every whitewater fan will be wishing they were here to run the Gauley River through the Gauley River National recreation area.
The logo vehicles will be too many to count.
What will happen after, in the winter? Mountain bike madness. Miles after endless miles of custom-made for you single-track trails by the Boy Scouts of America. Not to mention the countless trails that are open to bike traffic in The New River Gorge National River.
Of course, there has to be support staff for all that talent, and that’s where Opossum Creek Retreat comes in.
Yoga is a boom industry, so they tell me. I mean, I do yoga and have for a long time.
We have hosted yoga retreats for well over a decade, but never before have we had 4 in one year, let alone 2 in 2 weeks with world-renowned yogis like Todd Norian. Todd was here a couple of weeks ago, and is ready to make it an annual event. We are very excited.
On some level, we all ride in this space at all times. As humans, we seek it. Some seek more, much more. Others push as far as they can toward the safe end of the spectrum. We all should know it is there.
Thanks for your service!
This is not a USA thing. It is a human thing. It’s just that in the USA, we have options. Well, most of us do. In much of the world, the spectrum is infinitely smaller, and skewed hard toward the “harm’s way” end. My deepest hope is that our efforts in the truest and purest form can help this spectrum grow for the rest of our fellow human peoples.
Some call it freedom.
Putting yourself in harm’s way for the sake of others is a conscious choice. One that is not made without serious contemplation. Not everyone can sacrifice in this way. You are a special person.
In honor of those who choose to serve our country, we would like to say thank you for being willing, ready and able to be placed in harm’s way so the rest of us don’t have to get any where near that end of the spectrum.
For years, we have offered free cabins to the members of our armed services on Veterans Day just to say thank you. Today seems like a good day to make that offer again.
Thank you to those who serve and have served in harm’s way. As a gift to you in appreciation:
-2 free nights at Opossum Creek Retreat
-A set of OCR mugs or glasses, your choice. Let us know when you make your reservation.
First come, first served. All we ask in return for your free stay is that once you have stayed at Opossum Creek Retreat you post your favorite service-related picture to the OCR Facebook page and when you post it, tell us your rank, branch and where you served. Or take a selfy by our sign and post that.
If you have had the opportunity to take advantage of this offer in the past, please share the offer with your friends and family to allow others to do the same.
We hosted a beginner bird banding class last week, limited to 8 people, and sold out early. These folks spent an intensive week learning how to net, identify, band and release birds safely.
Some birds are well-named. This is one. Many have names that have nothing to do with the bird, but that is its own rant I will save till later. This is a yellow-throated vireo. To hear his song, click here.
When I saw this sticker, I knew it was going to be a good week. This is the organization the oversees and provides the training for banders. Edye Kornegaywas the banding instructor that made it come true. She was amazing.
Keith in the hot seat learning the Tools of the trade. Serious work. Big heavy books not only identify, but collect a lot of information on these tiny little birds.
Opossum Creek Retreat provided lodging, meals and a great family feel for the whole group for the whole week. We love hosting our fellow bird lovers.
Quilting bee? Book club? Yoga? Bible study? Writers’ workshop?
Gone are the berries. ‘Tis the season. It’s all the rage. All the cool states have ‘em:
WEEDS.
The weeds are coming, and we love ‘em. They are inevitable and it’s going to be huge! It is futile to fight it.
Even the names are huge: iron weed, pokeweed, goldenrod, boneseed, Queen Ann’s lace! Chinkapin, sneezeweed, sweet joe-pye weed, black-eyed Susan, sow thistle and king devil, to name a few. Vipers Bugloss, rageweed, fireweed…
But my favorite part about them is that they can be huge! 12 to15 feet tall and beautiful. And strong. Did I say huge already?
Red Admiral sits on a weed.
I think I like this color palate of weed season better than the pinks of spring. Yes, I know there are lots more colors in the spring, and everything is new, but weed season means we now we have purple and gold and yellow and white (so white), and then it will all be gone.
So while you can, get high on some of those weeds! The ones that are much maligned and misunderstood and neglected, or even worse, mowed down before their time.
