The Road Not Taken Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,And sorry I could not travel bothAnd be one traveler, long I stoodAnd looked down one as far as I couldTo where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair,And having perhaps the better claim,Because it was grassy and wanted …
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A Fourth of July Uncola Pyramid? With the Fourth of July just a few days away, I was thinking about our country’s 200th birthday in 1976. What was I doing as a teenager growing up at Watoga State Park? Sure, there were picnics, hot dogs, baseball, firecrackers, and the swimming pool. But just why was …
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For more than seven decades, the Botts have fished, swam, hiked, and oftentimes stayed at Cabin 20 at Watoga State Park. This is Flora Jane Bott’s memories about the swimming pool, that cabin next door and the park. Cabin 20 “It was next to impossible to contain our excitement as we drove closer to park …
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Seventy-Two Years at Watoga Four generations of the Bott family have stayed at Cabin 20, nestled in the pines next to the swimming pool at Watoga State Park. For 72 years, the Botts have fished, swam, hiked, and along the way have made countless memories at the state’s largest recreation area. Specifically, from 1957-1967, these …
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The pool officially opens for the season on Saturday, May 30, according to Jody Spencer, park superintendent. Mr. Spencer stated that prior to entering the swim area, each person must have a temperature less than 100 and answer several COVID-19-related questions. The number of admitted swimmers will be limited, and you may wish to call …
A Continuing Series Ahh, Memorial Day weekend is here! And, while growing up at Watoga State Park, the swimming pool is the place to be! This is the last year for the pool (a new one is in the works), but not the last year for memories about this legendary swimming spot. In particular, many …
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My Favorite Swimming Pool in the Whole Wide World For 80 years at the Watoga State Park Swimming Pool, countless sunbathers and swimmers have graced its water and tread on its time-worn concrete decks. Tentatively, this will be the last summer for the pool as we now know it. Plans are underway for the construction …
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“We are the Copperheads — the mighty, mighty Copperheads. Everywhere we go, people wanna know, so we tell them.” This chant is still the battle cry for Marlinton Middle School today as it was at my ole stompin’ grounds in the 1970s. Regardless, I am not a fan of snakes! Without a doubt, those copperheads …
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You may be familiar with the idiom “opening a can of worms,” but what about “opening a can of black snakes”? In fact, this is the story about a can of black snakes rearing their heads and hissing! For reptile lovers, copperheads, rattlesnakes and black snakes can be found at Watoga State Park. However, this …
Ever eat a peanut butter sandwich right before coming face-to-face with a black bear? And how about seeing a bear with Paul McCartney eyes? With this in mind, the following are readers’ creative endings to earlier posts (Part 1 and Part 2) about the black bear at Watoga State Park. Peanut Butter Sammie, Anyone? The …
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