Sweet Springs Turnpike Trail officially opens

SWEET SPRINGS W.Va. (Hinton News) – On Sunday, Oct. 15, the first phase of the Sweet Springs Turnpike Trail officially opened to hikers. On Monday, Oct. 16, a ceremony was held with the designers of the trail and three representatives of the Allegheny Trail to officially open the West Virginia section of this historical Stagecoach Turnpike Trail. Their work and efforts put into the designing, planning and physical work in getting the trail open is what made this such a success. A lot of time, phone calls, geographic studies, historical studies and more went into the trail long before the actual work began, and three of the persons who put forth that effort were:

Zen Clements – Developer, professional trail designer, and professional mountain biker. Clements has developed trails throughout the state including skiing, biking, hiking and more. Clements’ family are natives of Wayside in Monroe County, and he has a deep heart when it comes to developing outdoor activities for his “home county.”

Dale McCutcheon – McCutcheon is one of the few experts in trail design, historic trail design, history of the trails, laws involved with trail design, trail safety and an avid hiker. His guidance and knowledge are invaluable to this project.

Roseanna Sacco – Owner of Sweet Springs Institute, Vice President of the Sweet Springs Watershed Association, Researcher for Sweet Springs Resort Park and Project Manager for the annual Sustainability Forum. Sacco is active in saving our clean water and protecting our ecosystem. She has done much research for the development of the Sweet Springs Turnpike Trail, set up meetings and helped with physical labor.

All three of these fine folks are donating their time to this project.

The other individuals who worked with Clements, McCutcheon, and Sacco are three brilliant people from the Allegheny Trail: Mark Mengeley – Historian for Virginia and West Virginia Trails; Brian Hurt – Officer and Researcher for the Allegheny Trail; and Doug Wood – Trail expert, avid hiker, trail designer and former President of the Allegheny Trail Committee.

Greenbrier Economic Development hired an out-of-state professional consulting company, insiteconsulting, to give advice on Economic Development in Monroe County. According to insiteconsulting, Sweet Springs Park is one of the best Economic Development Projects not only in Monroe County, but also in West Virginia and the East Coast. With the clean, pure waters, the warm water healing pool, the planned recreational activities, colonial style Country Inn, extended stay apartments, business offices, and over 250 jobs/careers, it is insiteconsulting’s opinion that Sweet Springs Park will offer the “heartland” of Southern West Virginia a taste of uniqueness that will pull people into the county and the state.

Well, the recreational activities have begun. This Turnpike Trail project has been at the top of the list for Sweet Springs Resort Park as our first recreational development project; however, as the Park Project Manager, Ashby Berkley, explained many times, the roofing on all the historic buildings had to be completed first, and now that the buildings are “in the dry,” the trail development started in August 2023. The first phase is now open and ready for use by anyone wishing to enjoy hiking. Of course, there is more work to do (maintenance, more clearing, etc., and the completion of phase 2 of the trail which is already mapped out and ready for construction to begin – planned to begin within the next 2 weeks).

Arietta DuPre, Administrative Specialist for the Park, Secretary/Treasurer for The Sweet Springs Watershed Association, registered Lobbyist in the state of Wesr Virginia, and a Doctor of Theology and Christian Teaching, said, “Things have moved slowly for several reasons such as (1) Receiving grants – the Park has no paid employees; we are all volunteers; so over the last couple of years the Park was not eligible for any COVID relief grants. Once grants start coming in, the Park will begin hiring staff for the Park, and hope many hired will become permanent paid employees of the Park. (2) COVID hurt the Park’s Fundraisers as the attendance was very low, and some events had to be canceled, and (3) The Park wants NO LOANS. Taking out a big loan you cannot pay is usually the biggest problem with small businesses. While it is taking time, the Park is proceeding as planned. The golf driving ranges are already designed and ready to start construction …. Phase 1 of the historic Jeffersonian hotel is in the works – preparation for demolition and collection of needing furniture items has begun, The Sweet Springs Watershed Association is now a fully licensed group developed to protect the natural springs on the farm property along with several national groups The Park stays in contact with and is a member of the Choose Clean Water Coalition which is a five-state group. The volunteers at the Park are very excited about the future.”

This is the Park Management’s fifth major restoration project. Others include:

1. The Riverside Inn, built by Governor Hatfield, was restored into a 5-star restaurant dedicated to colonial perfection. This was a 7-course dinner which took at least 1 1/2 hours to enjoy the great meals such as Colonial Meat Pie, 1/2 Baked Glazed Chicken stuffed with country ham and glazed with a special fruited glaze, Fruit Stuffed Duckling for 2 carved at the table and the famous Scalded English Slaw. The Riverside Inn was INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED

2. The Pence Springs Historic Hotel, began as a hotel run by Mr. Pence and was considered one of the most elegant hotels of its time. It then became a School for Appalachian Women established by Eleanor Roosevelt. After becoming the State Prison for Women, the state closed the facility and Mr. Berkley purchased the property and restored the facility back into a historic hotel that ran in the black for several years.

3. The Old Pence Springs Water Co. building. The buildings were secured, with the railing still inside … the water spring was cleaned and cared for, and the famous Pence Springs Flea Market was run on the property which for more than 28 years was/has been a huge success.

4. And more.

The same success can happen here at Sweet Springs Resort Park with the support of the county and the fact that the trail, promised by The Park, is now open.

The trail is free to hike. The park just asks that visitors sign in on the front porch of the office, and then sign out when they leave as a necessary safety requirement.

The Trail is closed to individual hikers from Nov. 15 – March 1, (just one person) however groups are welcome anytime with advance reservation. This is for the safety of individual hikers.

There are a few rules:

1. Absolutely no drugs or alcohol on the trail – this causes accidents.

2. Only smoke in designated areas. Do not smoke along the trail.

3. You must sign in and sign out so we know you left safely.

4. Bring all of your trash out when you come. No trash is to be left on the trail.

5. Unless advance notice is given that you intend to camp, all hikers must be off the trail by dark, again, this is for the safety of all.

6. All hikers must take water with them on the hike. Please, take any medications that you may need as well.