It’s time to get out of the city and head for the hills, especially if the hills are in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia, a corner of the world that’s been attracting visitors since Colonial times and native Americans before then. And it’s to get to from the major metropolises of the Mid Atlantic region.
www.jeffersoncounty.com/festival
Here’s a good reason to consider the easternmost extension of the Mountain State now. The Mountain Heritage Arts &Crafts Festival is coming up on June 1-15. The festival’s “crafters” will be displaying wares ranging from art glass to furniture to musical instruments and West Virginia wines. And they say this year’s scheduled entertainment includes the Seldom Scene, a bluegrass group that has had three Grammy nominations.
www.charlestownwv.us
The festival “Map &Directions” page can show you just how centrally located the Panhandle is. The festival site is 60 miles from Washington, 70 from Baltimore, 160 from Philadelphia, 220 from Pittsburgh and about 160 from Richmond. By the way, the festival site is near Charles Town, which was laid out in 1786 by Charles Washington, George’s brother, not to be confused with Charleston, the state capitol on the other side of the state
www.nps.gov/hafe
From Washington, the closest part of the Panhandle is Harpers Ferry National Historic Park, the community at the intersection of the Shenandoah and Potomac rivers that was a busy industrial town well before the Civil War. According to the park’s history, Thomas Jefferson visited the spot in 1783 (you can read his description of his visit), and George Washington was there two years later. In 1859, John Brown captured the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, thinking he would raise an army to free slaves. But more than its historical importance, check out “Photos &Multimedia” to see how scenic the town and deep river valleys are.
www.nps.gov/choh
If you prefer not to drive, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park offers 185 miles of hiking and biking trail passing Harpers Ferry on its way from Washington to Cumberland, Md.
www.washingtonheritagetrail.org
For scenic driving instead of hiking, the Washington Heritage Trail loops around the Eastern Panhandle. Click on “Self-Guided Tours” for connections to local tours along the way, and peruse “History &Heritage” for more connections to George Washington. Slide your cursor over “Find by Area” on the left side the scene to open a menu of information on the Panhandle’s three counties and towns.
www.berkeleysprings.com
In Morgan County to the west, on the far side of Cacapon Mountain, the town of Berkeley Springs boasts that it is the nation’s first spa. Washington and his friends and family were so impressed they established the town, officially called Bath, in 1776. “Spas” is a directory of spots to soothe your travel-weary bodies, including Berkeley Springs State Park. “Attractions” holds a handful of photos of the scenery and a few working links, and you definitely have to investigate “Walking/Driving Tours.”
www.travelwv.com
The third county in the Panhandle is Berkeley, which also holds the city of Martinsburg. Take a look at “To Do” for more history and outdoor recreation including the Sleepy Creek hunting and fishing preserve and — as in much of the Panhandle — antique shops.
By Roger Petterson, Associated Press
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