Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 25
THE SMALL TOWNS THAT DOT THE REGION PROVIDE
WELCOMING RESPITE FROM THE RUGGED OUTDOOR
WONDERS OF AN ENJOYABLE CHUNK OF WILD AND
WONDERFUL.
Stories and photos by Joe Tennis
MITCH PENNINGTON SOARS like a song above
Medley, sailing in his four-seat airplane atop the
Potomac Highlands of West Virginia - a land that's
grassy, green and gorgeous.
This pilot glides like an eagle over the sea of
Mount Storm Lake, as the 1,200-acre reservoir's
waves appear whipped by wind turbines dotting
ridges as far as eyes can see. "On a calm day,"
Pennington says, "we can fly pretty low, and you can
really get an idea of the size of the windmills."
Flying on Pennington's Just Plane Adventures goes
beyond Google Earth. Why, in the sky, I'm like a spy,
peering down on rocks and ranches and roads -
including a fresh four-lane highway, U.S. 48, in
Grant County.
That new road has, lately, put the Potomac
Highlands on the fast-track from the suburbs of
Washington, D.C.
Just ask Roger Lancaster: "With that new road in,
we can be here in two-and-a-half hours," says the
71-year-old avid photographer from Leesburg, Va.,
as he takes aim at Tucker County's Blackwater Falls.
In these mountains, from the quaint crossroads of
Mineral and Hampshire counties to the endless acres
of the Monongahela National Forest, what's called
the Potomac Highlands by many - or Mountain
Highlands to some - offers ample opportunities to
wet lures on trout streams, explore country roads or
witness waterfalls that are, oh, so wild and
wonderful.
"I go up to Dolly Sods and Canaan Valley and
maybe over to Elkins or Thomas. It's great photography," Lancaster says. "And it's very pretty."
FROM THE AIR, POINTY PEAKS mirror what John
Denver sang of: a West Virginia that's almost heaven.
Such imagery, really, is a big reason why Pennington,
60, named his airstrip Heaven's Landing.
"As heaven is our final destination," the pilot says,
"we wanted to make a little piece of that here."
Still in flight, the pilot scans rocky ridges rising
along the Potomac, which pours through Hardy and
JULY/AUGUST 2014 | 25
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014
Table of Contents
Print to Mobile
From the Editor
From the Farm
Festivals & Events
The Hike
Creature Feature
Mountain Report
Country Roads
Potomac Highlands Adventures
Get Up Early! Great Farm Vacations
Saving Mabry Mill
Photo Essay: Mountain Skies
Signature Mountain Dishes
Waterfront Living
Mountain Garden
Cabin in the Woods: Canaan Resort
Guest Column
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Cover2
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Table of Contents
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 4
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Print to Mobile
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - From the Editor
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 7
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - From the Farm
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 9
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Festivals & Events
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 11
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 12
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 13
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 14
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 15
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - The Hike
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 17
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Creature Feature
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Mountain Report
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Country Roads
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 21
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 22
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 23
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Potomac Highlands Adventures
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 25
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 26
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 27
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 28
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 29
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 30
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 31
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 32
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 33
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Get Up Early! Great Farm Vacations
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 35
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 36
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 37
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Saving Mabry Mill
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 39
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 40
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 41
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Photo Essay: Mountain Skies
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 43
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 44
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 45
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Signature Mountain Dishes
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 47
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 48
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 49
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 50
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 51
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 52
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 53
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Waterfront Living
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 55
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 56
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 57
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 58
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 59
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 60
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 61
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 62
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 63
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 64
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 65
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 66
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 67
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 68
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 69
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 70
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 71
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 72
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Mountain Garden
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 74
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 75
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 76
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 77
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Cabin in the Woods: Canaan Resort
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 79
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 80
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - 81
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Guest Column
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Cover3
Blue Ridge Country - July/August 2014 - Cover4
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