David Sibray
SANDSTONE, W.Va. — Native inhabitants of what would become West Virginia were preparing in late summer for the onslaught of winter — the subject of a September 5 program at the National Park Service’s Sandstone Visitor Center off I-64. The 10 a.m.-4 p.m. interactive program is free and open to the public and will feature reenactors renowned … Read more
WHEELING, W.Va. — After years spent in cafes and kitchens across the West, blogging chef Matthew Welsch has returned to his native Ohio Valley, where he says the economic atmosphere is ripe for diversified business. “There’s new energy in Wheeling that extends throughout the upper valley — through Moundsville, Weirton, Chester, New Martinsville and Parkersburg,” … Read more
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s 2014 ginseng harvest will open Monday, Sept. 1, and runs through Sunday, Nov. 30, according to Leslie Fitzwater Smithson, public information specialist with the W.Va. Division of Forestry. The native herb grows in all 55 counties in West Virginia and is ready to harvest when its berries turn red. State law … Read more
Every year for more than a decade West Virginia Explorer contributor Blair Frier has documented the Dublin Irish Festival in Dublin, Ohio, through exceptional photography. Though dedicated to promoting fairs and festivals in West Virginia, we annually feature the results of his excursion as a speciall feature. Dublin (Ohio) Irish Festival — August 2014 Photographer … Read more
Few of the trails I’ve walked compare to the Sunrise Carriage Trail, once the winding approach to Sunrise, the stately residence of William Alexander MacCorkle, ninth governor of West Virginia. Now a municipal thoroughfare, the trail ascends 180 feet over a .65-mile route from MacCorkle Avenue (US-60). Have an hour to spend immersed in exercise … Read more
FAYETTEVILLE, W.Va. — More than 1,500 spectators are anticipated to attend a three-day concert that opens a new festival ground in the New River Gorge June 5-7. The first Mountain Music Festival at ACE Adventure Resort is expected to increase traffic throughout the resort and should help ignite interest in the region as a music … Read more
Few parks in West Virginia enjoy the status North Bend has attained for hiking and biking, so it’s little surprise that 500 guests are expected to visit this weekend for National Trails Day, celebrated June 7. The park has added two additional programs to its schedule this yeat to expand its promotion of outdoor recreation, according … Read more
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – West Virginia state forester Randy Dye today praised a new federal designation for the Monongahela National Forest designed to allow the division to work more effectively with the federal government to combat insect and disease threats. Governor Earl Ray Tomblin requested the designation, citing several threats to the 919,000-acre forest, including beech … Read more
DUNBAR, W.Va. — More than 40 Frisbee enthusiasts helped inaugurate the new disc-golf course at Wine Cellar Park today on the first leg of a three-course tournament in Kanawha County. The nine-hole course, which begins and ends near the historic Dutch Hollow Wine Cellars, opened today with a ceremony over which Dunbar mayor Terry Greenlee … Read more
The Southeast Tourism Society has named the annual “Mansion by Candlelight” tour hosted at Blennerhassett Island Historical State Park near Parkersburg, West Virginia, as a Top 20 event to attend in October. The two-evening fete held in the island’s replica mansion welcomes more than 1,400 guests to witness an evening as it might have been in … Read more
