DESCRIPTION

Bennett Mountain Retreat offers an outstanding mountain log home completely surrounded by an incredible 75 acre farm and forest. This property is located in the small farming community of Grassy Meadows, which is well known in Greenbrier County for its sweeping vistas, rolling pastures and easy going lifestyle.

HIGHLIGHTS

• 3,200 sq ft Wisconsin Log Home
• Poured concrete walls and foundation with full walkout basement
• 75 total acres consisting of flat to rolling fields & mature forest creating a beautiful setting
• 20 acres of hay fields and meadows with fencing for horses or other livestock
• 50 acres of mature forest offering ready to harvest timber
• Property professionally surveyed and may be resold in parcels if desired
• Small pond and a 1000’ dashed blue line creek generate year round water
• 10 hollows and ephemeral streams create interesting topographic relief
• ¾ miles of permanent internal road system graveled, ditched and culverts installed
• Electric and phone onsite and servicing most areas of the property
• Cell coverage is good. High speed internet is available through Frontier
• Exceptional wooded building lots
• Long views of distant mountains and the valley below
• Situate in a farming community with exceptional access to I-64, I-77 & 3 airports
• Lewisburg 40 min * Beckley 40 min * Charleston 120 min * DC 5 hrs * Charlotte 3 hrs
• Elevation 2558’ to 2825’

THE LOG HOME

The log home on Bennett Mountain is constructed from one of the highest quality Log Home Systems in the US, from Wisconsin Log Homes©. Importantly, the home was built using the “Hybrid System” of construction. The Hybrid system only uses the LOGS as an EXTERIOR SIDING. The actual structure of the house is built with 2×6” studs. The 2×6” stud provides a far stronger and stable support than a 2”x4” stud system. Then quality weatherproofing and plywood are attached. The logs are D-shaped. The flat D side is then attached to the exterior plywood fascia and studs, providing strong lateral support. Because the logs are just fascia, like siding, there is NO caulking or sealing of the logs as in a traditional log home. More importantly, the fascia-D-logs do not have settling issues and other longer term changes associated with logs homes built only logs. The 2×6 framing provides the expected normal structural stability, but with 50% more rigidity over 2x4s.

The home starts with strong concrete footers with substantial rebar set over 6 feet down from the ground, providing long term frost prevention. Sitting on these large approximately 12 deep by 18” wide footers is a poured concrete/rebar wall that forms partial side walls with a full back wall, allowing for a walk-out basement. The concrete/rebar poured footer and foundation walls provide long term substantial house stability.

The roof is made of heavy 40 year shingles. The roof is properly flashed with copper flashing. The roof is properly vented with roof eave/soffit-peak venting.

Electric service is provided by a 400 amp buried service cable from the street, and available from a transformer next to the house.

Lovely Timber frame beams provide both additional roof structural support and an attractive highlighted ceiling

The kitchen has available a large bay window ready for a built-in wrap-around couch and counter. A Library area is ready for finishing.

The well provides quality high flow water, and is about 300 ft in depth. A septic field is in place along with 1000 gallon propane tank service. The house has quality electrical components and the Plumbing is copper.

See the Maps and Documents section above for a link to information from the Wisconsin Log Home© website.

AGRICULTURAL RESOURCES

This property consists of a total 75 acres, of which about 20 acres are rolling fields. The farm has an abundance of water with 10 ephemeral streams flowing to 1000’ dashed blue line stream. In addition, the farm has two livestock small ponds.

The 20 acres of meadow and pasture land are in need of lime and fertilizer to improve the pH values to the 6.5 to 7.0 range which will bring the historically fertile land to full productivity.

The land has been utilized as a cow-calf operation with adequate fencing in place to turn the livestock.

THE FOREST

The 75 acre parent tract has approximately 55 acres in forest that has been well managed over the years. It has one of the few remaining pockets of old growth timber left standing in West Virginia. The deep shade offered by the spreading crowns of the large oak and hickory trees makes for a cool and inviting environment in which to enjoy a quiet walk.

The timber resource is composed of high quality Appalachian hardwoods. This well managed timber resource can provide a great deal of flexibility to the next ownership in terms of potential harvest revenue and can be managed to provide cash flow opportunities to offset holding cost and long-term asset appreciation.

