To say a lot of planning went into building our first cabin, The Wanderer, would be an understatement. If we went back and knew how much time was spent researching designs, layouts, technical work like plumbing and electric, we would be wowed. One step we took during the build was talking with people who visit New River Gorge and Summersville Lake for specific adventures: kayaking, hiking, rafting, climbing, photography, swimming; you name it, we investigated the interests of these wanderers to see what would be most valuable to them in a short-term rental while they, well, wandered.
The idea for Wildflowers & Wine is the brainchild of many of those discussion, married to the craze of “glamping.”
Some folks shared when they head to the wilderness, they wish to immerse themselves in it: sleep on the ground, skip a shower or six and eat berries. Cool! Some like to wake up in a comfortable bed, have a hot shower and return to said bed after a day of hiking and thrill seeking. Equally cool! So, here’s what we came up with as a solution for both!
Wildflowers & Wine
Wildflowers & Wine is a glampsite offering comfortable beds in two separate polycarbonate all-weather storage containers with a gabled roof. Guests can expect thoughtful storage for bags and suitcases as the space will be 50 square feet. Outside will be a completely covered patio deck offering a kitchen sink, simple-to-use cookware, dining table and chairs and a private outdoor shower and toilet. The deck space should equate to roughly 420 square feet, which is larger than the outdoor patio space for The Wanderer!
Wildflowers & Wine will also most likely offer a solar panel charging station for phones, speakers, and other small items travelers need while they are out and about, but we do not plan to run electric specifically to the site. The simple-to-use cookware will surely be propane cooktop with pots and pans to boot. The landscape will be almost completely wooded allowing renters to feel in touch with nature and believe us we have plenty of 2 and 4-legged nature all around McFadden Ridge. Some other neat features we hope to provide are some racks for kayaks, clothes, and other adventurer essentials.
Further, we have ran with a set of “W” names for the cabins, and we can’t seem to remember why, but it has stuck and so are we with options for cabin names. Therefore, we had some finalists for this design:
- Wild & Wonderful
- Whistlepig & Warbler
- Wildflowers & Wine
Wild & Wonderful is the state motto, so we didn’t want to find ourselves in a 12 rounds match with the state over trademarking, if that could potentially become an issue. Whistlepig & Warbler, well, that one got shot down quickly – but who knows, maybe a future name to use. So, the Marcus King song “Wildflowers & Wine” it was! Here’s what makes it special to West Virginia: if you drive along the country roads, you may see a West Virginia Wildflowers sign next to a sea of purple and yellow and white and orange and red and blue and green. It’s simply amazing. As for wine, nearby McFadden Ridge is Kirkwood Winery that offers some great local wines and holds a grape stomp every year – so very much another local fit in the name. Plus, the song is one of our favorites!
Not everything with Wildflowers & Wine is set in stone (a little concrete footer humor there, for homebuilders), so we plan to be flexible as we build this rental. Therefore, be sure to stay in touch with updates and follow us on social media for progress!
@mcfaddenridgewv on all social media platforms or check out campsite.bio/mcfaddenridgewv to find links to everything!
The Wilder
Welcome to The Wilder! A rental home that has a natural grounding, a repurposed design, and a bohemian theme throughout. Music is without a doubt a big inspiration in what we do, and we share that through our social media posts and Spotify playlists that represent each cabin. The Wilder is your lively western saloon with a modern twist.
The Wilder will be half the square footage of The Wanderer (a 40 ft high cube container) and will house up to 2 guests per visit. You will enjoy a queen size bed, a full kitchen and a standing shower all adorned with a rustic aesthetic: corrugated steel, hardwood fixtures, live edge countertops, and preserved wall tile that may give you the feeling of being in a quaint downtown café.
When building The Wanderer, we had many discussions on aesthetic. We went as far as assembling an entire shiplap wall and dismounting it because it did not fit the feeling of clean-cut, modern, and calm. The Wilder will embrace the opposite. If Ashley (my wife, CEO of McFadden Ridge) and I shared a brain when building these cabins, this would come from my side of the brain (and The Whimsical, hers. More on that below). We may even throw in a record player so you can jam to your favorite tunes or even our Wilder Spotify playlist that features Nathaniel Rateliff, Mavis Staples, Mumford & Sons, and Sam & Dave.
The Wilder will have some other unique features including a large window next to the bed to view wildlife that may wander around the woods. This should make it a special experience to pour a cup of americano and watch a couple of squirrels confer amongst the trees. In the particular spot where the Wilder rests, we have seen herds of deer numbering over a dozen! You will have every opportunity to see the same.
Other amenities will be a gas grill, firepit, hot tub and outdoor seating, potentially on a rooftop deck. Inside we’ll provide your much needed coffee pot, Wi-Fi, full-sized refrigerator, and cooktop. If you enjoy the idea of coming to the secluded woods and staying in a vintage cabin that just so happens to be slightly different, The Wilder will be your choice.
