by CLAUDIO DeMARCHI | GREAT GOLF SPECIAL

Golfing with Bruno and Friends! Bruno, Roy, Rugrat, Bonnie, Bonzo, Cocco Puff, and Ugly Bear – not the paying type guests at The Wildernest Inn, but nonetheless they are definitely welcomed guests by both the proprietors of the Inn, Stewart and Kathy and the regular (human) guests who travel from a far to get up close and personal with the gentle giants – yes, we are talking about black bears.

Nowhere is the West Virginia State slogan “Wild and Wonderful” more appropriate than at the Wildernest Inn - and now it even applies to golf packages.   If you are a nature lover that loves to golf, then you may just have found “heaven” in West Virginia.  That might just be what John Denver was talking about!

On our visit to the Wildernest last month, we did not get a chance to see the big bears, “it’s mating season,” said Stewart.  “The big boys and girls are out doing their thing.  They will be back around late July and stay around until sometime in October when hunting season begins.”  That is when the big (smart) bears begin to hibernate.  I guess that is how they become big bears, hibernate during hunting season.  

It was late afternoon on the day we arrived we were greeted by at least 50 deer that were just hanging around in the yard.  After getting the grand tour of the Inn and settling in with a cocktail on the deck other guests began arriving and the plan was that when all the guests arrived Stewart was going to BBQ a steak dinner for all the guests.  I am all in for a steak dinner at anytime, but on this evening nothing would make my night more complete than the sight of a bear. 

Stewart had the BBQ going, but when one of the guests heard some rustling coming from the bottom of the hill all attention was focused on who or what was down there.  Sure enough there were 3 cubs that had been left behind by mom.  An awesome sight!  Shortly after dinner a few of us were out on the deck looking down at the deer pond and another cub appeared followed by another shortly there after.  This one obviously a little older than the others, certainly much larger, but not an adult I was told.

During the late summer through to the fall time period both Stewart and Kathy told us that it would not uncommon for guests to be sitting on the deck and have the black bears come for a visit.  Big Bruno (over 500 lbs) is definitely the “bear ambassador” to the Inn, according to Kathy “he has been coming back to the Inn since 2002 when he first appeared as a baby bear.”  The bears are an amazing sight, and as much as they are powerful and potentially dangerous they are rarely aggressive and extremely intelligent.  At the Inn you might find the bears lazing around by the side of the deck, taking a dip in the deer pond, (for some reason we don’t usually find to many deer around when the bears show up) or creating some sort of a make work project for Stewart.  They have even been caught in the hot tub, what a sight that must have been.  For anyone who is interested in seeing the bears up close and personal spring and fall are the best times.

From the Wildernest Inn you are only 20 minutes away from The Highlands Golf Club, a Bill Ward Jr. design, an immaculately condition championship layout with 2 distinctly different nines.  The front starts you off in the valley; hole-by-hole you move up and down the side of a mountain while the back 9 provides flatter terrain for you to chase your little white pill.  Four sets of tees give you plenty of options for teeing it up ranging from 4,700 to 6,800 yards, but take note of the slope ratings that range from 132 to 144 tell you that this is no walk in the park.















Looking at the scorecard one might notice that there are a number of par 4’s that might seem a little on the short side, but your short iron game will need to be precise making sure that your approach lands on the right side of the pin.  Being on the wrong side will lead to a number of 3 putts.  The golf course is challenging so they provide you with a hole-by-hole layout card.  They also realize that the greens are extremely challenging due to the terrain and are fairly large, averaging approximately 5000 sq. ft. so they keep them in the 6-8 range on the stimp - or some people could end up putting all day long.

The Highlands Golf Club is only in its 2nd year of operation but right from the moment that you step in the front door you can tell that someone knew and cared about what they were getting into.   To top it all off green fees at the Highlands are only $37 US on weekdays and $42 US on weekends.

The Wildernest Inn and the Highlands Golf Club are located in the scenic Potomac Highlands region of West Virginia, close to Franklin.  Not sure where you might be coming from to get the area, but I know that you will be passing some great golf within the State so you might want to check out your route and plan a few extra days for this little excursion.















For more information on staying at the Wildernest Inn you can either call Stewart and/or Kathy @ 1 888 621 2948 or visit them online @t www.wildernestinn.com.
 
Information on The Highlands Golf Club including hole descriptions and photos can be found @ www.highlandsgolfwv.com or by calling 304 358 2261.  By the way Kathy and Stewart are both avid golfers and members at the Highlands so if you are short a player or two don’t forget to ask them out for a round.
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Claudio DeMarchi is a contributing writer and is also co-publisher of golf-south.net