West Virginia Archives - Page 5 of 5

The Personal Touch – Meetings at Opossum Creek Retreat

Doug Arbogast is an adjunct faculty member of Bridgemont Community and Technical College and Principal of Travel Green Appalachia. He promotes authentic and sustainable travel experiences in Appalachia on his blog – www.travelgreenappalachia.com.

I was fortunate to be a participant in a working retreat at Opossum Creek Retreat last week. The retreat brought in faculty and staff from Bridgemont Community and Technical College in Montgomery, WV to refine and refocus their Sustainability Awareness Training curriculum.

In order to practice what we preach, we looked for a locally owned and operated venue suitable for a group of 10-20 to do some brainstorming for a few days. Geoff and Keith graciously offered to host our retreat and provide food for the group at a price comparable to the chain hotel options we considered.

Here’s why you too should consider Opossum Creek Retreat for your next corporate retreat:

First Class Service
Warm cookies awaiting us on arrival, attention to every detail, logo mugs and stickers, and a guided tour of the property show that they truly care about and appreciate each guest.
Craftsmanship
Hand crafted cabins from locally milled timber where each piece of wood, from the trim to the tables, has a story.
Ownership
I doubt you’d find the owners of any chain hotel awake before you are making your breakfast.
Buy Local
Leakage occurs when the dollars you spend leak out of the community. OCR is locally owned and operated. At OCR the dollars you spend trickle down to other community businesses they support like West Virginia Fruit and Berry Sparkling Cider, Happy Trails Café, Red Roof Farm Jam, and Blue Smoke Salsa.
Farm to Table
Get to know the chickens that laid the eggs you ate for breakfast.
One of Your Personal Chefs

According to the 350 Project:

*When you spend $100 in a national chain only $43 stays in the community. The rest leaks out to the national headquarters or suppliers which are located elsewhere.

*When you spend the same $100 in a locally owned, independent business $68 returns to the community through taxes, payroll, and other expenditures.

We ventured into downtown Fayetteville, WV and put more of our money into the community by enjoying some handcrafted pizza and local brews at Pies and Pints.

If you consider the impact of your business (or leisure) trips and not only the ability to accomplish the goals of your retreat but also the quality of the experience then I encourage you to seek out venues like OCR for your next retreat.

Check out the OCR Facebook page for testimonials from some of the retreat participants.

Oh, and did I mention what its like to sit in a hot tub in the cool winter air, under a clear night sky, filled with stars and void of light pollution after a full day of meetings?

ATTACK of the Wooly Adelgid! But never fear, the Cavalry is coming!

At Opossum Creek Retreat we are blessed with a location that allows us to provide maximum privacy and seclusion with a minimum of impact.

Part of the reason we can offer this is the Eastern Hemlock. This ever green tree, with its thick layers of low hanging branches, provides a visual break between the cabins.

We have been battling the wooly adelgid for many years, and not without some success. The wooly adelgid is a destructive pest that sucks the sap from Eastern Hemlock trees, causing them to die 4-10 years after infestation. We have won a few of the battles against this bug, but are losing the war because as civilians we do not have access to the good stuff.

(Cue dramatic music)

Today the Cavalry arrived in the form of THE WOOLY TEAM. We are participating in a pilot program being implemented through a joint effort between the US Forest Service, the West Virginia Department of Agriculture, and in cooperation with the National Park Service and the West Virginia Division of Forestry.

By teaming up, these groups have been able to provide the expertise that is required to survey and assess the extent of the wooly invasion, the health of the trees, and how best to treat them. They also have access to the good stuff that the general public can’t get their hands on.

This is a cost sharing program. For us to hire the Wooly Team to come in and do the assessment would be cost prohibitive, let alone purchasing the chemicals used to treat the wooly adelgid. The early estimates look like it will cost several thousand dollars for our share; we are happy to pay it. We are sure this level of expertise exists in the private sector; from what we have seen we would not be able to afford to begin a project of this scale without our partners.

This is a quick video of what they do.

The Wooly Team will be back in the spring to treat the area. We will keep you informed on our progress.

Why 250,000 Boy Scouts are Coming to The New River Gorge And You Should Too (Just Not at the Same Time!)

The beauty of this area is all it takes to understand why the Boy Scouts of America chose to locate their newest camp here in the New River Gorge. Access to so many awesome outdoor activities is what makes it even more special.

