BECKLEY —
This past week I had reservations for a mini-vacation in a one-room cabin in the mountains situated high atop the Gauley River. The cabin sat overlooking a fine forested vista and was very private. Although I never read the brochure for the cabin, I can only imagine it read something like this.
“With exquisite mountain views and locations just minutes from a National Park, our cabin allows you to take in a true mountain experience. Sit on your deck and gaze out at blue, misty mountains or immerse yourself in wilderness hiking, rafting, horseback riding and hunting or fishing. It’s all here for you! For a getaway that feels secluded but is still near great restaurants, entertainment and outdoor activities, look no further than our cabin. Our goal is to make your trip as special and comfortable as possible with warm hospitality and amazing amenities. Convenient to everything with family attractions, stores, specialty craft shops and plenty of restaurants. The cabin brings you the ultimate in selection and quality for every vacationer wishing to discover the magic of the Appalachian Mountains.”
We spent most of the week simply relaxing and enjoying the slow pace of mountain living. From the window of the cabin, we watched new days being born and the frost on the leaves of the forest floor sparkle from the day’s first rays of sun. The sun provided light and warmth in the cabin and was a simple gift we did not take for granted.
We too witnessed from the cabin windows, the long shadows of the trees slowly shrinking as the sun retreated behind the far mountain’s ridge as the chilled air rushed in signifying darkness was near.
In the long days afield, we observed nature not as a spectator looking on, but as a participant in the natural world. Perched high on a knoll and camouflaged by the understory of an old growth forest, we saw first-hand the interaction of the natural world and its inhabitants who call the woodlands their home. We were granted a front row seat to the show and with heightened awareness to our surroundings, we heard and smelled the grandeur that only the mountains of West Virginia can provide.
Crows called, chipmunks scurried, squirrels barked, turkeys scratched and deer browsed within sight of our little cabin. The animals of the forest were entertainment and we thoroughly enjoyed the long days we spent in their world.
The true reason for my few days off from the responsibilities of work and life was to hunt whitetail deer on my hillside farm. It was the first week of the West Virginia buck gun season and a season that has filled my Thanksgiving week since I was a young. Although I have participated in the traditional hunt for well over 30 years, this week’s hunt was different. Perhaps because I am older or maybe the fact that my son is of age to appreciate nature and its bounty, the time spent in the cabin was simply a new and wonderful experience. It was time well-spent helping to unlock the magic and mysteries of the natural world through the eyes of a new hunter and one I hope becomes a new chapter in the tradition.
The fact is the cabin was just a simple hunting blind in the woods. Regardless, the memories were large enough to fill any cabin described in the lofty text of a brochure for a faraway vacation destination and as grand as any mini-vacation before. For that, I am truly thankful.
Outdoors
Related Photos
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Hours spent in nature — be it a mini-vacation in a grand cabin or a simple hunting blind — is quality time. Chris Ellis
Memories come in all shapes, sizes
- Outdoors
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Hunting has become more mainstream
As sportsmen, we live by an ethical code of conduct. We are taught by our mentors not to take our way of life for granted and to be aware of our actions as not to cause offense to others. In short, we are taught to behave in a manner as to not make a non-hunter into an anti-hunter.
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Birding among outdoor passions
If you love the outdoors, there are probably some activities you like better than others. Maybe it’s trout fishing or deer hunting. My passion is birds. I love the spring migration when new species return almost daily.
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Setting the record straight on rabbits
Thanks to cartoon characters such as Bugs Bunny, the rabbits we see in our backyards, eastern cottontails, are familiar to almost everyone. And yet I suspect that most people think they are rodents. They are not. Rabbits and hares are lagomorphs, members of the mammalian order Lagomorpha.
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Fickle weather can wreck plans
Well, it’s officially spring. We have “sprung forward” into daylight saving time in hopes of long, sunny evenings to play and work outdoors in the glorious, warm rays of the sun. In return for our daily routines being altered by the time change, we are awarded with unpredictable weather and mud season — gee, thanks!
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Black deer among nature’s rarities
A few weeks ago, Joan Robinson contacted me after she noticed something out of the usual while driving along a Hampshire County backroad in the Eastern Panhandle. It was so unusual she even questioned herself at what her eyes were actually seeing.
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Male half of nesting eagle pair feared dead
One of southern West Virginia’s much-loved and only confirmed pair of nesting American Bald Eagles is suspected dead and the pair’s eggs located at the tip of Brooks Island off W.Va. 20 are in jeopardy.
Wendy Perrone, executive director of Three River Avian Center, said National Park Service Law Enforcement was notified that an Amtrak train hit the eagle Sunday around 10:30 a.m.
Since Sunday, the Park Service, Three Rivers and dedicated volunteers have scouted the track and surrounding area from Brooks Island to Sandstone Falls, but no one has recovered the bird. The male bird, affectionately called Whitey, has also not returned to the nest, leading experts to believe he was killed. -
There is help for anglers getting started
According to statistics from the National Surveys of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, which are published every five years, the number of anglers in the U.S. is in a steady decline. Over the last 20 years the number of anglers has dropped from 35.6 million in 1991 to 33.1 million in 2011.
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Beckley among places to ‘talk turkey’
This past week brought us snow and rain. Like my kids are fond of saying in a very sarcastic tone, “Really?” For the sportsmen in our area, the last couple of days of winter can be a downtime in the action. For those needing to scratch the hunting and fishing itch, I have a little news that might just do the trick.
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‘How do robins survive winter conditions?’
Winter must be winding down because I’m getting letters and e-mails about winter robins.
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Sequester impacting hunting, fishing industries
A news release from Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (B.A.S.S.) Communications came across my desk this week, and I felt the information was worth sharing.
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