My coworker Laundrew invited me out with some folks from the Mid-Atlantic Snowboarding Meet-up group who were going to Timberline over the weekend. It was the earliest opening in awhile for the resorts in WV. Unfortunately those that were open only had about one run going all the way from the top to the bottom. I did hear Snowshoe opened up a few more this last weekend though.
Dave of Monument Snowboards had us staying at the Tallyho Mountain Lodge. The 9 of us pretty much filled the place. It doesn't even have a street address. It is listed as the "southside of SR-32". The key characteristic to this modest little establishment is that it happens to be located about 200 feet from the Mountain State Brewing Company. It is a self-described hippy bar that brews their own fine beer and Dave knows some folks there. It was a cool place with a back party room, fire place, wood burning stove, ping pong table, WVU cornhole board, and a stage with stone masonry to match the fireplace and bar. Laundrew and I opened the place around 6:00 and awhile later some people started straggling in. The place was jumping with a DJ by the time we left around midnight. Lots of cool guys and drunk hippy chicks in the mix. And a lot of talk of this local annual Jack Frost Festival thingy that is apparently a party not to be missed.
Most of us met at the bar but the whole group was all together the next morning for the first time at breakfast. The Tallyho was a bit slow to say the least in serving. We weren't in that big of a hurry being that it was cold and icy conditions on the slopes. The temperature turned out to be OK but they only had one run open that thankfully went all the way from the top. Beginners could jump off at the half way point and catch the bottom part of the trail which was less steep. There was an inch or two of decent snow in a few places but a lot of ice and crusty stuff. Having just one run didn't make for the most exciting snowboard experience but the group had a decent time overall.
We ate dinner at Hellbender Burrito which was quite tasty. Along with the food they had good beer and music. Even the ladies had to check out the X-Files display in the men's room. And we heard more about this Jack Frost ho-down at the White Grass cross-country ski resort. Apparently a 60-something yr old guy owns the place and opens it up each year for this huge party. Lots of food and beer and people come from out of state. All the locals were talking about it and said that nothing else would be going on in town (not that there is anything in town for anything to happen at). So after freshening up we went off in search of this annual celebration.
We found out what the party was all about when we arrived around 10:00. A pickup with a plow was trying to pull some hippy van out of the snow as we searched for a parking space. After a successful extraction the pickup driver burst from the cab hootin' and hollerin' about how awesome that pull was and how much of a good time we were all having. Needless to say we made every attempt not to get stuck. We walked up to a big fire, a barn with a band, a shed with a string jam, and a kitchen/store crowded with food, merchandise, and people partying. We found the beer in the back and they were openly serving Mountain State Brewing Company Oatmeal Stout and Amber Ale. An interesting and friendly party.
We settled in with some beer and took in the scene. It was all locals including a ton of young hippies from the resorts. We had a few beers inside the kitchen/store. I hadn't tried the Amber Ale the previous night and it was quite good. Unfortunately they ran out of both after a few cups. I then moseyed in to the shed to get down to the string jam among the tools. There were about 8 people pickin' and 15 people dancing in this shed that would fit 10 comfortably. True to the rumors we had heard earlier, a full gallon jug of white lightening was being passed 'round the shed with everyone taking a swig. And that was not all that was being passed around. Some excited young fellow decided to hang from the rafters and swing to the music quite enthusiastically. A little too enthusiastically; the beam he was holding on to let go. He fell to the ground on top of the band and they didn't miss a beat. It was definitely a good ol' classic mountain culture experience. My great great grandfather would have felt right at home.
Back in the kitchen/store we popped open some wine after someone said "drink it; we've been drinking all day!". There was still food to munch on as well. The females from the previous night were even more drunk and amusing. Had our group been a little younger I'm sure a lot more interaction would have taken place; such mature moral men I associate with. We boogied from the party before it got too late being that we were considerably less intoxicated than everyone else and had plans for the next day.
On Sunday Laundrew's Jetta got stuck in the Tallyho parking lot. We all pushed him out and headed to breakfast somewhere other than the Tallyho Restaurant. We were excited to hit the slopes after getting 4-6 inches the night before. Unfortunately they only opened up one more run and it was a green one. The day was much colder with the wind even though the sun was trying to shine. The snow was a bit better but not as good as we all had hoped. There were probably 20 other people on the mountain that day. We put in a half day and enjoyed the little fresh snow that there was.
Passing by Canaan Valley, Seneca Rocks, Smoke Hole Caverns, and everything else I visited on vacation as a kid brought back memories of hanging in WV in the summer with the family. Memories such as my brother convincing me to jump on a ski lift half way up the mountain so when they shut it down they had no idea we were stranded 80 ft in the air near the top. And when my sister and I got attacked by bats on a pond while fishing before almost walking in to a bear in pitch dark near the shore. Good memories.
Even though it wasn't the best snowboarding it was a fun trip. We are planning for the near future.
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