New Year's Hemingway Style in Berkeley Springs,

We were inundated with info about things to do New Year's Eve. There were festivals in small towns and cities all around: Winchester, VA; York, PA; New Martinsville, WV, just to mention a few. There are also shopping outlets in the area, historic Antietam Battlefield; the historic town of Harper's Ferry, also a park with several historic buildings and museums to tour; hiking at Cacapon State Park, where we stayed; a really informative, enjoyable tour of Berkeley Castle; and Berkeley Springs State Park, where one can enjoy the springs or get a full-body message on the cheap. All this, plus some relaxed driving on country roads make the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia the perfect place for a weekend of exploring.

Quick Tips:

If you are looking for inexpensive lodging, the Lodge or cabins at Cacapon are less than 10 miles away (see "accomodations" entry), but no matter where you stay, don't pass up a meal at The Country Inn, on the main road adjacent to the State Park. It's a great setting, beautiful inside and out. Stay a while and shop for West Virginia jams & jellies, have a drink in the lounge, ask to tour the Inn. Stay overnight if you want to pay a little more (we didn't, this trip), or even if you aren't staying there, tour the rooms upstairs. Just ask. They are delightfully decorated. We stop there every time we go to the Eastern Panhandle, because it's just a place where you can be glad you're there, not eager to move on.

Best Way To Get Around:

Once you get to Berkeley Springs, you can walk to any place in the town, including the castle, the Inn, and the park. But there is so much to do all around, and the Eastern Panhandle is so spread out, you'll want the car on this trip. Driving around is actually relaxing in this area; it's the place for "the Sunday drive." Sometimes, you meet few passing cars.

We made our reservations at the last minute, when our friends declined to plan anything for New Year''s Eve. They chose to "see what happens," and we called 1-800-callwva to find a room at a state park. After all, the motels would be booked full, plus we didn''t want to spend much on a holiday we hadn''t planned ahead. We called without expecting to find anything at the last minute. Anyone can call that "callwva" number and connect to any state park in the state. Or, go to www.state.wv.us/tourism for info. From there, you can link to Cacapon''s site, and their calendar or "special packages" is full of suggestions for weekends when something of interest is going on in the area. Travellers may be particularly interested in their "photography" weekend, with instruction by Ron Snow, well-known by West Virginia folk for his work on West Virginia Magazine. And in summer, there''s golf there on the property. Sorry, I didn''t take pictures, but you can see the lodge at their site: www.cacaponresort.com/accommodations

If you want to stay at this particular lodge on a particular weekend, especially in summer, better call well ahead of time. They take reservations up to a year in advance. We were lucky, though, and got ours on the spur of the moment, but it was winter. (I understand rooms here are harder to come by in summer.) It turned out that winter is the perfect time for a stay in this mountain lodge. The roads in the area weren''t particularly treacherous, not winding or steep, as some in this state. Besides the fact that the woods all around created an enchanted fairyland, the prices were unbeatable: just a little over $50 for a room for two in the Lodge (prices vary according to season). There are cabins there, too, for 4, 6, or 8 persons, starting at under $80!

Our rooms weren''t elegant, but this was a mountain lodge! They were more than adequate, a fine base from which to hike and explore the area, and very relaxing. The Lodge has an abundance of warm wood, of course, for decor, a cozy fire in the lobby, and a comfortable dining room with plenty of windows opening onto a winter wonderland. We enjoyed an abundant breakfast and headed out to hike the trails.

At the front desk are maps of all the trails, several miles, on the state property. We chose the one up the mountain with the view of three states. We stayed a while here, sitting on a log with a bottle of champagne, not feeling the cold quite yet, but looking ahead toward that fire in the lobby and a hot bath.

I have been lucky enough to visit the inn twice. The first time was New Year's Eve, when we were seated early in the evening in the dining room without reservations. The chicken cordon bleu was delicious, and the service was excellent. Everything about the inn contributed to my desire to return, which I did a month later on a Sunday evening. I was returning home from Harper's Ferry, and I went a bit out of my way to return to the Inn at Berkeley Springs. On this visit, it was too crowded for seating in the dining room, and so I discovered the lounge and sandwich menu--also fine. I stayed as long as I could on a Sunday evening until I just had to be getting home--a three hour drive for me. It was getting late.

If you've ever discovered a place where you just love to be, you must understand my enchantment with The Country Inn at Berkeley Springs. It's a beautiful, enjoyable place, not too "country," either, actually somewhat elegant. On both visits, I was so content to be there, I didn't care to move on. The natural setting is pretty, somehow satisfying outside, located on a tree-lined street. Inside, the artwork on the walls (some of it is for sale), the furnishings, the homemade goodies in the gift shop, the way things are arranged, everything contributes to the inviting charm of the place. It is both artistic and "homey"--and by design, I'm sure, not by accident. It is just perfect! Others apparently agree with me, for it is always busy, yet well-managed.

For more description, see the "suggestions" entry for this journal. I will return again and again, as I have labelled this one of my favorite spots in my home state, as charming as the Greenbrier is elegant or extravagant--as well as a location that most clearly defines comfort and "charm."

Berkeley Castle, just a block or so from Berkeley Springs State Park, is a surprisingly romantic, gothic place. For special occasions, music and candlelight make it even more enjoyable. Decorated for the holidays, it was a perfect place to spend an hour or two. I didn't notice any grounds. Indeed, the castle seemed to be right on the street in town without any grounds to admire, but there were authentic furnishings, a few pieces extremely ornate. The tour is interesting, including some information on the family who built the castle, their lives there, food, cooking, clothing, even child-rearing practices. Clothing is displayed, and especially the little girl's bedroom is full of interesting articles.

This is a decent tour--and a surprising find in a very small West Virginia town. Anyone travelling near the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia should stop and see the castle. Berkeley Springs is not far, just a half-hour or so, from Hagerstown, Maryland. I've seen much better castle tours, such as Dundern Castle and Casa Loma in Ontario, but if you like castles and are in the Mountain State, this is worth seeing, though not elaborate. A tour of another castle, also not elaborate, but well-narrated by very informative guides in Brownsville, Pennsylvania, a little west of Uniontown on the National Road, old Route 40, could be combined with this one for a short theme trip.

Ask the locals and they will direct you to some of the best back roads to cruise for fresh farm produce in summer, for antiques and handcrafted items year round. Driving around, you'll enjoy the rolling hills, not mountains (easy driving), and the look and feel of the Eastern plateau. If nothing entices you before you get to Shepherdstown, park your car and walk around the shopping district there. It's where everyone is in Shepherdstown. The sidewalks and shops are usually bustling with activity, and there are boutiques, specialty shops of all kinds, art shops, antiques shops and cafes. It's a historic town with lots of attraction for the connoisseur of small towns.