Canaan Valley Institute making land usable for hikers, anglers and campers
DAVIS - Since acquiring a five-square-mile tract of forest, river and wetlands just east of the town of Davis five years ago from Allegheny Energy, the nonprofit Canaan Valley Institute has done much to encourage public access.
DAVIS - Since acquiring a five-square-mile tract of forest, river and wetlands just east of the town of Davis five years ago from Allegheny Energy, the nonprofit Canaan Valley Institute has done much to encourage public access.
The land, bordered by Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge to the east and the Monongahela National to the west, encompasses a 2.5-mile stretch of the Blackwater River, much of the north slope of Canaan Mountain, several small creeks and a peat bog.
State-owned Camp 70 Road follows the Blackwater River, a popular trout stream, through the 3,223-acre tract from Davis to the washed-out bridge where it ends, at the eastern border of the CVI property.
Fenwick and Ken Dzaack straddle a segment of the Canaan Valley Institute’s new North 740 Trail system. Last month, the 6.5-mile trail was designated a National Recreation Trail by the U.S. Department of the Interior.
Hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, biking, cross-country skiing, berry picking and ramp harvesting are all allowed on the property. No fees are charged or permits required, other than state hunting and fishing licenses.
Along Camp 70 Road, 10 numbered car-camping sites on the shore of trout-stocked Blackwater River are available free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis, for stays of up to two weeks. Backpackers are free to hike and camp throughout the property on the south side of the Blackwater from a parking area along W.Va.32.
A recently completed 6.5-mile network of trails on the 740-acres of CVI land found on the north side of the Blackwater, called the North 740 Trail, has made the property more user-friendly for hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians.
On a recent stormy weekday, Ken Dzaack, CVI's land manager, showed a visitor a section of the trail that led from a parking area on the Blackwater River up a gentle slope to a fern-covered plateau, where a rutted section of overgrown ATV trail crossed the well-marked single-track path.
"We started out with four miles of eroded four-wheeler trails that didn't get much use," said Dzaack, nodding at the old route. "But now we have six and a half miles of good, easy-to-maintain trail that attracts all kinds of users."
Davis area hikers, bikers and birders can frequently be seen using the North 740 Trail System, reached from a series of access points and parking areas along Camp 70 Road.
The new trail system is routinely used on Thursday night rides led by Blackwater Bikes in Davis and by local and visiting mountain bikers. Last week, it served as the racecourse for the West Virginia Mountain Bike Association's state championship event.
DAVIS - Since acquiring a five-square-mile tract of forest, river and wetlands just east of the town of Davis five years ago from Allegheny Energy, the nonprofit Canaan Valley Institute has done much to encourage public access.
The land, bordered by Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge to the east and the Monongahela National to the west, encompasses a 2.5-mile stretch of the Blackwater River, much of the north slope of Canaan Mountain, several small creeks and a peat bog.
State-owned Camp 70 Road follows the Blackwater River, a popular trout stream, through the 3,223-acre tract from Davis to the washed-out bridge where it ends, at the eastern border of the CVI property.
Hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, biking, cross-country skiing, berry picking and ramp harvesting are all allowed on the property. No fees are charged or permits required, other than state hunting and fishing licenses.
Along Camp 70 Road, 10 numbered car-camping sites on the shore of trout-stocked Blackwater River are available free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis, for stays of up to two weeks. Backpackers are free to hike and camp throughout the property on the south side of the Blackwater from a parking area along W.Va.32.
A recently completed 6.5-mile network of trails on the 740-acres of CVI land found on the north side of the Blackwater, called the North 740 Trail, has made the property more user-friendly for hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians.
On a recent stormy weekday, Ken Dzaack, CVI's land manager, showed a visitor a section of the trail that led from a parking area on the Blackwater River up a gentle slope to a fern-covered plateau, where a rutted section of overgrown ATV trail crossed the well-marked single-track path.
"We started out with four miles of eroded four-wheeler trails that didn't get much use," said Dzaack, nodding at the old route. "But now we have six and a half miles of good, easy-to-maintain trail that attracts all kinds of users."
Davis area hikers, bikers and birders can frequently be seen using the North 740 Trail System, reached from a series of access points and parking areas along Camp 70 Road.
The new trail system is routinely used on Thursday night rides led by Blackwater Bikes in Davis and by local and visiting mountain bikers. Last week, it served as the racecourse for the West Virginia Mountain Bike Association's state championship event.
Earlier this month, U.S. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne announced that the new Tucker County trail system was one of 24 trails in 16 states to be designated a National Recreation Trail, for making it easier for residents of a community to enjoy outdoor life and improve their health.
Other West Virginia trails that have received the National Recreation Trails designation include the Hatfield-McCoy Trails and Morgantown's Mon River/Caperton/Deckers Creek Trail system.
Built mainly with volunteer labor and donated materials, the North 740 Trail system began to take shape following the development of a conceptual plan assembled by a trail advisory committee in 2005. In addition to personnel from the CVI staff, the advisory committee included representatives from Tucker County Trails, Blackwater Bikes, the West Virginia Mountain Bike Association, mountain bike race promoter Granny Gear Productions, and area hikers, bikers and equestrians.
The North 740 Trail system makes it possible for users to connect with existing trails on the neighboring Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge, the Monongahela National Forest and the Vandalia Heritage Foundation.
"A crew from the International Mountain Bike Association designed and built one section, to teach us how to build a good, sustainable trail," said Dzaack.
"We found out that it doesn't take an extraordinary engineering project or a ton of money to build good trails that don't need a lot of maintenance. It does take a massive amount of help from volunteers. But so far, we've just scratched the surface of what can be done here."
"It's good that CVI has gotten into building sustainable trails, including trails designed from a biker's point of view," said Matt Marcus of Blackwater Bikes in Davis. "It seems like we have better communications with CVI than we do with the public agencies in the area. My only worry is that since they're a private organization, they could change their policy on their own and shut things down."
To access the North 740 trail system and CVI's stretch of the Blackwater River, from Davis, take Camp 70 Road (from Canaan Valley, the first right turn off W.Va. 32 after it crosses the Blackwater River at the south entrance to Davis). Trials Road Trail can be reached from a marked parking area across the Blackwater from the Davis water plant, about one-half mile east of town. A second parking area at a splash dam another half-mile down Camp 70 Road provides easy access to Sheralds Shunt, JoJos Curve and Rock Shox trails.
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