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Mountain Lakes
Winter, summer, spring or fall, it is water that gives this region of West Virginia its character. Frozen and sparkling, rushing headlong over rocks and ledges, pooled in deep lakes or meandering through meadows, water is a main attraction.
Here in the heartland of West Virginia, the water flows down forested mountains and through verdant valleys that hold an abundance of wildlife ? more than 60,000 acres of land are maintained in wildlife management areas. An annual National Hunting and Fishing Days celebration at Stonewall Jackson Lake Resort State Park attests to the region?s reputation as a sports lover?s paradise.
The flowing water creates five major lakes ? Stonewall Jackson, Stonecoal, Burnsville, Sutton and Summersville ? that are favorites for boating, fishing, water skiing, scuba diving, swimming and camping.
State parks also offer many opportunities for hiking, biking and camping. Rent a log cabin, ride on a paddleboat, roll along a rail-trail orvisit a unique watchable wildlife center.
Golf a championship Arnold Palmer course at Stonewall Resort or raft the Gauley, a whitewater river known as the ?Beast of the East.? Ride a horse, drive one of several scenic byways and backroads, or rise above it all in a balloon.
Tranquil Towns
In Buckhannon, West Virginia Wesleyan College hosts an art series and opens its Sleeth Art Gallery to visitors. If you arrive on a Friday, be sure to see what?s playing at the tiny, artsy Lascaux Micro-Theater. You can shop for antiques and watch local glass artists create one-of-a-kind treasures. The gracious Deerpark Country Inn and several fine bed-and-breakfast inns make Buckhannon a good home base for exploring.
General Thomas ?Stonewall? Jackson grew up near Weston. Jackson?s Mill Historic Area includes the mill, now a museum, where he worked as a young man, as well as other historic structures. West Virginia?s glass industry is well represented at several outlets in this area. Weston is just a few miles north of the new and impressive Stonewall Resort.
Sutton is smack in the center of the state, and some folks will drive to it from any part of West Virginia for a meal at Café ƒimino, housed in a restored early 1900s hardware store complete with views of the town?s stately courthouse. Across the street, Landmark Studio for theArts holds theatrical and music programs in a renovated church. In nearby Flatwoods, shop at an outlet mall that includes a fine craft shop, Poplar Forest.
It?s hard to picture the lush landscape around Summersville as the backdrop for great turmoil during the Civil War, but it was. Carnifex Ferry Battlefield State Park marks the site of a decisive night in West Virginia?s history. Another type of turmoil takes place here twice a year when controlled releases from Summersville Dam send water rushing down the Gauley River, creating world-class whitewater thrills.
East of Summersville, Richwood is the southern gateway to the vast Monongahela National Forest.
Several wineries grace this region, and festivals celebrate everything you can imagine ? strawberries, ramps, bluegrass, blown glass, fishing and lumberjacking, to name a few.
There is a silence by the river ? but there?s much, much more in West Virginia?s Mountain Lakes.
The Right Resort
For a business conference or a purely personal weekend getaway, it would be hard to find a better place than Stonewall Resort. From your luxurious room in the Adirondack-style lodge, look out over beautiful Stonewall Jackson Lake ? or get out on the water in the resort?s 125-passenger cruise boat. Visit the spa or golf the Arnold Palmer Signature Course, rated one of the country?s ten best new courses by both Golf Digest and Golf Magazine.
Watchable Wildlife
Wish you could show your children a deer, elk, bear, mountain lion, bobcat, fox, bald eagle, wild boar and some playful river otters all in the same day ? without disturbing the animals? privacy or harming their natural habitat? Visit the West Virginia State Wildlife Center, near the village of French Creek.
For more information on facilities and things to do in this region search our travel planner.
Phone: 800-CALL WVA (1-800-225-5982) Address: 90 MacCorkle Ave. SW in Charleston City: West Virginia Regions State: WV Zip: 25303 Region: Mountain Lakes Url: http://www.wvtourism.com/spec.aspx?pgID=144 Canaan Valley - Albright - Davis - - Mathias - Keyser - Thomas - Berkeley Springs - Potomac Highlands~ - Fayetteville - Harpers Ferry - West Virginia Regions - Roanoke - Moorefield - Beckley - Eastern Panhandle~ - Hico - Cass - Petersburg - Snowshoe - Elkins - Hatfield-McCoyMountains~ - Ansted - Franklin - Philippi - Fairmont - Buckhannon - NewRiverGreenbriarValley~ |
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