Where do you go if you want to have a family reunion? Or what if you’re the Human Resources person assigned to book a special business/social affair. Where to? A hotel or resort? Pretty pricey and not much interaction among guests. What if you want a more intimate setting for your retreat, with more fellowship, and in an affordable venue? Maybe you want a place to fly fish for wild trout or tee up a Titleist golf ball and send it skyward into some of the most beautiful terrain in Virginia.
Impossible? No. it’s possible.
Imagine a beautiful 18-hole golf course on the banks of the famed Jackson River in Allegheny County. Imagine fishing this pristine section for wild brown and rainbow trout, some exceeding 10 pounds. Add to this fantasy a beautiful 9-bedroom inn overlooking the river that can easily accommodate several foursomes, a business retreat, a family or school reunion or just family and friends. But this is a reality, not a fantasy. Cliff View Golf & Flyfishing Inn offers all this and more. It’s unusual to be able to find an inn that accommodates 20 or more people. The inn has a huge kitchen and dining area, which would be suitable for anything from wedding receptions to cocktail parties. Each bedroom has its own private bath. There are three screened porches and a magnificent deck that looks out at the scenic rock outcroppings along the mountain towering over the Jackson River. There are 3 miles of private water available for the guests of the inn. And the golf course? It’s a joy to play. Cliff View is neither Augusta National nor the Old White Course in Warm Springs, but it is a barrel of fun with plush grass fairways and Bermuda greens that thrive in the cooler climate of the western Virginia mountains. The course plays at 6,035 yards from the back tees with a par of 72. The number 14 hole is one of the most scenic in Virginia with a wedge or 9 iron off a cliff down to the plush green beside a terrific fishing hole. You don’t know whether to putt or tie on a fly. But at Cliff View, you can do both.
My friends and I stayed at Cliff View last weekend. One of the trout we landed was a 20-inch wild brown, and there are there are larger ones than those. Doug Lane’s guides out of Angler’s Landing put a client on a 26-inch trout the same week.
I discovered this secret hideaway 16 years ago and have been staying there ever since for numerous occasions. I highly recommend Cliff View for golf, fishing and just plain fun. The website is www.cliffviewgolfandflyfishinn.com. For more information, call Susan Sponaugle at 540-958-5325.