Blue Ridge Country March/April 2020 - 26

West Virginia
BOTTOM: Panoramic view of
Morgantown, West Virginia shows
the Coliseum Arena and campus
of West Virginia University as the
Monongahela flows by.
BELOW: Young John-John salutes
his father at Morgantown's JFK
Memorial.

LEONARD & LAURIE ADKINS

26

BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM

Morgantown may well be the king of river
walks. Several different streamside trails,
with a combined mileage of more than
45 miles, connect with the Caperton Trail.
The latter, a paved pathway, parallels the
Monongahela River for close to six miles,
taking in just about everything that makes a
river walk worthwhile.
A veggie Reuben and a cheese Panini
lunch at Terra Café began our exploration
of the route near its northern end. The
emotionally charged JFK Memorial brought
forward progress to a halt just a few
moments after we started, as the life-size
sculpture depicts young John-John saluting
his slain father.
The Core Arboretum's three miles of dirt
pathways drew us off the Caperton Trail to
wander through 95 acres of hillside and
floodplain. We were here in early fall, so
the conservation area's celebrated spring
flowers were long gone, but we were
compensated by autumn's colorful leaves.
Back on the main route, Laurie did some
holiday gift buying at the Quilt Shop in
Seneca Center, a repurposed glass factory.
It beckons trailside with boutique shops
and restaurants, along with an exhibit of
products from the area's many former
glassworks.
The Historic Downtown Morgantown
Walking Tour (downtownmorgantown.com)
encouraged another detour, which led to
more shopping in the circa 1785 Old Stone
House. Proceeds from the sale of items
by regional artists are donated to local
charities.

After returning to the trail, we watched
herons, ducks and kingfishers float by the
river's edge, while farther out, huge coal
barges drifted by. We arrived at Table 9 just
as dinner time rolled around. Its picture
windows and patio kept our focus on the
river as local brews poured freely from the
taps.
The day came to an end at the Marriott
at Waterfront Place, located a short distance
from the trail's southern end. The hotel's
shuttle drivers, who usually provide rides to
the airport, will take guests to points along
the Caperton Trail if their schedule permits.
The conversation with our driver, WVU
student Mike Barno, turned to why he
chose to go to school in Morgantown.
"I grew up in northeast Ohio and always
liked to hike, but almost everything near
home was cornfields," he told us. "I came
here because, first of all, I liked the idea of
going to a big school located within a small
town, but also because I knew that I could
be hiking on a trail just a few minutes' walk
from my room."

South Carolina

Unlike the wide Tennessee River as it passes
through Chattanooga, the Reedy River in
Greenville is, at times, not much wider than
a creek. But, that's a good thing. It means
it's easier to become more intimately
acquainted with it. The best way to do that
is to walk the three mile downtown portion
of the 21-mile Swamp Rabbit Trail.
The five-minute walk from the Hyatt
Regency on Main Street to the trail goes
by the Mast General Store, M. Judson
Booksellers and O. P. Taylor's Toys-all
places we made note of to visit later in the
day.
After a breakfast of coffee and bagels
at Spill the Beans, we sauntered along the
trail to Reedy River Falls. Not many cities
can boast of a waterfall flowing through
downtown, so it only makes sense that
Greenville has wisely decided to capitalize
on it. Millions of dollars were spent creating
upscale 32-acre Falls Park, replete with
terraced levels and eye-pleasing natural
landscaping. Soaring above all this is a
pedestrian bridge unlike any other in the
United States. The gently-curving Liberty
Bridge appears to float above the falls, its
concrete deck held in place by a single
suspension cable.
http://www.downtownmorgantown.com http://www.BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM
Blue Ridge Country March/April 2020

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