April 26, 2025
April 27, 2024
April 29, 2023
April 30, 2022
August 21, 2021
April 27, 2019
April 28, 2018
April 8, 2017
April 16, 2016
Check out a video of the race by Michael Meyer:
And a race report by Mark Sutyak:
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April 26, 2025
April 27, 2024
April 29, 2023
April 30, 2022
August 21, 2021
April 27, 2019
April 28, 2018
April 8, 2017
April 20, 2016
11:00 am: Guided Tree Identification Hike
12:00 pm: Guided “Cool Spots” Hike
2:00 pm: Guided Historic Structures in the Overlook Area Hike
12:00 pm – 2:00 pm: Avian Conservation Center of Appalachia, Raptor Demonstration
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm: Kids’ Trick or Treat Trail
11:00 am – 3:00 pm: Fall Crafts for Kids
11:00 am – 3:00 pm: Food and Hot Drinks Sale
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February 7th, 10:00-4:00
Get outside and have some winter fun at the 2026 Coopers Rock Winterfest. After over a
decade based out of the Day Use Parking Lot near I-68, the annual Coopers Rock Winterfest
will now be held in the Overlook Area, including Pavilion #1.
*This winter festival is held ‘snow or no snow’, as guided hikes and some activities can be held
regardless of snow.
*This is a FREE event AND a fundraiser. No charge for any activities. To raise funds for
improvements in Rhododendron Campground, we welcome your patronage at our pop-up Coopers Rock Cafe’ (in Pavilion #1) and your donations as well.
*Winter Fashion Alert!!… wear your vintage, colorful, unusual winter clothes to add winter spirit to the gathering.
*With Snow Event Schedule*
*Try Out Cross-Country Skiing /gear & instruction provided, 10-3
*Sledding / some sleds provided, 10-4
*Snowman Zone, adjacent to Pavilion 1, 10-4
*Hike Through a Rock Maze. 10-11
*Winter Tree ID Hike — visit some of the two dozen native tree species in the
canyon rimrock environment. 11-12
*Snowman Piñata — kids are welcome to take a few swings with our hockey stick at the
piñata to try and free all the candy hidden inside. 12-12:30
*Winter Tree ID Hike — visit some of the two dozen native tree species in the
canyon rimrock environment. 1-2
*How To Measure A Tree — measure the biggest trees in the Overlook Picnic Area in
3 different ways and combine the 3 numbers to get Total Score. Which tree in this area is the
biggest? 1-2
*Women’s Frying Pan Toss — This event began at the Saranac Lake, NY winter festival
over 100 years ago. We carry on the fun in WV. 3-3:30
*Group Ski “In Search of the Missing Skisquatch”, 4
*Without Snow Event Schedule*
*Try Out Disc Golf at Day Use Parking Lot, 12-3
*Hike Through a Rock Maze. 10-11
*Winter Tree ID Hike — visit some of the two dozen native tree species in the
canyon rimrock environment. 11-12
*Snowman Piñata — kids are welcome to take a few swings with our hockey stick at the
piñata to try and free all the candy hidden inside. 12-12:30
*Winter Tree ID Hike — visit some of the two dozen native tree species in the
canyon rimrock environment. 1-2
*How To Measure A Tree — measure the biggest trees in the Overlook Picnic Area in
3 different ways and combine the 3 numbers to get Total Score. Which tree in this area is the
biggest? 1-2
*Women’s Frying Pan Toss — This event began at the Saranac Lake, NY winter festival
over 100 years ago. We carry on the fun in WV. 2-2:30
]]>
by Adam Polinski
The Coopers Rock Overlook, the flat stone walkway that leads to it, and the nearby pair of
log pavilions, are the most famous parts of the Coopers Rock Historic District — an area
designated as such due to its density of buildings and structures built in the 1930s and 40s by
the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).. But there are other works of the CCC within that area
which were built at the same time that also contribute to the lovely combination of history and
nature that comprise the Coopers Rock Overlook Area.
“What is that cute little round building?”
