Multiple Trail Upgrades Expand Options for Hikers and Mountain Bikers
Plus, a new voters’ guide for local political races, and more
Hikers and mountain bikers will soon see some big upgrades to the Tucker County trail network.
The changes will expand and improve access to the Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge, which presents challenges because of the highly protected status that federal wildlife refuges enjoy. Sue Haywood, president of the Blackwater Bicycle Association, said the new trails strike the right balance that will boost public support for conservation.
“We protect what we know and love,” Haywood said. “Properly built, modern trails are the best way for people to access a stunningly beautiful and extremely special place in our backyard.”
Most immediately, work is underway in the wildlife refuge on a trail that will connect Cortland Road with a network of existing trails near Camp 70 Road outside of Davis. That network includes Hellbender Trail, Splash Dam South Trail, and others.
Zach Adams, owner of the trail-building company Appalachian Dirt, said he hopes to complete the three-mile connector trail by the end of June. The new trail will be mostly intermediate in terms of difficulty, said Adams, whose company is widely considered among the best trail-builders in the region.
“We protect what we know and love. Properly built, modern trails are the best way for people to access a stunningly beautiful and extremely special place.” — Sue Haywood
The project is a joint venture involving The Nature Conservancy, Heart of the Highlands Trail System, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. It has been a decade in the making from conception to execution, Adams said. It will be named after Chris Clower, a conservationist who was key in establishing the Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge.
The $145,886 project was funded by a grant from the Richard King Mellon Foundation, said Mike Powell, director of land management and stewardship with The Nature Conservancy in West Virginia.
Building More Connections
In other recent developments, $300,000 from the federal Recreational Trails Program will fund work on a trail through the wildlife refuge that will connect Brown Mountain Road with A-Frame Road.
Like the Chris Clower trail, the Brown Mountain connector project is a collaboration involving The Nature Conservancy, Heart of the Highlands, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The organizations will work together to establish the trail route and oversee its construction, Powell said.
The trail will skirt the western edge of the 1,971-acre Big Cove parcel that The Nature Conservancy purchased from Western Pocahontas Properties last year for $4.14 million and then sold to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the same price.
Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge Manager Bob Frank said the trail work will be a multi-year project that will require environmental assessments and permits. The trail will accommodate hikers, mountain bikers, and hunters. An adjacent forest road will accommodate equestrian users.
“Routes have been tentatively mapped out, and now we’re assessing those routes,” he said.
Part or most of the trail will likely be on old logging roads.
Frank said his goal is for trails to be on the “fringe” of the refuge “to ensure integrity of the unique natural resources located in the refuge and within the upper Blackwater River watershed.” Frank noted that deer hunting is allowed in the refuge “for management purposes.”
Thumbs Up
In yet more news for hikers and bikers, the FirstEnergy Foundation recently awarded the Blackwater Bicycle Association $5,000 for hiking and biking trail improvements in the “thumb” area behind the Shop ‘N Save in Davis. Some of that land is owned by the FirstEnergy electric utility.
Haywood of the Blackwater Bicycle Association praised FirstEnergy as “a good community supporter” and said the money will help improve a mountain biking skills area and make the area more accessible for fishing, among other upgrades.
“We are in the planning stages for improvements to this important recreation area so close to town,” said Haywood. “Ideally, we want the trails to be better in all weather conditions.”
More News
6,000 Trees Planted in Canaan Valley State Park
With the help of volunteers, The Nature Conservancy planted more than 6,000 Canaan Fir and Red Spruce trees recently in a 40-acre section of Canaan Valley State Park.
Shown above are Geneva Brown, left, a member of AmeriCorps working for The Nature Conservancy; Eriks Brolis, right, who also works for The Nature Conservancy; and White Grass owner Chip Chase, center, one of the dozens of volunteers who showed up over several days to help plant trees.
Voter Guide Helps Tucker County Residents Make Their Choices
The May 14 primary elections are coming soon, and Mountain State Spotlight has produced a West Virginia voters’ guide to help you make your choices. Click here for information specifically for Tucker County voters.
In addition to races for president, the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of Representatives, governor, and the West Virginia legislature, there are many local races, including contests for judicial positions and the County Commission.
The guide examines the candidates’ backgrounds and positions, and provides information on how to vote.
Another Milestone for Country Roads News
The previous edition of Country Roads News was the first one published behind a paywall; in other words, a paid subscription was required to access the entire edition. That edition focused on the contentious issue of short-term rentals, or Airbnbs.
I braced myself for reader complaints that online news should be free. Instead, I watched with gratitude as one reader after another pledged financial support. Within a few days, the paid subscriber base, though still small, nearly doubled.
And nobody complained about paying for news.
Country Roads News is still far from financial viability, but the trend line is moving in the right direction. To everyone who plunked down $50 for an annual subscription, and especially those “founding” subscribers who paid $150, thank you. You’ve helped cover a big chunk of my expenses.
More importantly, you’ve boosted my hopes that this enterprise can actually work.
Dan
I am not impressed by the US Fish and Wild Lie Service. First Chris Clower, Bill Zinni of USFWS and Jim Rawson (WVDNR) came in and sold the Tucker County Commission a big lie called the Canaan Valley Station Management Plan which kept all the major trails in Canaan Valley open to the public. Without this Station Management lie the Refuge wouldn't have had a chance of being established. Then, after the purchase of the 15,000 acre "Main Tract", Refuge Manager Kevin DesRoberts declared the Canaan Valley Station Management Plan an "illegal document" and threw it in the trash, a classic "bait and switch". Next, after the power company was allowed to log it and be paid "fair market value", over 100 miles of trail, logging roads and rail grades were closed by Refuge management. Then years later the aptly named CCP ignored the majority of the public comments and the massive trail closures were made official. Now the "fringe" anti-human environmentalists at USFWS are bragging about opening trails that they closed and are actually already there , or they create difficult go arounds to access places they closed off. What about the illegal private trailhead operated by USFWS in a gated community and the illegal transfer of Forest Service Road 80 from the USDA to the Dept. of the Interior without required public comment? Refuge officials get to lie to our County Commission and break their own regulations while handing out tickets to folks riding bicycles or walking dogs off leash. As for Mr. Frank's "fringe" management theory and putting a "new" trail on an existing logging road, he is no different or better than the liars that came before him. Please go back to Hadley, Massachusetts where you are taking your marching orders from. Of course the revolving door Federal employees (who are clueless about the sordid history of the CVNWR) know better about local land management than the locals. Just more government hacks "saving" the wildlife from the public, unless you are there to kill wildlife. What a crock! Typical government creating problems and then trying to act like heroes with lame solutions...