If you want to learn more about The Wilder, or any of our cabin builds, be sure to follow along on social media as we will work on The Wilder, The Whimsical and Wildflowers & Wine at the same time. Stay Wild everyone!
@mcfaddenridgewv on all social media platforms or check out campsite.bio/mcfaddenridgewv to find links to everything!
The Whimsical
A Lover’s Cabin.
The Whimsical is just that: a lover’s cabin. This is where you take your special someone for a weekend getaway, whether its to dedicate time simply to yourselves to romance or adventure together and make memories, we recommend you consider The Whimsical.
Fun fact, we chose to spend a long weekend visiting Summersville Lake a few years ago, and it was simply magical. It was just as much fun to hangout at the cabin we had rented than it was to go stare at the mountains in awe. So, when it came time to decide on aesthetics and themes of these next few cabins, one that truly feels like home, that puts an emphasis on comfort and warmth was a must.
The Whimsical will mirror every feature of The Wilder including it being a 20-foot container cabin. It will include a hot tub, firepit, outdoor seating, cooking space indoors and out, with darker tones that are easy on the eyes when enjoying time inside. We’ve constructed a playlist full of slow dance song that will pair well with a night sky too!
Expect oversized pillows, soft blankets, and even a soaking tub for a much-needed bath after your choice of adventure either in the New River Gorge or Summersville Lake. Let your significant other cook your dinner (if they can, no pressure folks, takeout is a great option too, checkout our food blog post) while you enjoy a glass of red wine on the rooftop deck and listen to warblers sing.
As we have experienced with renters of The Wanderer, and having traveled in poor weather before, we want to make sure you get the most out of your vacation, even if it becomes a staycation. We very much believe of all our cabins, The Whimsical is a great example of a five-star stay on a rainy day.
Lastly, this cabin is very much a dedication to those you dedicate your life to. Of course, anyone is welcome, but so many times we have hosted renters celebrating their lives together. That makes the opportunity to lead our guests into our home(s) very special, and we want to find a way to help create the best memories, as we did when we first came to Summersville Lake.
So, there you have it, The Whimsical. We hope to host you soon and be sure to follow along for updates. Our social media has dedicated story highlights for each cabin and The Whimsical timeline is filling up, which excites us to bring this unique cabin to life and into yours.
@mcfaddenridgewv on all social media platforms or check out campsite.bio/mcfaddenridgewv to find links to everything!
The Wanderer
Everything that encompasses the spirit of a West Virginian cannot be said in one word. The state motto comes close with two: Wild & Wonderful. From the thousands of ways to describe the state and its people, one comes to mind that comes close: wander.
When visiting West Virginia, you will meet so many people who love to explore, adventure, connect (whether with others or nature), investigate, and enjoy. There is a natural sense of wandering in everyone and coming to a state full of state parks, national parks, national forests, recreation areas and dozens of small towns with big spirit, you’ll grasp the wandering spirit too!
The Wanderer welcomes you to West Virginia and is near equal distance to The New River Gorge National Park and Summersville Lake and country roads drive away from Monongahela National Forest, putting you in the perfect position to find adventure in every direction you turn.
Whether you spend the day hiking, climbing, boating, rafting, kayaking, or any other adventure, The Wanderer will be waiting on you with a hot shower, cozy beds, a hot tub, and outdoor seating area that is perfect to listen to the leaves rustle in the wind or watch the night stars shine overtop a campfire.
When it comes to the interior design, we really debated back and forth on a lot of ideas and instead of smashing them all into one space, creating an eclectic crossing of four different style (rustic, romantic, modern, outdoors) we decided to land on modern. The Wanderer might very well resemble your own home, it has bright colored walls to create a large feel and custom built-ins in the main bedroom as well as in the kitchen where the dishes rest on custom floating shelves. The kitchen, bedroom and bathroom all have dark cabinets, either black or mocha with copper fixtures. Our bathroom is just big enough to take care of ourselves and really popped when we decorated it with our offset triangle wall that is a little mesmerizing.
Uniquely, we designed a large window that opens to about 30 inches and is 4-feet wide and has tabletops on both sides to allow for a family or friends party of 4 to comfortably sit indoors and out to enjoy a meal. On the inside, to save space, we made the table to retractable. Our couch also has retractable side tables that fold up when not needed.
So along with the modern feel we wanted to have a practical space as well. Abundant storage so you don’t get the feeling of living out of suitcases for the week, hideaway furniture and fixtures to create more space to move about, and 400 square feet of concrete patio that can host some pretty competitive giant Jenga games or allow you to rest in the hot tub or on some custom-made furnishings like our patio love seat.
We are very proud to call The Wanderer our first home in West Virginia. Our color scheme of green and golden and tans of lumber are easy on the eyes and will reside as our flagship colors when you see us online or in brochures you may find around town while you wander; and if you choose to wander West Virginia, we hope you choose The Wanderer! Follow us
@mcfaddenridgewv on all social media platforms or check out campsite.bio/mcfaddenridgewv to find links to everything!