From WOWKTV.COM:

DNR is looking for companies interested in making a major investment in the Tucker County resort.

The Division of Natural Resources has grand plans for Canaan Valley Resort and Conference Center and will start looking for companies interested in making a major investment in the Tucker County facility.

The park is currently managed by Guest Services Inc., and the DNR expects the company to submit a package in response to the agency's advertisements that will be published beginning this Sunday. Based on the interest, the DNR will then seek requests for proposal on updating the resort.

The resort is located on the state's 6,000 acre park. The 250-room lodge was built nearly 30 years ago and is one of the items the DNR is interested in replacing. In addition to the lodge, significant upgrades at the ski area are a possibility, including improved snowmaking and lifts. Guest Services' contract to manage the resort and conference center doesn't expire until 2013, but the magnitude of the improvements envisioned require a longer relationship to allow the company to recoup its investment.
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Because the park is owned by the state, a management company must be selected through the bid process.

guess it just goes to prove that nothing is really sacred anymore...another little slice of heaven on the chopping block

CONFUSED!! The people that run the place have a contract till 2013..agency's ads...what does that mean? How does anything change until "guest svcs" vacates?....a longer relationship...with who?...The snow is picking back up in the Valley this aft/eve ...could be the grand finale of this winter......Would like to see a run or 2 from the top of Bald Knob to the valley floor..at least a 1100 vert drop there...glad to hear of any movement at all!!

But that's my point..there are a couple of runs from top of Baldy to the valley floor. It's cleared, quite skiable, a bit steep/narrow, requires a bit of skill and some better coverage than we had this year but it's quite doable. Easiest access is the five dollar lift ticket from Canaan Ski area to the top, out the backdoor, cut through the very scenic trees, enjoy your turns down Pipeline, a five minute walk/skin/shuffle up Baldy and you're there. Come off the summit to the south, cut around towards the west, test your skills on the steeper/narrower section, through the fence into Upper Springers and enjoy the triple headwall cruise to the valley floor. From there it's less than a 20 minute shuffle back to Canaan Ski area parking lot.

Heck if you're feeling up to it, there is a line off the backside of Baldy that is darn near straight down. Need a bomber snowfall though...never came in this year but there was plenty of other action.

I just get so depressed when I see people begging for lifts and development when things are already in place. Why muck it up more? I am not a fit person, in fact, I have over 20% body fat and I struggle to run three miles at a time..sometimes I don't even make that. If I can strap some tele skis to my lard ass and make the journey there is little reason why other people can't do the same.

steve

You know Steve, you bring up a great point. You ever noticed all the gas line cuts that weave in and out of the north Alleghenies in WV? A lot of them are east of the Divide but one nice storm and some skins and you've got some amazing backcountry around the area.

Shame I don't know how to telemark. Looks like it's all yours...

Roger - if we was to ever get a massive snowstorm and you felt up to it, I could take you on every gas pipeline cut area in Hardy County. Mathias has a hub for Columbia Gas from all the area wells and there are more than enough cuts down some pretty steep ridges that are upto as wide as half a football field in some places.

That's the beauty of backcountry skiing..you can parallel turn telemark skis. There is no need to actually "drop the knee". Granted, a tele stance is a bit more stable in varied snow condition..it helps to prevent you from pitching "over the handlebars" but a good balanced stance is all you need.

Of course there is also Alpine Touring Gear, aka: Randonne. Free heel for the ascent then you lock the heel down for the descent. Stiff plastic alpine style boot.

Steve

That reminds me, maybe you'll know the answer to this Brad. When we flew out to Utah a few weeks ago, we went right over Canaan Valley and then due west. Well past Elkins (probably well past Buchanan for tht matter), I started seeing these odd little cuts all over the hills. It looked like a single road leading out to an opening- you'd think it was a very, very large subdivision but the openings were in strange places. It reminded me of the well-drilling country out in West Texas. Were those natural gas drilling sites on the western side of West Virginia?

I forgot about those lock down heels, Steve. Solitude uses those for their guided backcountry trips. Could be a good alternative for us non-telemarkers.

Roger - That very well may have been what you saw. In my travels out to Pickens and other areas west of Elkins, I saw alot of orange/white poles sticking out of the ground denoting that gas pipelines were running immediately underneath of it. Sometimes those do run along dirt roads especially if there is some sort of large well drilling device to it. Othertimes those pipes simply snake under/around the hills in very small cut areas heading to a local or regional hub.

I can't say for sure if that is what you saw, but I'd really lean towards it actually being gas wells.