The most striking and memorable creation from among the other structures built by the men
of the CCC is neither huge nor grand. Instead, it is a small wonder— a round building with a
conical roof that attracts the attention of anyone nearby and which is beloved by practically
everyone.
Within the Overlook Picnic Area, directly adjacent to Roadside Trail, and 300’ east of the
restroom, this round building is set upon a flat, circular site. Not only is it the only circular
building in Coopers Rock State Forest, it’s the only circular building constructed of stone on any
public land in the area.
“That’s where we put the kids who don’t follow the rules!” —Superintendent emeritus Al Kerns
Although virtually every single person who sees this building is attracted to it, few know why it
was built, what it was for, or who built it. Al Kerns was the Superintendent at Coopers Rock for
over 20 years, and when visitors asked him what the building was for, he had an answer
ready-to-go, accompanied by a wink and a grin: “That’s where we put the kids who don’t follow
the rules!” The presence of iron bars over the windows supported this narrative, but they were
actually meant to keep people (and animals) out, not keep them in.
“…visitors to Coopers Rock were going to need to get drinking water somehow,
somewhere.”
The real reason for the building is that, when the State of West Virginia purchased over
12,000 acres from the Kendall Lumber Company in 1936, and established it as a State Forest
with a destination-worthy attraction in the Overlook, they realized that visitors to Coopers Rock
were going to need to get drinking water somehow, somewhere.
Someone had to have discovered the spring as a drinking water source either early on in the
period of CCC work in the Overlook Area — 1936-42 — or even before that, as the Coopers
Rock Overlook was a destination reached by horseback dating back into the 19th century.
Horses and weary travelers might have quenched their thirsts at a surface spring that might
have been flowing more strongly then than now. If not already known by 1936, considering that
several dozen CCC men were working at and near the Overlook for several years, there was a
lot of incentive to find a source of potable water close to the jobsite. At any rate, a source of
water deemed clean and dependable was found, and the CCC design around the water source
makes the site a cut above the ordinary.
“Each side of the roof is like a pizza slice tilted upward, with the 12 pizza slice points meeting
in the center and collectively forming the apex.”
A flat circular pad of approximately 40’ diameter was created by digging out of the hillside
and filling in below. The flat circle with the round building in the center sets the building into the
landscape in a simple, aesthetic way.
The door into the spring house opens to the south, and five windows with shutters are
symmetrically spaced around the other sides of the cylinder.
The roof is one of the design elements that gives this building its distinctive look — it has 12
sides. Each side of the roof is like a pizza slice tilted upward, with the 12 pizza slice points
meeting in the center and collectively forming the apex.
My knowledge about the inner workings of the Spring House and its exact history are a
work-in-progress, so the following does contain an element of speculation.
The Spring House at first functioned as a protected well with a bucket lowered on a chain or
rope down to the water, then was manually hoisted up and dumped into a concrete basin just
below floor level, that has over a cubic yard of capacity. Water to drink was ladled from that
storage tank.
At some point after the original construction, when electricity first reached The Overlook
Area, electric power was added to the mechanism that hoisted the water up from the depths of
the well, making it easier to get water.
Sometime in the 1950s (?), the water tank across from McCollum Campground and above
the reservoir, and its associated network of pipes, was completed. Water fountains were then
installed adjacent to the Concession Stand (now called The Trading Post), and below Pavilion
#3, and water was also supplied to the concession stand building and to the picnic area
restroom building.
“…the building… sat dormant, changing little and ageing slowly.”
Once the water tank went online, it rendered the charming round Spring House building
obsolete as a source of water. I’m not sure what happened next, but for the ensuing decades,
the building has largely sat dormant, changing little and ageing slowly. It did host an antenna
with some instrumentation of some sort, perhaps weather monitoring technology, but that was
short-lived. Over time, the green shingles slowly decayed, 4 of the 5 shutters went missing, and
sticks, stones, and litter were occasionally thrown through the windows. Through it all, the stone
construction has stood the test of time. Not so for the roof, shutters, and door, though.
