Visiting Cacapon Resort State Park I Trail Cooking
Kirk, the youngest child, and I went out for a drive last weekend. I wanted to see Morgan County, the last county in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. We took 45 (Martinsburg Pike/ Shepherds Road from Shepherdstown, then got onto 9 (Hedgesville Road/Martinsburg Road) in Martinsburg, and headed to Hedgesville, home to Gourmet Goddess, the best gluten-free/allergy-friendly bakery in the panhandle —and maybe beyond. I met them this year at the farmers market in Shepherdstown, and they opened up a physical location this summer. Alistaire was very happy to visit them, where he could get almost everything they made.
Hwy 9 keeps going, winding around a low spot in the Allegheny Mountains, and curves around to Berkley Springs. It’s a really nice drive, especially in the fall. The road now goes under the newly constructed 522 bypass highway, a closed highway, not a country road.
My goal had been to see George Washington’s bathtub at Berkeley Springs State Park, but I didn’t realize how insane the traffic is in Berkley Springs, WV, on a sunny November weekend, with how close it is to the Maryland Panhandle and Interstates 70 and 68. With zero open parking in town, I gave up on that dream—though we did get to see the park (it is very tiny, in the middle of town).
Since I wanted to see an area south of the town, we headed out on Hwy 522 (on the original two-lane highway). I had noted that Cacapon Resort State Park was
And what a gem of a state park.
The park is easy to find and just off the road, with an easy-to-access entrance (right run lane, left-hand turn lanes, etc). The park was built by the CCC in the 1930s and opened in 1937 at the height of the Great Depression. It’s a large park in the Allegheny Mountains, with 6,000 acres to explore. It was built as a resort, and the lodge (the new one) is gorgeous. It also has cute cabins to rent.
But two lakes are easily accessible.
The first one is built up for enjoyment, with a huge playground, picnic tables, and an education center. One could easily spend a day there at the lower lake.
North Indian Run (that’s a creek out here). The storms this past week blew most of the leaves out of the trees.
The upper lake was simply beautiful. Sitting at the base of the low ridges, the wind was blowing across the water. Is that not what heaven is? And this park has one of the Almost Heaven swings high above, on the top of the ridge. I’ll have to come back, as it had been closed for the season on November 1st. The road up to it enters and leaves Virginia, and it has the most northern point in Virginia, just before the lookout spot at the end of the road.
And a last random wildflower, which used to be in the Aster family (apparently it has been changed due to DNA testing).
It was nicely warm, it was sunny, and 68* out.
A delightful state park. As with all West Virginia State Parks, they are free to use. No parking passes or entrance fees.
~Sarah
