Side Trip – West Virginia

In the late spring of 2015, Jenn’s parents told us that they wanted to entertain the kids for a long weekend. “Um, yes please!” The kids love long weekends with either and both sets of grandparents, so this was a no-brainer.

It took about 5 minutes for me to start thinking about how Jenn and I might like to spend that weekend. My first thought was Seattle, but Jenn pointed out that we wouldn’t want to spend about a third of that long weekend on an airplane or in an airport, so our thoughts shifted to some place easily driveable from the Columbus, OH, area. It then was a hop, skip and a jump to settle on a long weekend in the New River Gorge.
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We made a reservation at the Country River Inn, booked a trip with Adventures on the Gorge, and set aside the rest of the time for hiking. Jenn and I can’t say enough good about Country River Inn. Rick, the host, built the business himself, renovating an old schoolhouse and making a comfortable environment with good breakfast in the morning and a friendly face with helpful advice during the day. If you’re looking for a luxurious, 5 star, spa-type experience, this isn’t the place for you. The Country River Inn was, however, the perfect place to retreat after a long day of hiking and rafting, with mud on your boots and bug spray everywhere else on your body. Great company, great price and great location.

Rafting the New River with Adventures on the Gorge was a lot of fun, and certainly an adventure. Midway through the rapids, though, Jenn said to me, “We probably shouldn’t be doing this with three kids at home.” While it was a lot of fun, I could see her point.

The hiking was beautiful, and when West Virginia describes itself as “Wild and Wonderful,” they aren’t kidding.

We enjoyed some very good sandwiches in a fun environment at The Secret Sandwich Society (all named after famous folks), and a delicious pizza at Pies & Pints.

This post shouldn’t pass without mentioning that Jenn and I have yet to travel to a small town that took Gluten Free so seriously… and right there in Fayetteville, WV! The Secret Sandwich Society and Pies & Pints could be forgiven for not serving gluten free bread, and Rick could be excused for not offering gluten free options at his breakfast table. But all of these locations went out of the way to accommodate this dietary restriction/request.