A longtime fan of Coopers Rock contacted the Foundation and expressed interest in
sponsoring a project. A Board Member met with this individual, a walk throughout the greater
Overlook Area ensued, and a project was chosen — the restoration of the shutters, door, and
roof of ‘that little round stone building with the pointed roof’. This anonymous individual became
the benefactor of the Spring House restoration project.
With this funding source established, the search began for some tradesmen with the
specialized skills needed for historic restoration. The search ended with RDK, llc., based out of
Morgantown. Meetings with the Superintendent, members of the CRF Board, and RDK occurred
next … and then plans were made, followed by handshakes all around.
“Like the door, each shutter was also built with ship-lap joinery and battens…”
Work began on the shutters and door first. Hemlock was chosen as the wood type, partly
based on the likelihood that it was commonly used for such applications in the 1930s, as it was
cheap, abundant, and durable. The planks of the shutters and the door are joined by ship-lap
joints, which are covered by battens. The wood was carefully stained and covered with several
coats of protective finish. The original hinges for the door were cleaned up and re-used. Like the
door, each shutter was also built with ship-lap joinery and battens, but because the original
hinges were long gone, original period-piece barn strap hinges and pintles were purchased from
a source in eastern PA. A close examination of the new shutters reveals that the outer edges of
each one are customized to swing open and shut in their own windows, thus accounting for the
variability in the rock edges surrounding each window. All 6 wooden pieces are now a rich, deep
brown color that handsomely complements the lighter colors of the sandstone blocks.
The new roof is also brown, and not the old green color, so as to match all the other buildings
in the Historic District managed by the DNR.
Few roofs so small are as complicated to work on as this steep, 12-sided conical structure.
Each side is slightly different in dimension than the other sides, mainly because the trusses are
5” diameter logs instead of thinner, milled lumber. The roof was substantially strengthened with
the application of construction adhesive in many places, the replacement of many boards with
⅝” osb plywood, and lots of well-placed 16-penny nails and 8-penny nails. After those repairs,
shingles were applied in a trim, clean manner that was complicated to execute. The final result
is that the shingles from all 12 sides meet in an apex, which is capped off by a custom-made
12-sided metal cap that terminates in a skyward point.
The solid and dependable work, done by RDK, llc., in an aesthetic and historically accurate
manner, should enable this wonderful little building to last at least another 80 years.
The Coopers Rock Foundation wishes to thank the project benefactor, RDK, llc., and
Coopers Rock Superintendent Brad Atkins, for their support, efforts, and cooperation during this
project.
*********************
Now that the historic restoration of this building has been completed, the question of “what
next?” rises to the fore. CRF is cleaning up the inside so that it is presentable to the public as a
historic artifact. Interpretive signage that explains who built the building, when and why, and how
it was used — is a priority. Establishing times for Open House access so that the public can see
the inside is also a possibility. While those questions will be answered in the future, three cheers
to the fact that a valuable piece of the past has been preserved, and everyone’s favorite little
round building at Coopers Rock will stand for many years to come.
– Statistics & Discussion–
Roadside Trail tallies, and discussion:
*9 individual days when work occurred on the trail.
*179.75 Hours
*82 separate drainage features were raked out, and in most cases, re-dug and expanded.
These range in size from small dips with a 6’ ditch, to complicated drainage systems composed
of dips, a culvert, and many dozens of feet of drainage ditches. Each counts as one out of those
82. The number 82 doesn’t even include the northernmost half mile, where there are dozens
more drainage features. The total number on the entire trail is way over 100. All of them are
necessary.
*In the Conifer Section of the trail, on the hill between Reservoir Parking Lot and the water tank,
volunteer trailworkers used mineral soil high in shale and clay, from the adjacent quarry, to cover
some of the bumpy ‘washboard’ sections of the trail. This restored the original difficulty level for
ascending this part of the trail by mountain bike. More of the same work, which depends on a
volunteer group bucket brigade to bring the material from the adjacent quarry to the trail, will be
done in 2024.