The Summit Bechtel Reserve is the 4th High Adventure Base Camp for the Boy Scouts in the United States. The enormity ($400,000,000) of the project is incredible. The 10,000 acre camp is going to thrust the scouts into the future in a magnificent way.

And the reasons that the Scouts chose the New River Gorge as their camp location are the very same reasons this area is great for anyone who enjoys outdoor activities.

The New River Gorge National Park offers truly world class activities in a big way:

Whitewater
Rock climbing
Mountain Biking
Small Mouth Bass Fishing

Darn close to world class (you know I am going to get in trouble for this distinction):

Hiking
Camping
Hunting
Bridge Walk
ATV Trails
Zip Lines
Driving tours
Coal History
Waterfalls

Why not at the same time?

The Boy Scouts report that 50,000 scouts will visit every year in all seasons in small groups. We hope these scouts families will stick around after they drop the kids at High Adventure Camp.

But the big scout event here is the 2013 National Jamboree, which will draw 250,000 people to our area July 15-24 2013. Trust us, it will be crazy. We are excited and a little afraid of the unknown. This area does not play host to that many people all summer let alone in a two week period.

So what we’re trying to say is if you are not coming specifically for the Jamboree then you will want to pick another time to visit.

The Boy Scouts trust us enough to spend four hundred million dollars here.

Come see what the scouts already know.

West Virginia. It’s Nearby with Plenty of “Firsts”

Ever watch Jeopardy and something comes up that you can answer? If you’re like me, you jump out of the chair and shout the question. Hey, it’s rare. And my wife says I need to get some excercise.

Just in case West Virginia ever comes up on the show, we want you to be prepared. We also know some of you have yet to visit us. So we’d like for you to know a little bit more about our great state, as we are much more than home of The Dark Lord of Coal Country. We hope you will come visit (and bring your friends to dazzle with your Jeopardy skills).

Great things happen (and have happened) here.

West Virginia Can Claim:

Home to the first golf course in the US
The first mail route
The first major land battle of the Civil War
The Birthplace of Mother’s Day (Hi Mom!)
Highest home owner ship rates
Lowest crime rates
Lowest cost of living in the nation. (Cue Mr. Rogers theme song…. Won’t you Be My Neighbor?)

Take a minute and find a West Virginia-first that you think is great. Share it with us on our Fan Page and you just might win a free stay for your first trip.

Quick Geography Lesson
We are taking a wild guess that West Virginia is pretty near where you are sitting right now.

We share borders with Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Kentucky and Virginia. We are in the middle of lots of folks. You have us surrounded. My point is, if you live over there (I am pointing towards Ohio) and you know some one that lives over there (now pointing towards Virginia) it’s really easy to meet them here (yes, I am pointing at the ground).

It’s simple. You start driving. They start driving. You both end up at one of our cabin rentals in the woods.

Don’t worry we’ll give you directions, and maybe lunch. Maybe t-shirts too.

Any reservaton that has people from two states gets free lunch for everybody
Any reservation with people from 3 or more states gets free tshirts for everybody

We always like to know how folks decided to choose our cabin rentals. We often hear this answer: “We were looking at the map and WV was half way between us… ”

So look at the map and call a friend and plan your first trip to West Virginia.

A Hole in Our Map?

Take a quick peek at the map. What do you see? Or, more importantly, what don’t you see?

While I love riddles and trick questions, this isn’t one. There is an explanation.

The image displays levels of light pollution on the East Coast. The brighter the color, you guessed it, the more light. You will notice there is a “hole”.

Take a look at cell phone coverage maps. There it is again.

Road maps? Yup, you guessed it, same thing.

We Are In a Hole…Sort of
Opossum Creek Retreat is on the south-western edge of the “hole” you see in the maps. We spend a lot of family time inside the void, for good reason. While the maps and images may lead you to believe there is nothing there, in fact, it is full of things to do and discover.

The Monongahela National Forest
West Virginia has plenty of public lands, more than 1.5 million acres, with The Monongahela National Forest taking-up close to a million acres alone. Just about anything you can think of to do outside, can be done within the Mon boundaries.