The forest’s predominately well-drained upland terrain has led to a resource dominated by hardwood species. Overall, the species composition is highly desirable and favors Appalachian hardwood types, consisting primarily of: White Oak, Red Oak, Hickory, Beech, Sugar Maple, Red Maple, Ash, Yellow Poplar and Black Cherry

Stocking, Stem Quality, and Forest Structure:
Forest-wide, most stands are fully stocked, providing the next ownership with a great deal of flexibility in shaping their own silvicultual legacy. Stem quality forest-wide can be considered excellent with the forest containing an abundant current and future sawlog source.

The forest’s timber component has been well managed over the years and generally consists of hardwood managed under uneven-aged silvicultural guidelines. The predominant timber stand contains 40-120 year old stems ranging in size of 10”-30” dbh. Portions of this stand were thinned over 40 years ago as prudent forest management called for. The forest is again ready for a selective thinning which could generate considerable income. The forest has matured into higher-value sawtimber diameter classes with an abundant growing stock already in place for the future.

Diameters are well represented across the commercial spectrum with a notable mature size class, as well as abundant pole size timber and growing stock.

A few “Heritage Trees” are scattered throughout the forest. These ancient trees, some 100-150 years old, have withstood the test of time, weathering ice, wind, lightning strikes and fire.

The forest is healthy and there are no signs of pest infestations of Gypsy Moth. The Wooly Adelgid and The Emerald Ash Borer are present and it is anticipated that the Hemlock and Ash component will be in decline over the next decade. There have been no forest fires in the recent memory.

The forest floor is home to several types of mushrooms, medicinal plants, wild ginseng, ferns and cool green mosses. One could spend a lifetime getting to know this inviting environ.

Some of the forest was in fields prior to WWII and piles of field stone are found along the old field edges. These stone piles are a lasting testament of the backbreaking work the early mountaineers put in to create a homestead.

Beechnuts, Hickory nuts, sweet White Oak and Red Oak Acorns provide a sustainable food source for the squirrels, chipmunks, whitetail deer and wild turkey that live in abundance in the forest. The intermittent stream as well as a small livestock pond provides a water source for the wildlife.

Many species of songbirds and woodpeckers that thrive in the special habitat that large older trees provide make their home in this special forest environ. It is exciting to see and hear the large and very vocal Pileated Woodpecker, with its bright red crest dressed in a black and white tuxedo, sweep through the tall canopy in search of a morning snack. Owls nest here nearly every year and provide lots of night-time and early-morning entertainment.

LOCATION

Google Coordinates:
37.821745°(N), -80.685187°(W)
Address: Mountain View Drive, Dawson, WV 24910
Elevation Range: 2558 ft. to 2825 ft. +/-

MINERAL RESOURCES

All rights the owner has will convey with the property.

BOUNDARIES AND SURVEY

A survey plat showing the property is recorded as A-58. The property is being sold by the boundary and not by the acre.

UTILITIES

Water:  Well
Sewer:  Septic
Electricity:  MonPower
Telephone:  Available from Frontier
Internet:  Frontier, Dish Network, or DirectTV
Cellphone Coverage: Good

ACCESS/FRONTAGE

The property was created as part of a private sub-division, which has a private access road, Mountain View Parkway, that provides access to Bennett Mountain Road WV RT 25/3.

ZONING

The county is subject to some zoning and subdivision regulations. All prospective buyers should consult the County Commission and also the Health Department for details regarding zoning, building codes and installation of septic systems.
Information can be found at the county website: http://greenbriercounty.net/ordinances/

PROPERTY TYPE/USE SUMMARY

This property has pasture, the home and grounds, and forestland, being summarized as follows:
Home and grounds: ½ acre +/-
Pasture: 16 acres +/-
Forestland: 59 acres +/-

(This summary is an estimation of current property use as determined from aerial photography. It is made subject to the estimation of property boundaries and any errors in the interpretation of land use type from the aerial photography utilized.)

DEED AND TAX INFORMATION

Deed Information: DB 416 PG 700; DB 418 PG 9; DB 422 PG 609; DB 442 PG 709
Greenbrier County, West Virginia

Acreage: 75.58 acres +/-
Real Estate Tax ID/Acreage/Taxes:
Greenbrier County, West Virginia
Blue Sulphur District (3)
Tax Map 21 Parcel 75; CONS LTS 16 & 18-21 75.58 AC. SRVY & R/W (5 PCLS) MT VIEW FARMS (MCCULLOUCH); Class 2.
2016 Real Estate Taxes: $725.84

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Greenbrier County School District:
Public Elementary School:
Smoot Elementary School

Public Middle Schools:
Eastern Greenbrier Middle School

Public High School:
Greenbrier East High School

THE SURROUNDING AREA

The Greenbrier Valley is richly blessed with a wide array of cultural events that keep life in the valley interesting and satisfying. A year round live theater, Carnegie Hall (one of four in the USA), fine dining, art galleries and boutiques make up the thriving downtown historic district in Lewisburg.