*A short segment of roughly 350’ of trail was moved out of the field-like managed wildlife
opening, by Raven Rock Parking Lot, and rerouted 50’ to the north of the opening, so the trail
now goes around the open field, staying in the forest, instead of going straight through it. As a
byproduct of this reroute, a few hundred feet were added to the overall length of the trail,
bringing it very close to exactly 5 Kilometers.
*The southernmost 225’ of the trail, in the Overlook Picnic Area, was clarified and
re-emphasized, with the addition of many dozens of rocks ‘planted’ along the trail borders, and
the addition of off-white gravel all along the trail borders.
This year’s volunteers were wonderful and provided considerable essential labor to maintain
and also improve this key trail. I hope to do even better in 2024, especially with early November
drainage ditch clearing after leaf-fall and before Buck Season/Thanksgiving.
Rhododendron Campground tallies and tasks completed:
*7 individual days when work occurred in the campground
*121 Hours
Work performed included: installing 12 lantern posts, re-opening and rerouting a segment of
Restroom Trail, constructing a stone patio by a new water fountain, transplanting hemlock
saplings into privacy barriers in front of some campsites, digging postholes for a kiosk, and
digging a 50’ drainage ditch. In 2024, volunteers and I will focus on completing the remaining 13
lantern posts, painting all of them, and adding finishing touches to the stone patio.
Overlook Picnic Area tree saplings:
*3 work sessions were held, oriented around maintaining the tree saplings we’ve been planting
and maintaining in the Overlook Picnic Area since April 2012.
* 83.5 Hours were spent working on: replacing old green plastic fencing with new black wire
fencing around two of the enclosures, permanently removing fencing from around one of the
enclosures, fixing or replacing individual tree fencing cylinders around dozens of trees, weeding
three of the enclosures, mulching two of the enclosures, and planting a small number of oak
saplings. As of the end of 2023, I don’t know the precise number of living trees we’ve
established, but between 100 and 200 trees, all native species, are established and growing
inside the Overlook Picnic Area due to this ongoing effort. There is now a sufficient stockpile of
fencing, stakes, tools, and saplings, that our tree-planting efforts there and elsewhere are set up
to continue for several more years.
Saturday, February 10th, 10:00-4:00
Based out of the Day Use Parking Lot – only ¼-mile from I-68
Get outside and have fun with other winter lovers, and ski, hike, sled, throw some snowballs, and drink hot coffee around a fire. It’s the 12th annual Coopers Rock WinterFest, hosted by the Coopers Rock Foundation (coopersrock.org). EVENTS ARE FREE, including Try Out Cross-Country Skiing. Funds raised by donations, snowshoe raffle, and food and drink sales at the Warming Fire, benefit improvements at Rhododendron Campground.
NEW FOR 2024: *Vintage Winter Clothing still has a place and it’s at WinterFest! Retro, Unusual, International, Vintage, Bright — wear it to Coopers Rock! #PhotoOp!
*SNOWSHOE RAFFLE — win a pair of snowshoes worth over $100 for only $5/ticket.
SNOWY SCHEDULE 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Try Out Cross-Country Skiing 10:00–4:00.
Snowball Target Range 10:00–4:00.
Sledding 10:00–4:00.
Snowman Zone 10:00–4:00.
Try Out Disc Golf 10:00—4:00
Hike To Rock Maze 10:00—11:00
Learn To Measure A Tree 10:00—11:00
Winter Tree I.D. Walking Classroom 11:00—12:00
Snowman Pinata 12:00—12:30
Snowshoe Raffle Winning Ticket Drawing 12:45
Winter Tree I.D. Walking Classroom 1:00—2:00
Mass-Start Downhill Dash Cross-Country Skiing Race 2:00—2:30*
Women’s Frying Pan Toss 3:00—3:30
*The Mass-Start Downhill Dash uses the north-facing powerline corridor ¼ mile west of Day Use Parking Lot. 2:00 Start Time. ALL xc-skiers welcome – the course can handle 40 skiers. Win a prize.