825 miles of trails
576 miles of trout stream
8 Wilderness areas encompassing almost 100,000 acres
75 different tree species exist in the forest
Elevation ranges from 1000′ – 4863′ above sea level

Nearby Favorite
Located about 45 minutes from our cabin rentals is ‘The Cranberry’. Near the National Forest’s southern boundary, a visit to The Cranberry is like venturing to another latitude. Literally.

Red Admiral Butterfly enjoying the late summer wild flowers in The Cranberry Backcountry

This area is the southernmost hold-out from the Great Ice Age of the Pleistocene. The result? It’s like going to the Canadian tundra, without a border crossing, or Loonies, or anyone ending sentences with “A”.

The plants and animals you might encounter along the Botanical Area boardwalk are from the great white north. Red Crossbills (a bird I have yet to see), Canada Warblers, Skunk Cabbage wild flowers and trees, are all normally only found much further north.

Bears & Scenic Drives
Black Bears are beautiful, graceful creatures. They are plentiful in and around The Cranberry, in fact we see one on almost every trip over. However, don’t let that stop you from making the trek, make it a reason to go!

Be sure to stop in the visitor center (a great one) for a map, some books, great exhibits and modern facilities. Then take a trip across the Highland Scenic Highway for a “Sunday Drive” to remember.

There is so much to do while you are in the “hole”, we couldn’t possibly share it all in one post. After your next trip, be sure to share the photos.

What is your favorite thing about The Mon?

How To Catch A New River Gorge Firefly

I grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia. Bucks County to be specific. Far, far away (or so I thought) from a vacation cabin in the New River Gorge region of West Virginia.

I was definitely not the city streets, but not nearly as rural as here in New River Country, either. When I was just a young tot (hard to imagine, I know), one of favorites was when dad would build a fire in the fire pit in the back yard. That usually happened on a warm summers evening and it meant friends and family would be joining us.

Roasting marshmallows, making s’mores and catching fireflies were the top activities of the youngsters. Roasting the mallows and creating the perfect s’more was always supervised by an adult or at least one of the teens in the group. Then, when the sun was long gone and the fireflies began emerging from the grass making their ascent to the tree tops, we were free to go get’ em.

The hunt was on. We gathered jars with carefully crafted foil lids with holes so the tiny that captives would have plenty of air, but no hope of escape. I wasn’t the most compassionate kid.

The idea was to get enough fireflies into the jar to simulate a lantern. Once we had collected a jar full of the all natural illuminating creature,s it was off to explore the caverns and search for Injun Joe, or something just like him. Our childhood treasures were usually found under the huge Lilac bush that resided in the back yard. It was mom’s voice calling for us that snapped us out of our fantasy adventures, I can still hear her to this day. That’s when the foil lids were torn off the jars and the fireflies were set free.

See? I wasn’t all bad.

I thought we had a lot of fireflies back then, but the number of fireflies here in the New River Gorge area is amazing. Sometimes there are so many that the trees look as if they have lights strung over them. If you’re here, you should let your kids in on this great tradition. Heck, you may want to try it yourself. Get yourself a Mason jar and some foil and get out there with your kids and show them how.

And if you’ve never tried catching fireflies yourself, do yourself a favor and get going. Summer’s almost gone. And so is the season for catching firefleis.

5 Simple Steps To Get Into Bird Watching In The New River Gorge

When I signed on here at Opossum Creek Retreat I had no idea what I was in store for. Sure, I knew what the job was. I learned Geoff’s techniques. But there was so much more. You know, stuff that would only be revealed as time went on. Jedi stuff.

One of the things that were new to me was the New River Nature and Birding Festival. I had heard of the festival from when I worked with Dave Pollard at the County Courthouse, but I never really got more than an overview.

Since Opossum Creek hosted this festival I found myself smack dab in the middle of it. So the romance began. Aw yeah.

I was amazed at how the birding guides were able to identify birds by their calls. This seemed an almost supernatural ability to me. Lynn Pollard was one of the first to introduce me to the art of birding by ear. She’s able to ID over ninety species by ear- incomprehensible to me!

I was introduced to many top birders from all over the states who showed me birds that I would have never imagined in this area. But the New River Gorge area is a main thoroughfare for Neo Tropical migrant birds looking for work (Ha! I joke.) So this might be the place to see all kinds of North American birds. Birds that come here to nest. Birds that inhabit the area for the summer. Birds that just pass through on their way to their nesting grounds farther north.