In 2011, Lewisburg was named Coolest Small Town in America and is just a 40 minute-drive to complete shopping, churches, schools, medical-dental facilities, fine dining, and a modern hospital. The airport, with the longest runway in the state is just 30 minutes away and has daily flights to Atlanta and Washington DC.

Lewisburg is also the county seat of Greenbrier County and home to the WV Osteopathic Medical School (600 students) and the New River Community and Technical College. The area is a strong economic generator with a solid workforce employed in county/state government, tourism, hospitality, education, retail, construction, wood products, mining and agriculture.

Located within a 40 – 60 minute drive are some of the finest recreational facilities in West Virginia. Winterplace Ski Resort, whitewater rafting / fishing on the New River and Gauley River, 2000 acre Bluestone Lake, Pipestem State Park and Resort and the 80,000 acre New River National Gorge National Park. Five other area state parks and state forests offer unlimited hiking, horseback riding, ATV riding and rock climbing opportunities. Snowshoe Ski Resort is a 2 hour drive through some of the most scenic country on the East Coast. The new 10,600 acre Boy Scout High Adventure Camp and home to the US and World Jamboree is an hour fifteen minute drive.

The world renowned Greenbrier Resort, home of the PGA tour, is just 30 minutes’ drive. Several other area golf courses are available in the area. Rock climbing, ziplining, horseback riding and the 100 + mile long Hatfield-McCoy ATV trail makes for a very active recreation area.

THE GREENBRIER RIVER

At 162 miles long, the Greenbrier is the longest untamed (unblocked) river left in the Eastern United States. It is primarily used for recreational pursuits and well known for its fishing, canoeing, kayaking and floating opportunities. Its upper reaches flow through the Monongahela National Forest.

The Greenbrier is formed at Durbin in northern Pocahontas County by the confluence of the East Fork Greenbrier River and the West Fork Greenbrier River, both of which are short streams rising at elevations exceeding 3,300 feet and flowing for their entire lengths in northern Pocahontas County. From Durbin the Greenbrier flows generally south-southwest through Pocahontas, Greenbrier and Summers Counties, past several communities including Cass, Marlinton, Hillsboro, Ronceverte, Fort Spring, Alderson, and Hinton, where it flows into the New River.

It has always been a valuable water route, with the majority of the important cities in the watershed being established riverports. The river gives the receiving waters of the New River an estimated 30% of its water volume. Over three-fourths of the watershed is an extensive karstic (cavern system), which supports fine trout fishing, cave exploration and recreation. Many important festivals and public events are held along the river throughout the watershed.

Along most of its course, the Greenbrier accommodated the celebrated Indian warpath known as the Seneca Trail (Great Indian Warpath). From the vicinity of present-day White Sulphur Springs the Trail followed Anthony’s Creek down to the Greenbrier near the present Pocahontas-Greenbrier County line. It then ascended the River to the vicinity of Hillsboro and Droop Mountain and made its way through present Pocahontas County by way of future Marlinton, Indian Draft Run, and Edray.

THE NEW RIVER AND BLUESTONE LAKE

Bennett Mountain Retreat is a 30 minute drive to the New River and 2000 acre Bluestone Lake at Hinton. The New River is the second oldest river in the world, preceded only by the Nile; it is the oldest river in North America. The New River is unique because it begins in Blowing Rock, N.C. and flows north through Virginia into West Virginia. The Nile and Amazon are the only other major rivers that also flow north. Year after year, it produces more citation fish than any other warm water river in WV. Smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, crappie, catfish, sunfish, hybrid stripped bass, and muskie are all common species of fish found in the New River and Bluestone Lake.

Bluestone Lake is over 2000 acres at summer pool and is the state’s third largest body of water. Great hunting and fishing opportunities abound at the 17,632 acre Bluestone Wildlife Area adjacent to the park and nearby Camp Creek State Forest.