Just a stone’s toss south of Fayetteville, West Virginia, near the junction of routes 16 and 19, hides a natural gem in the New River Gorge area. Wolf Creek Park is a 1,000 acre mixed-use development, but don’t let the “D” word fool you. Not all of this forested site is to be developed; preservation of high-quality habitats is a cornerstone of the project.
Nestled in a small glen, surrounded by mature timber, is a wonderful wetland. This swamp is the crown jewel of Wolf Creek Park and well worth a visit. I’ve stopped here several times, spring and summer, and have always been rewarded with interesting sightings. Birds abound: the wild maniacal laughs of giant pileated woodpeckers ring through the trees. The red-crested woodpeckers are reminiscent of Woody Woodpecker on steroids. The scratchy robin-like twanging of scarlet tanagers is a common soundtrack. These neon-red songbirds look like they’ve been plugged in and glow with 100 watt intensity, every bit the tropical avian superstar. And that they are, having traveled from South American wintering haunts to raise their young in West Virginia.
The Wolf Creek bird list goes on to tally into the dozens, and this potpourri of songsters provides an ever-present soundtrack. But the real beacon of Wolf Creek is the 15-acre wetland, which draws kids and adults alike with a magnetic pull. Wetlands are, well, wet. All too often onlookers are relegated to their shores, only able to sample the muddy margins. But the best stuff is often deep in the boggy, watery innards of the swamp, where travel by foot can be impractical.
Unless there’s a brand spanking new 400 foot boardwalk! Thanks to the hard work of National Civilian Community Corps and local volunteers, and funding from state and local grants, a ribbon of planking snakes its way into the heart of Wolf Creek’s wetland allowing access to its secrets. Visitors traversing the boardwalk are almost bound to see weird stuff if they keep their eyes peeled. There are frogs galore of several species—toads too!—and if you visit in April or May, the peeping, croaking, and rasping of myriad amphibious hoppers will knock your socks off.
“Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog…” —bring your dog and you’ll have all of these Macbeth Shakespearian ingredients in this swamp. Wetlands are treasure troves of biodiversity, supporting everything from red-spotted newts, the most aquatic of our salamanders, to Green Herons to all manner of strange insects. Wander out on the boardwalk around dusk, and you’ll see fleets of bats darting over the wetland, laying waste to aerial bugs. You might even espy a beaver. These flat-tailed ecological engineers are largely responsible for creating and maintaining this wetland.
A preserve such as Wolf Creek is an educational goldmine. Scores of students, Boy Scouts, tour groups, and nature enthusiasts have already marveled at the wetland’s wonders. And it’ll only get better. Future plans include expanding the boardwalk to a full one-half mile, which will permit even greater access to interesting nooks and crannies. The proposed centerpiece of the Wolf Creek Wetland is in the planning stages, and with hard work and strong community support will hopefully come to fruition. It’s to be dubbed the New River Birding & Nature Center. This building and its exhibits, classrooms, and labs will add an important educational component to the area and transform the wetland into an enviable land lab.
The New River Gorge region is one of the richest areas of biodiversity in the United States, and the New River Birding & Nature Center should prove to be an invaluable resource to promote the natural wonders of Fayetteville and vicinity.
DIRECTIONS: Wolf Creek Park lies along Robbins Way, which heads east off Route 16 just north of its junction with Route 19. wolfcreekparkwv.com
More nature writing by Jim McCormac can be found at his blog.
Photographs by Jim McCormac.
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