Here are the five things that helped me get familiar with birding. But a word of caution: I spend stupid amounts of time outside looking for birds I can’t see, or can’t hear, or both. Now that I know these tips, I can never go back to my pre-birding life. You’ve been warned.

1- Get to know a birding enthusiast. Geoff and most of the people you will meet at the NRB&N festival are very excited to turn new people on to the “sport”. I say sport in parenthesis because, while many of the birds you will encounter will definitely give you a run for your money while trying to get a good look at them, a lot of times you’re not moving much at all. Some of the wood warblers are especially secretive; their thick habitat can be a challenge.

2- Get yourself a decent pair of optics. Some of the birds you will be trying to find are small and elusive or they won’t let you get too close. A good pair of binos are essential.

3- A good field guide is also important. Look for something that’s not too big and that’s well illustrated. You’ll want to carry it with you while out hiking or even in your back yard. Peterson’s and Sibley’s are my favorites. A word of caution; don’t get so into the book that you stop looking at the bird. I’ve learned to watch the bird for as long as it will let me or until I feel I have all the visual information I need to make a proper ID. The book will always be there to look at. The bird will not.

4- Get out there! Birding is a great hobby because you can do it anywhere from your office to the wilds of your area. Whether you’re in the city or way out in the country, birds are there.

5- Get a friend into it. Having someone to bird with is even more fun. Share your newfound activity with a friend or family member that you want to spend inordinate amounts of time with.

Birding also raises awareness of our environment and why we should protect it. It is also another excuse to get outside if you need one. If you haven’t already, give it a try. Checkout Birdwatcher’s Digest. Also, take a look at the Beginning Birdwatchers Book. Perfect for kids, this one’s got 19 pages stickers, too!

Okay, Geoff and I play with the stickers. But it’s a good book, I promise!

5 Good Reasons To Take A Retreat To The New River Gorge

Whether you’ve been here before or it’s your first trip, the New River Gorge is “that place”- the vacation that you’ll be talking about for.. well, ’till you keel over and die. Probably. Just sayin’.

Doesn't Geoff look like the perfect person to rent a cabin from?

How do I know? I’m a rental cabin expert. But I haven’t always been one…

My wife Tammi and I met in Florida, where I lived in the late 80’s. I’m originally from Pennsylvania, and she’s from right here in the New River Gorge area. When she brought me home to meet the folks the area began to woo me. For several years we traveled here to visit friends and family, and every visit made me feel like I was coming home. The folks here are friendly and most will go out of their way to assure your visit is a great one. That’s right- it’s so true, it’s in bold. Italicized. And, it happens to be reason #1.

That works, right? The 5 reasons are in bold letters and italics? Cool? Okay…

On one trip I talked several of my buddies into coming up to run the River for a few days and do some fishing. Tammi hooked us up with a river guide friend to take us on our four day river adventure. I didn’t know it then but from that point on I was hooked. Two years later I was a resident West-by-god-Virginian.

One of the things that never fails to take my breath away is the fact that there are so many great views in one place. Whether you’re at the end of Long-point Trail (my favorite hike in the New River Gorge National Park) or at Hawk’s Nest State Park, there is an amazing sight to see. I’ve been here now for eighteen years and still find new views that thrill my soul. While being at the top of the gorge looking down is what most people consider a view, it’s equally impressive looking up from the bottom.

If you keep your eyes open you’ll get a peek at some of the local fauna that lives here. They could be hidden anywhere. A word of caution; Beware of the Mad Beaver! There’s great wildlife for your viewing pleasure all over the place. You may be privileged to see anything from black bear to flying squirrels. The New River Gorge is also a great place to catch a glimpse of the secretive neo tropical flying migrants (wood warblers and such) as they pass through.

Nature at its best – Around here there are tons of opportunity to just get out and explore. This place is a naturalists dream. There are wildflowers, warblers, fungi and more. Fayette County West Virginia is one of the few places on the state that you will find the Painted Trillium. A beautiful wildflower introduced to me by my botanist friend and naturalist Jim McCormac.

Here I have experienced nature at its best. When I first came here, the friendly folks, wildlife and natural aspects of the area far exceeded my expectations. The outdoor opportunities are unmatched by almost anywhere I’ve ever been. Most of the folks I run in to who are here for the first time seem to have one thing to say: “This place is better than I could have ever imagined.”

How true that is.