Ice Mountain

Ice Mountain, North River Mills, WV

N  R I V E R  M I L L S,  W V

When you take yourself or your car in for a checkup, the experts always find problems, even when you think there are none.  My recent experience at Ice Mountain was much the same…

Ice Mountain in North River Mills, West Virginia is known for the cold air that seeps from its base all year long.  Even in the heart of summer, very cool air continuously vents from the openings in the rocky pile at the bottom of its slopes.  Before electronic refrigeration became common, the locals would come to Ice Mountain to gather its frozen waters for use in lemonade and ice cream.  But Ice Mountain isn’t all about tasty treats.  The steady cool air has provided ideal conditions for certain rare boreal plants to survive here, such as the Appalachian Wood Fern.  As the last glacial period recessed, the vents at Ice Mountain provided the cool temperatures the ferns and other species needed to stand their ground. 

March 30th, 2016 was my third visit to Ice Mountain.  Each trip has been quite lovely.  Its two trails – one to the sandstone summit and one to the vents – provide a fantastic look at the mountain’s special features.  But when you walk these trails with The Nature Conservancy’s West Virginia Stewardship Manager Mike Powell, he wasn’t seeing things as rose-tinted as me.  His focus, like a physician or mechanic, was properly on what’s not so lovely.  Trained scientist that he is, he pointed out several concerns as we walked both trails.  Invasive plants, tree-killing insects, liability hazards, and sections of the trail that are beyond the property line - these were the flaws he spotted. 

I paid particular attention to Mike’s concerns, since in effect he will be turning some of these over to me.  I’ve agreed to make this my new home preserve for trail maintenance.  It’s the closest one to my house – a mere forty five minute drive.  Every few months I plan on returning to Ice Mountain to help clear its trails and try to address some of Mike’s other concerns with the property.  I’m just one man, but I’ll do what I can.

This visit was not solely about spotting blemishes though.  Several times over the hours we spent together Mike made reference to how beautiful he found the property to be.  Like a good doctor, he balanced the bad news with plenty of good.    

My next visit to Ice Mountain will involve focusing on spotting problems.  I’ll have to remove the rose-tinted glasses.  But I’m certain that, like Mike, I’ll still be able to look past the blemishes and revel in the true beauty of Ice Mountain.  


Location: North River Mills, WV 26704, USA

Comments

  1. UnknownApril 11, 2016 at 3:35 PM

    Ice mountain is a thing? That's totally crazy to me. How cool.

    ReplyDelete

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