NO SNOW SCHEDULE 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
Try Out Disc Golf 10:00–3:00
Snowball Target Range w/ beanbags 10:00—3:00
Hike To Rock Maze 10:00–11:00
Learn To Measure A Tree 10:00—11:00
Winter Tree I.D. Walking Classroom 11:00–12:00
Snowman Pinata 12:00—12:30
Snowshoe Raffle Winning Ticket Drawing 12:45
Winter Tree ID Walking Classroom 1:00—2:00
Women’s Frying Pan Toss 2:00—2:30
]]>Kids’ Halloween costume contest (1:00 pm at Pavilion #2)
Pumpkin toss
Scavenger hunt
Kids’ crafts
Bio Blitz citizen science activity (see description below)
Tree identification nature walk (12:00 noon at Pavilion #2)
Food and bake sale
Come join a BioBlitz! The goals of this citizen science BioBlitz are to encourage community participation in a free, fun and hands-on education activity that will help us discover and learn more about nature at the Coopers Rock State Forest. This event will focus on sampling a diverse but targeted set of the natural world, including birds, mushrooms, trees and plants. Come learn how you can participate in the scientific process and help scientists with data collection by exploring the natural world. In this fun and immersive learning experience, participants will learn how to identify and upload photos of species they find. Downloading the iNaturalist app in advance would be helpful, but not critical.
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— by Adam Polinski
36 volunteers combined their efforts to improve trails at Coopers Rock, on the afternoon of April 20th. The Coopers Rock Foundation was the beneficiary of the organizational efforts of The United Way, who connected volunteers with numerous organizations in the Morgantown community on that day — just two days before Earth Day. The WVU Biochemistry Department sent 32 volunteers to work on Coopers Rock trails..
To help manage a large number of people spread across 3 miles of trails, CRF benefited from three Co-Leaders — one each from The United Way, the Friends of Deckers Creek and the West Virginia Land Trust.
With shovels, rakes, mattocks — and drinking water, the volunteers took to the trails at noon. Almost 3 hilly miles of trails were tended to — Advanced Ski Trail from the paved road crossing down to the Iron Furnace, all of Intermediate Ski Trail, and a segment of Headwaters Trail. All the drainage ditches, culverts, water bars, and dips were cleaned out, as well as the spaces beneath bridges. Some new dips were also dug into the trailbed, to intercept any water on the trails in order to steer it off the low side.
The lower section of Advanced Ski Trail particularly benefited, as it had been years since a trail crew did any drainage maintenance in there.
Some of the afternoon was spent talking about subjects such as Coopers Rock news, forest ecology, and the seasonal changes that come with Springtime. Ice water was a welcome surprise at 5:00 quitting time, provided by the Biochemistry Department, and as the high temperature of the sunny day was around 80 degrees, a few gallons were immediately consumed.
It was a productive day with plenty of good conversation all around, and everybody got a workout.
Combining the walking and talking with the working, 180 Hours were spent on the job by the day’s volunteers.
CRF is grateful for the assistance from Servando Arrendondo of United Way, Brian Hurley of FODC, and Rick Landenberger of the WVLT. And a big thanks to the group who worked all afternoon for the betterment of the Coopers Rock trail system — the WVU Biochemistry Department.
]]>- Finished construction of a historical replica of a wooden entryway over the main road into the state forest designed to resemble an original CCC entryway.
- Provided funding for electricity to be extended to the restrooms at Rhododendron Campground
- Disc golf course opened on 71 acres of what used to be DOF managed lands in conjunction with the Mountain Goats Disc Golf Club.
- Organized over 400 Hours of work performed by the CRF Volunteer Trail work program including the roadside trail, Rhododendron trail, and tent pad construction at the Rhododendron Campground
Events held during 2022:
- Winterfest in February – cross country skiing, sledding, winter tree ID hike, women’s frying pan toss
- Fund raising trail race in April (50 Km and half marathon)
- Celebration of the Outdoors in October – raptor demonstration, guided hikes, kids’ activities
- Fundraiser at the Morgantown Art Bar in November
Current projects being pursued:
- Obtaining funding and a contractor to renovate overlook bathrooms.
- Tree planting on harvested timber areas of the forest.
- Creation of a trail map of the forest