Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 29

COOL TOWNS

TUCKER TIME

JOE TENNIS

Neither Thomas nor nearby Davis are big and fancy.
You can easily drive through either town in Tucker

County and wonder if you missed something. So
slow down - and adjust yourself to Tucker Time.
Drink in the delights of Davis, especially the

The Purple Fiddle is a popular place for live music in Tucker County.

going to a different country. It feels like a
wilderness."
What's more, that sweet sentiment -
shared by both Denver and Pennington, of
viewing West Virginia as almost heaven -
appears, oh, so appropriate.
Simply consider the name "Breath of
Heaven Bed and Breakfast." It fits perfect:
This place in Petersburg, on the sunrise side
of Dolly Sods, not only offers plush pillows
for slumber, but you awake to crepes, topped
with strawberries. And you're sent back on
the road with freshly-baked cookies by the
gracious owner, Geri Moser.
ON THE SUNSET SIDE of the Monongahela

National Forest, most commonly called
"The Mon," U.S. 219 serves as a snakeshaped straightaway - OK, it's about as
straight as any old road may be in West
Virginia. This route overlooks rolling, rocky

8. Breath of Heaven Bed and Breakfast
offers a sumptuous breakfast.
9. Popcorn-crusted trout is from The Forks.
10. The train station at Elkins is fully restored.
11. Droop Mountain Battlefield State Park
features a lookout tower.
12. The Lower Falls at Hills Creek cascades
65 feet.
13. Watoga State Park has 34 cabins.

fields covered with cattle, and it runs for
miles - through Buckeye and Huttonsville
as well as Hillsboro, the birthplace of
acclaimed writer Pearl S. Buck. This highway also breezes through Bretz, alongside
the Allegheny Highlands Trail.
Taking a drive through Pocahontas
County and slowing down at Slatyfork, I
stop at the Sharps Country Store, a landmark since 1884 - the year it was started by
12-year-old L.D. Sharp, a great-grandfather
of current owner Tom Shipley. Today, you
can pick up antiques like signs and bottles.
You can also check out the covered "Kissing
Bridge" across the street - with a sign that
promises "Bridges Don't Talk."
"The best thing to see in the summer?"
ponders B.J. Gudmundsson, a Pocahontas
County historian. "I tell you what, if I was
cruising around in the summer, I really like
the whole area out around Hills Creek Falls
and the Cranberry Glades. And that's just
something the kids love."
From the hundreds of stairs leading to
the three Falls of Hills Creek in Pocahontas
County to the rippling Island Lick Run of
Watoga State Park, I find shady sanctuaries
that serve as a perfect place for a picnic.
One pitstop: watching the snakes on display inside the Cranberry Mountain Nature
Center near Cranberry Glades.

eclectic Sirianni's, where co-owner Walt Ranalli
lends his name to Wally's Veggie Pizza. Then, in
Thomas, check out the Purple Fiddle, a nightspot
housed in an old general store with a stage for all
kinds of music, a dance floor and countless craft
beers.
"You really have this interesting mix of artists
and outdoorsy people and people who moved here
and people who have lived here," says Thomas's
Cade Archuleta, 29, the owner of a coffee shop
called Tip Top.
Credit the salubrious landscape.
"The arts and music community that is happening here is kind of growing in a pretty noticeable
way," says 34-year-old Robin Quinlivan, co-owner
of The White Room Art Gallery in Thomas. "And,
just the natural beauty of the area lends itself to a
certain peace of mind."
purplefiddle.com | 304-463-4040
Sirianni's | 304-259-5454
tiptopthomas.com | 304-463-4455
thewhiteroomofthomas.com |
304-621-2008
-JT

Another: Droop Mountain Battlefield
State Park gives a sky-high view of the nearby
valley, as seen from a wooden lookout tower,
just off US-219.
In Seebert, after a quick jaunt on the
Greenbrier River Trail State Park, I saunter
into Jack Horner's Corner and chow down
on vegetables piled high on a pizza.
Come dinnertime, as the sun kisses the
waters of the Greenbrier River in the center
of Marlinton, I savor the tasty trout at the
Greenbrier Grille. And, below the deck, I see
some guys fishing.
Angling - in spots like the Greenbrier
River or the North Branch of South Fork of
the Potomac River, near Seneca Rocks -
provides a great escape.

The best thing to see in the
summer? I tell you what, if I
was cruising around in the
summer, I really like the
whole area out around Hills
Creek Falls and the
Cranberry Glades. And that's
just something the kids love.
JULY/AUGUST 2014 | 29

http://www.purplefiddle.com http://www.tiptopthomas.com http://www.thewhiteroomofthomas.com

Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014

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