Things to do and see Guest Rooms House History and Tour Published Articles Eco-Friendly Practices Prices and Directions

Thorn Run Inn "Nestled at the foot of Knobley Mountain is a place for people who hunger for country quiet." Charleston Gazette

Thorn Run Inn is a vintage West Virginian farmhouse built in 1871. With five guestrooms and a cabin, it sits on 20 hilly acres overlooking a mosaic of farmland and forest in the Northern Potomac Highlands. This little piece of heaven is on a country road 18 miles northwest of Petersburg, WV. People are scarce and deer are plentiful. Amenities include:
• a pool,
• a fishing pond,
• a large commons room with a wood stove, baby grand piano and guitar,
• a library with gas fireplace and one-shelf bookstore,
• a telescope,
• two solar powered lawn mowers (sheep),
• an on-site nature trail and nature center,
• optional candle-lit dinners featuring traditional dishes and a selection of African specialties learned first-hand overseas,
• thunderous peace and quiet, and
• abundant opportunities for day trips into the Potomac Highlands.
This summary with photos continues below, with information on the house, activities, our eco-friendly practices, prices, what's new (updated 3/10),  your hosts, and the Thorn Run Inn quiz  You can go to the links above for more detailed descriptions.  Enjoy!

The House and Property  At Thorn Run Inn the furniture and the atmosphere are comfortable and rustic. There are hardwood floors throughout with plenty of places to hide away.  Each large guestroom has two full-sized windows that open onto a rural landscape. There are rooms with a private bath, and slightly discounted rooms that share a bath. We have a selection of queen-sized beds, full-sized beds, and twins.  You can learn more about the house and guest rooms with our house history and walking tour or on the guest rooms page.

We prepare a hearty full country breakfast that includes fresh baked muffins or scones made from scratch.  Given a little advance notice, can also serve dinners. Dinner choices include a number of African dishes. We serve meals in our dining room, on the side porch, or in the orchard and you are welcome to come in slippers or hiking boots if you prefer.

Outside,  serene hay fields and character-laden oaks that you pass on your way to Thorn Run make it easy to forget the traffic and noise of the city.  The upper portion of our 20 acres is deer-rich oak-maple woodland and the lower portion is soft hay-fields.  The grounds give you abundant opportunities to look out over expansive scenes or focus in on small pockets of beauty. And then there is the quiet. People find it almost startling to be surrounded by such open yet silent spaces.

Our location is also a great place from which to make short day trips. Within 28 miles of Thorn Run Inn you can hike Blackwater Falls State Park, Dolly Sods Wilderness Area, Greenland Gap Nature Preserve, The American Discovery Trail, Seneca Rocks and more. Country road biking begins at our front door. There is a weekly auction and a scattering of general stores full of surprises. Local outfitters stand ready to give you what you need for downhill and cross-county skiing, canoeing, kayaking, biking and fishing. Golfing and antiquing are easy options as is rock climbing, swimming, caving and birding. For a complete description of things to do in the area, including photos and links, you can go to our activities page.

We make a special effort to run an environmentally sensitive business. We do simple things like "reduce, reuse, and recycle" using for example, liquid soap, recycling much of our trash, and outfitting rooms with treasures found at auction.  We have also shrunk the size of our lawn and avoid the use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers.  We run the Inn using gas-stingy cars. Our meals use as many organically produced ingredients as possible...  For a more comprehensive description, check our eco-friendly practices page.

Our rooms range from $80 to $100 dollars for double occupancy.  Full country-style breakfasts are included and suppers can be had with advanced notice for $18 per person.  We also have a two-bedroom cabin that starts at $85--fresh baked muffins or scones are included as is full access to the main house.  Suppers include fresh baked bread, a soup or salad, main course, and fresh-made dessert. Main course selections range from a spinach and walnut lasagna to a number of African dishes. We are located about 18 miles northwest of Petersburg. From Rt. 50 at Ridgeville, go south 12 miles on Knobley Road. From Rt. 42 at Maysville go north 8 miles on Knobley Road. Our prices and directions page offers additional information on prices, policies, and a set of detailed directions including popular scenic shortcuts.

Finally, a special note for our visitors from overseas... West Virginia consistently scores the lowest in many crime statistics making it one of the safest places to visit in the US. And Thorn Run Inn is well under 3 hours from Washington Dulles airport and only slightly further from the Pittsburgh International Airport. The international guests we have had have been extremely pleased to get an authentic picture of rural America. By the way, we speak functional French and some Spanish.

If you would like to contact us for more information you can phone at (304) 749-7733 or e-mail at narope@aol.com. Our mailing address is HC 75 Box 125, New Creek, West Virginia 26743.

What's New at Thorn Run Inn

Spring is springing, thank goodness. A recent morning saw three large flocks of Canada geese fly over head in the space of ten minutes. Just the other day we saw our first bluebirds of the year flit in front of the car--we have high hopes that a pair will take up residence in a new birdhouse just off the side porch. Flowers are poking their tops out of the cold ground, and soon we will be seeing redbud blossoms lining the roads.