The briers have borne their fruit, and apples are not ripe yet, but we have the weeds to thank for some awe-inspiring beauty to carry us through ‘till Fall.
Catch the spectacle before it’s gone. Take a long Labor Day weekend here to enjoy the unconventional beauty of the weeds.
Birds and Opossum Creek Retreat have a long history.
A warbler from the nets at the New River Birding and Nature Festival.
For twelve years now, Opossum Creek has hosted the New River Birding and Nature Festival,which has evolved into an event that has a wonderful “back porch” kind of feel— like a family reunion with a family you would hand pick for yourself.
From the very beginning, bird banding has been a part of the festival. This year, we are taking it to another level: Opossum Creek Retreat and the Institute for Bird Populations are teaming up to offer our first ever “Beginner Bird Banding Class” Aug. 18-24 here in The New River Gorge.
Bird banding helps us learn more about the birds we love, understand their behavior and their habitat needs. With the information gleaned from banding, we are able to address environmental issues that have an impact on our feathered friends.
Now, there’s a whole lot more that we learn from the info gathered, but you can read more about that from a more accurate source, like the Institute for Bird Populations.
You too can learn more about our feathered friends! There are still a few spots left. For info on the class, call Keith at 888-488-4836.
Beginner Bird Banding Class details
August 18th- 24that Opossum Creek Retreat $1,800.00 per person; includes all class materials, instructors’ fees, lodging and meals.
At Opossum Creek Retreat for the Birding & Nature Festival
The class will begin on the afternoon of Aug. 18 and end after banding Sunday, Aug. 24.
Each day, we will be in the field at sunrise and work the nets for 5-6 hours. Then, we will have lunch (1 hour), and a 2-3 hour classroom session, followed by a break and then dinner.
There will be some “homework.” Information and details of course materials can be found at the IBP website.
Proper field attire is necessary. (Mud boots and rain gear, too). We are in the woods. Mosquito and ticks are present.
FACILITIES & LODGING
Opossum Creek Retreat is nestled uniquely just minutes from theNew River Gorge National River in South-Central West Virginia.
Interacting with the birds at the festival
Classroom activities will be held in the 1,000 square-foot meeting /great room of the Meadows Cabin. Lodging in the Meadows Cabin is included in the registration fee. Each registrant will have his/her own private room (all linens and towels are provided). There are 3 full bathrooms to share.
There are several other privatecabins available at an additional fee if you would like your owncabin.
There is a guest laundry available for your convenience during your stay.
Also included in the registration fee is a continental breakfast, lunch and a home-cooked dinner each day. Please let us know of any dietary needs or issues upon registration.
REGISTRATION
Class is Limited to 8 people, with a minimum of 6. Full payment is due upon registration. To register, contact Keith at 888-488-4836. Please do not book your flights until the class minimum is met.
The B__________ are coming! The B__________ are coming!
Well, that is very patriotic of you, and yes, it is that time of year, too. But I am talking BLUEBERRIES!
Yes, it is Blueberry Month! I prefer mine small, tart and wild, like the ones from my youth. (Yes, still talking blueberries.)
I can recall stopping on the side of the road wanting to buy one of those funky rake picker things from the family selling berries. It is a specialty tool used when picking or harvesting wild blueberries. (Did you just salivate? I did.)
They are the real prize, those low, tiny bushes high on a ridge in some wild place. How the berries pack so much into such a small package is one of the wonders of Nature! Alas, completely unattainable for most of us. Don’t despair.
“You pick” farms to the rescue! We have couple in our area, and wow are they Ossum! You really ought to plan a morning while you are here in Blueberry Month to pick, and pick and pick. Take a pick-a-nic: spend some time in blueberry field eating, picking and talking about blueberries
I understand why most of these places grow the big fat juicy sweet ones. Hmm… that kind of describes me, too. We even planted hybrids in our garden. They are great. Big tall bushes, no stooping necessary. You can fill a bucket in no time, and they freeze perfectly, or make great preserves and crumbles, even pies. Well, sort of. I mean, it’s a great pie, but if you ever get the chance to pick those teeny tiny wild berries way up north, high on a ridge, and manage to get enough back to the kitchen, then make a pie!
Have you been blueberry picking?
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