[Pics from Sat. Night] [1999 10K Run] [1998 10K Run]
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| The road to Helvetia as I remembered it from 1998 |
Helvetia lies in an isolated valley in southwest Randolph County. They often reference Buckhannon when describing its location, but it really isn't close to anywhere. This remote mountain setting was what reminded early Swiss immigrants of home. In 1869 they settled into this new community and called it Helvetia.
Having done a little persuading, I secured my position as WVOutside
reporter for the Helvetia
10K Mountain Run once again in 1999, and I was prepared to make the
most of it. I had heard of the festivities that are held during the
two day Helvetia Fair and was eager to see more than just the run.
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| We heard there was a party in Helvetia |
With a little coaxing (and gas money), Mary agreed to drive our van down to the fair for us. She took off with all our overnight gear and cameras on Friday evening. We now had no choice but to ride out for a rendezvous in Helvetia on Saturday. We were unsure what would be waiting for us when we arrived, but we were prepared for primitive camping and a relaxing evening in the country.
We were up bright and early on Saturday, fixed a big pancake breakfast
and went over our plans one last time. Our route would begin with a
long climb out of Morgantown on the Kingwood Pike to the Preston
County line. From there it was on to Reedsville and a right turn onto
Rt. 92 South heading toward Elkins and Rt. 33. I knew this route
well, across Rt. 50 and on through Belington, these hills were not too
imposing. That would take care of the first 60 or 65 miles to get us
to Rt. 33, but what remained was not familiar ground. A series of
country roads would continue our journey south through towns like
Coalton, Mabie, Blue Rock, and Star for the final 30 or so miles to
Helvetia.
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| What amenities would be waiting? |
Another 15 miles and we reached the intersection with Rt. 50 and our first stop to refuel. The usual energy drink along with some Little Debbie snacks and a Yoo-hoo and we were feeling ready to conquer anything the road could put in our path. About all we were missing at this point was a little sunscreen.
It was now after noon and we were south of 50 on our way toward
Belington and Rt. 33. By my crude calculations I had us arriving
at the 33 intersection around 2pm. It was a good guess, but arriving
at the Sheetz in Belington at
a quarter past one, with a good 60+ miles on our legs, an extended
lunch break was in order.
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| They told us everyone has fun at the Helvetia Fair |
We pushed on to 33 just before 2:00pm and it wasn't long before we were on 33 East heading toward the Norton exit and our route that would continue taking us south. Soon after finding our way onto CR 53 with signs directing us toward Coalton and Pumpkintown, Chas convinced me that a quick nap under a shade tree would be a good post-lunch refresher. I didn't mind, it wasn't much after 2:00pm and we had plenty of time to finish the estimated 25 miles to Helvetia.
It was close to 3:00 when Chas decided it was time to get back in the
saddle. I didn't feel any more rested than before, but a little
stretching certainly hadn't hurt. Chas, however, still seemed to be
missing that foregone Yoo-hoo opportunity back at lunch in Belington.
We knew that there was going to be very little in the way of
conveniences for the remainder of the ride.
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| We had no idea what we were headed into... |
As we made the turn onto Mill Creek Road (CR 46) and saw the first sign that pointed the way to Helvetia, everything seemed good for a moment. Soon the task at hand consumed us again and our only thoughts were back to surviving yet another climb. Finally we reached a climb that seemed to have the characteristics of what I had noted on the map as our final mountain ascent. Heading west up the southern face of a ridge along a continuous incline, I mentioned to Chas that I thought this might be the final climb. In hindsight it was just a cruel joke for Chas who now appeared to be suffering a bit in the late afternoon shadows.
But I could see what looked like a right-hand switch back up ahead,
this had to be it. As I pushed on ahead I watched as the bend in the
road simply bent back again as the road snaked up through several
turns on a brutal slope. The few homes along the way were all that
seemed to make up what was noted on the map as Blue Rock. We were
still several miles from Star and the foot of yet another huge climb.
I waited for Chas at the top knowing he wouldn't like the news he
would be receiving when he joined me.
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| We wouldn't be the only tired folks in Helvetia |
Saying very little, we went about our business and made our way up one pedal stoke at a time. With my watch now saying somewhere around 6:00pm, I realized our adventure had now consumed over nine hours. Not knowing the hospitalities that were awaiting us when we would finally reach our destination, we crept on toward what we hoped would be a waiting van and some needed nourishment and rest.
We conquered the final ascent, slowly, but we made it. It was now an
easy roll into Helvetia and we only hoped that our van would be easily
located once in town. Fortunately for us, Mary is a most dependable
friend and the van couldn't have been easier to find if it had been
blocking the middle of the road. We quickly put the bikes aside and
relaxed in the evening shade with all the amenities that we had sent
ahead.
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| Rogers' guests did plenty of entertaining |
The rest of the evening was spent meeting new friends, learning to square dance, listening to all varieties of live music, telling stories and jokes around campfires, and gobbling up plentiful snacks and drinks. How is it that two weary travelers can wander into such a remote small town and be made to feel as though they're old friends just back for a visit? You could call it "Helvetia hospitality", but whatever it is, we sure hope it can always be found tucked away in a little valley in West Virginia.