Also, the town of Petersburg now has some offerings that we are happy to point out. Along with the small but wonderful art gallery which we are just now getting around to talking about (our apologies!) is Peddlers Crossing, and the South Side Depot. Peddlers Crossing has beautiful antique wood products for sale and a large section devoted to a collection of general store memorabilia--no joke it is excellent. The South Side Depot is in a large old woodframe train station that is now completely refurbished. Even if it were empty it would be worth viewing, but it is not empty. There are plenty of  West Virginia crafts at a range of prices.
Other events and things include:

• Our Seventh Annual Winter/Spring Bed and Brew weekend is scheduled for April 17th featuring, for the first time ever, Deep Creek Brewing from Deep Creek, Maryland (www.deepcreekbrewing.com).  The evening will begin around 6:30 and feature Brewmaster Jason Weissberg and his slate of 7 brews. At this point we know we will have:
• Holy Cow IPA - Holy Cow is aggressively hopped with American varietal hops to give it a pronounced bitterness. It has crisp citrus aromas and a balancing malt profile
•  Angry Clown Brown - This has a full rich malt flavor with a finish that is both nutty and smoothly hoppy.
•  Youghiogheny Red - This American-style Amber Ale is brewed using seven different grains to give it a complex malt profile, balanced by a subtle hop bitterness that comes through in the finish.
•  White Dog Wheat - This Wheat Beer is an unfiltered ale giving it a slightly cloudy appearance. The flavor profile is smooth and refreshing with just a hint of citrus.
•  Deep Creek Gold - This refreshing gold ale is characterized by a straw color and malt flavor, yet is light in body with a low hop level.
•  Alt Man Winter - This is a classic German Alt Bier. It is sweet and strong with a spicy dry finish and embracing alcohol flavor.
• And an as-yet-to-be-named Scottish Ale. This is a hearty ale with a strong malt profile and just a hint of smoked peat lingering in the finish.
The evening's program will include abundant gourmet snacks from the kitchen and relaxed discussion on the art of brewing. Also included is a room for the night at the Inn with full country breakfast the next day. Cost is $140 for two people.

We are including the optional Friday night "pre-tasting". This very popular evening starts at 9 PM, or when the first bottle gets opened, on Friday the 16th. It consists of everyone present sharing their best home brew, or their personal favorite for the non-brewers, with the rest of the group.   And by the way, your room Friday night is * half price *.

It simply doesn't get any better than this... You may have read about it in the Mid-Atlantic Brewing News--now come and check it out for yourself!  If this sounds interesting let us know quick!
 

• There is a dizzying schedule of fairs and festivals throughout much of the year.  Nature, history, crafts, food, you name it there is a festival.  These events are typically excellent windows on WV.  The two coming soon are the ...
• Maple Syrup Festival  March 20 and 21.  Along with neat demonstrations, which in the past have included blacksmithing, chain saw sculpture, and world-class archery, you get a whole bunch of maple syrup making.
• The Spring Mountain Festival April 23rd.  This is the County's single biggest festival-type affair and it is worth the trip.  It is an authentic county fair with livestock, food judging, music, crafts and a whole bunch of special attractions.  It is also an excellent reason to get the heck out to the country and enjoy the vastly under appreciated spring colors.For  information on anything else that might be happening during your visit give us a call, or you can check the calendar of events on the West Virginia Web or our own local newspaper's web site at http://www.gcpress.wvweb.net.

• Spring is ramp time in the Highlands.  Ramps are kind of like scallions and kind of like garlic.  They grow at high elevations in the Applachians, get harvested, and cooked for a multitude of fundraisers.  The best one we have experienced is at the Maysville Fire Department in mid-April, but they go on for a number of weeks, so if you are curious let us know.
• We refinished the floor in the Sunrise Room and rearranged furniture to make better use of space. And we have redone the Mountain Room--a queen-sized bed and green-tinted walls have replaced the full-sized bed and rose walls pictured on our guest room page. Thus, the photos of these rooms on our Guest Rooms page are temporarily out of date!
• New links to be consolidated into our website includes Tom Kicks Military Museum.  An amazing collection of military memorabilia and equipment located just outside Petersburg.
• You can look at Star Date to preview the coming week's night sky.
• For the latest on weather, we consult Weather.com. Click on the following for weather around Thorn Run Inn, Seneca Rocks, Greenland Gap or at Blackwater Falls, Dolly Sods, and Davis.

Your Hosts  Peter and Robin met in south Texas during a training program for prospective Peace Corps Volunteers. After a two-year letter writing campaign while Robin worked as a forester in Senegal, she agreed to marry Peter and they settled briefly in Seattle. They then moved back to the East Coast and earned graduate degrees in forestry. Robin got a job with the International Forestry Branch of the US Forest Service, and Peter landed a job as a Forestry Program Specialist in Peace Corps' technical support office. Over the years Robin and Peter have been fortunate enough to live and work in 20 countries including Albania, Belize, Kenya, Kazakstan, Kyrgystan, Madagascar, and Tanzania. It was during this work that they began to explore how tourism through small-scale Inns and B&Bs could promote both local economic development and environmental conservation--their two priorities. Thorn Run Inn is an expression of their commitment to these priorities, and their optimism in the viability of the Inn and B&B approach.

The Thorn Run Inn Quiz  You can find the answers to all of these questions on the web pages listed below or on a page that is directly linked to them. Some are very easy and one or two will take some searching...

1. What is a "water gap"?
2. What is there to do at "The Falls"?
3. What is ecotourism?
4. Who was born right up the street and what did this person have to do with the birth of West Virginia?
5. List three eco-friendly practices employed at Thorn Run Inn.
6. How high are Seneca Rocks?
7. What is the link between this house and George Washington?