Memories of a Wild State

         It was the end of October, Halloween weekend, and Ann Marie and I decided to take a run to the hills, the hills of West Virginia! Figuring that the changing leaves wouldn’t be around much longer we made some plans and hit the road once again!

        On-line we purchased the last available set of tickets for a ride on the Cass Railroad and found a room to be our home away from home in Elkins. Seneca Rocks was our first planned stop, there were no tickets needed for this! We planned a slow trip, back roads if possible with plenty of time for photo breaks or side trips.

        The drive started with a stop at a local bakery for some donuts and a couple large cups of coffee. The car was fueled up and so were we. The weather didn’t look very promising; we never saw the sun on our first day. The windshield wipers were used most of the day.

        Nearing Seneca Rocks, it had tapered off to a very light mist. The road here is spectacular, there are places where you can look into the deep valley and see the roadway far beneath you. The valleys are steep and close, making the view that much more exciting. 

        In the parking area beneath the rocks we pulled out our hiking staffs, crossed river and started our climb. The trail is only a little more than a mile long but it goes up 839 feet! (Not that anyone is counting) The path is rather wide and well maintained and it is rarely very steep. We took our time and made it to the observation platform without any problems. We met lots of others making the climb including some with dogs. It was a nice wet Saturday, a perfect day to be outside!

        We have both made this climb before and I had climbed on the rocks also. Summiting the top of Seneca Rocks after a multi-pitched climb in my early fifties was one of those “mid-life” things. I was happy I did it, but once was enough. I’ll stick to the trails from now on. It was a good feeling to be able to still make this climb!

        The views from the top were mostly hidden by the cloud banks. Fog drifted past us, occasionally teasing us with quick looks at the valley below. While the views weren't as good as past visits, we still had that satisfaction of making it to the top! It seemed to take us less time to go down as compared to going up.

        While driving to Elkins we pointed out places we had eaten and explored in the past. We stopped a few times to photograph the mountains and to just absorb the beauty all around us. Most of these photos didn’t do justice to the scenery; the best photographs are the ones we hold in our memories!

        The next day we got in the car and headed south towards Cass. On our way, we were searching for a diner to get some breakfast. Fast food just didn’t cut it but that was all we saw. Chain restaurants and fast food, where are those old fashioned diners that used to be scattered alongside the highways?

        We stopped in the small town of Durbin across the street from an old railroad station. A poor excuse for a restaurant, (which was up for sale) provided our lunch. A couple tourists ate at flat tables by the window as locals sat drinking coffee and pop at the counter in the back of the large, unadorned room. The best part of this experience was that just as we finished with our food, a steam engine pulled into the station. While the passengers disembarked, I took pictures. 

        The train was pulled by a Heisler steam engine built in 1929 in Erie Pennsylvania. It was originally owned by the Hog Hollow Tile Company.

        Continuing on our way south, we drove through the community of Greenbank where the Greenbank Observatory is located. The huge 330 foot dish of the world’s largest fully steerable radio telescope could be seen from the road.

        A short while further, we pulled onto the road that leads into the Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. Less than a half mile into this road, we saw a Bald Eagle. It flew to a tree about 20 yards away from where we stopped the car. We were close enough to see how huge this bird was and how magnificent it looked. I can understand how it came to represent our country! By the time I got the camera out, he had flown away. Once again, the best shots are in our memories!

        In the town of Cass, we visited the stores and took some pictures before boarding our train. It was pulled by a “Pacific Coast” Shay engine. It was built in 1928 in Lima, Ohio for the Mayo Lumber Company of Vancouver Island, British Columbia. It was last used commercially in 1970 for switching cars on the Vancouver docks.

        We sat right in front of the engine. Personally, I think the sound of the steam whistle was one of the best things about the ride! When we first arrived, we could hear the whistle of a train leaving the station. It echoed through the valley bringing back memories of the other steam engines I’ve seen. It is a sound of the past! The sounds of the engine are loud but when the whistle sounds, the screech of the steam covers everything. It is a sound that resonates through your body! When looking at the whistle from where we were sitting, it can actually cause pain, but still, I looked. There are only a couple road crossings on the ride and I was looking forward to each one of them!

        The views of the mountains, whenever we left the cover of the trees were breathtaking! Watching the smoke swirling out of the smoke stack was mesmerizing. It wasn’t a “peaceful” ride, it was rough and loud and I found it tremendously exciting!

        After we returned to the station, we took a short hike to visit the ruins of the burnt down Cass Lumber mill. Originally built in 1902, it caught on fire twenty years later. After being rebuilt it was worked until 1960 when it was abandoned. In the 80’s, arsonists set fire to it again.

        On the way back to Elkins, we thought we had hit pay dirt when we came across a gas station with gasoline for only $1 a gallon! Just our luck, it was closed!

        The next morning we left for home. We passed more spots we recognized and stopped at a few of them to take pictures. Blue skies and sunshine accompanied us on our ride back home along with the memories of trips made in the past.

        During our trip the leaves were mainly brown and yellow but with the sheen of the rain on them, they looked great. In the mountains, the trees looked like carpets covering the valleys and folds of the slopes. The occasional red trees grabbed our attention, standing out from all the others! We saw so many familiar spots that brought back memories, it became almost a quest. What would we see next? In the process, we formed more memories for our future trips.

        The little bit of bad weather we experienced wasn’t going to stop us from having a great trip; it actually enhanced our visit to Wild West Virginia!