Ice Mountain

The accumulated rock detritus at Ice Mountain's base forms a talus that is {{convert|50|ft}} thick in some places. It creates a refrigeration effect. As cold air sinks into the talus pile during the cooler months it forms masses of ice and ice vents inside it.{{Citation

| last = Core

| first = Earl L.

| title = The Botany of Ice Mountain, West Virginia

| journal = Southern Appalachian Botanical Society's Castanea

| volume = 33

| issue = 4

| pages = 345–348

| date = December 1968

| jstor = 4032173

}}{{cite book|title=History of Hampshire County, West Virginia: From Its Earliest Settlement to the Present|last=Maxwell|first=Hu|author2=Howard Llewellyn Swisher|year=1897|publisher=A. B. Boughner|url=https://archive.org/details/historyofhampshi00maxw_0|df=mdy-all|author2-link=Howard Llewellyn Swisher}}{{cite book | editor-last1=Brannon | editor-first1=Selden W. | year=1976 | title=Historic Hampshire: A Symposium of Hampshire County and Its People, Past and Present | publisher=McClain Printing Company | location=Parsons, West Virginia | isbn=978-0-87012-236-1 | oclc=3121468 }} The ice vents are in a section about {{convert|200|yd}} in length along Ice Mountain's southern flank.

Cool air is expelled from the ice in the warmer months. Vent air temperatures vary throughout the year, but the mean annual temperature can be as low as 2 °C (35 °F).{{cite book|title=Ice Mountain: Ice-Age Ecosystem Refuge in West Virginia|last=Kite|first=J. Steven|year=2009|publisher=West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey Colloquium Series|url=http://www.wvgs.wvnet.edu/www/colloquia/20090914_Kite.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100623034357/http://www.wvgs.wvnet.edu/www/colloquia/20090914_Kite.pdf|archive-date=June 23, 2010|df=mdy-all}} Within the area of ice vents there are approximately 60 different pockets and the cold air escapes through more than 150 small openings in the talus.

The cool air affects surrounding air and soil around creating an area of boreal species and plant growth. Studies of Ice Mountain's geology, geomorphology, and micro-climatology since 2000 have shown that ice is no longer apparent after early June, but it is unclear whether this disappearance is due to climate change or the abandonment of historic ice storage strategies{{Dubious|date=November 2009}}.

Ice Mountain's ice vents provide a habitat for boreal species of plants commonly found in Subarctic regions.{{cite web |url=http://www.bobpickett.org/Field%20Notes/PATC%20-%20Bob%20Pickett's%201998%20Trail%20and%20Field%20Notes.htm |title=Bob Pickett's 1998 Field Notes |publisher=Bob Pickett |access-date=November 7, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100311203653/http://www.bobpickett.org/Field%20Notes/PATC%20-%20Bob%20Pickett's%201998%20Trail%20and%20Field%20Notes.htm |archive-date=March 11, 2010 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }} The ecosystem exhibits a combination of Appalachian, Canadian, and Subarctic species in a humid subtropical climate. Northern boreal species have survived at Ice Mountain since the last glacial period and became isolated over time as temperatures warmed and relegated the boreal species to the Subarctic regions of North America. The cool air expulsed by the ice vents allowed boreal species to remain at Ice Mountain. Ice Mountain's boreal species are not only unique because of their isolated location, but also because of their elevation. Boreal species are typically found at elevations {{convert|4000|ft}} above mean sea level, but species at Ice Mountain survive at heights around {{convert|700|ft}} above mean sea level.

Boreal species at Ice Mountain include bunchberry (Cornus canadensis),{{cite web |url=http://www.historichampshire.org/scenic/icemt.htm |title=Historic Hampshire: Ice Mountain |publisher=HistoricHampshire.org |access-date=November 7, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090405061423/http://www.historichampshire.org/scenic/icemt.htm |archive-date=April 5, 2009 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }} Appalachian wood fern (Gymnocarpium appalachianum), Canada mayflower (Maianthemum canadense), minniebush (Menziesia pilosa), mountain maple (Acer spicatum), nannyberry (Viburnum lentago), northern bedstraw (Galium boreale), prickly gooseberry (Ribes cynosbati), prickly rose (Rosa acicularis), purple virgin's bower (Clematis occidentalis), shale barren primrose (Oenothera argillicola), skunk currant (Ribes glandulosum), starflower (Trientalis borealis), and twinflower (Linnaea borealis). Eastern Hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis) provide shade to and cool the mountain's ice vents.

The Appalachian wood fern, which grows on moss, was once thought to have been extinct but is found in abundance near the cold vents at the base of Ice Mountain.{{cite web |url=http://www.wvpubcast.org/newsarticle.aspx?id=7206 |title=A visit to West Virginia's Ice Mountain |publisher=West Virginia Public Broadcasting |access-date=November 7, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928132922/http://www.wvpubcast.org/newsarticle.aspx?id=7206 |archive-date=September 28, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}

Parts of Ice Mountain are barren, but the majority of the ridge is covered in mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia), sweet birch (Betula lenta), and Virginia pine (Pinus virginiana). Old growth species include chestnut oak (Quercus prinus), sweet birch (Betula lenta), and Eastern white pine (Pinus strobus).{{cite web |url=http://www.primalnature.org/ogeast/wv.pdf |title=Old Growth in the East: A Survey |publisher=Mary Byrd Davis |access-date=November 7, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080820073624/http://www.primalnature.org/ogeast/wv.pdf |archive-date=August 20, 2008 |df=mdy-all }} Ice Mountain's tree canopy also consists of sugar maple (Acer saccharum), American tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), shagbark hickory (Carya ovata), eastern black oak (Quercus velutina), black gum (Nyssa sylvatica), American sycamore (Platanus occidentalis), black cherry (Prunus serotina), linden (Tilia americana), white ash (Fraxinus americana), and black walnut (Juglans nigra).

West Virginia's state flower, the American rhododendron (Rhododendron maximum), grows in thick clusters along the lower mountainside of Ice Mountain.

Ice Mountain provides habitats for breeding neotropical birds including warblers, vireos, and thrushes as well as various types of birds common in the central Appalachian Mountains. Ice Mountain also serves as a habitat for bald eagles and ravens, which nest in the mountain's Raven Rocks outcrop named for them. Other bird species include American goldfinch (Carduelis tristis), great crested flycatcher (Myiarchus crinitus), indigo bunting (Passerina cyanea), red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis), and American black (Coragyps atratus) and turkey (Cathartes aura) vultures.

The Nature Conservancy, with the help of volunteers, has worked to control non-native invasive species to protect and preserve Ice Mountain's rare and native plant species. These invasive species include tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima), garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), and Japanese stilt grass (Microstegium vimineum). The Nature Conservancy has also partnered with the United States Forest Service to prevent the deaths of eastern hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis) due to the hemlock woolly adelgid. The Nature Conservancy has worked with West Virginia University geologists to preserve and prevent the mountain's ice vents from succumbing to effects associated with climate change. The melting of the ice vents warms the soil's temperature which threatens the survival of the boreal species that thrive there. The Nature Conservancy also continues to monitor the natural forest regeneration in the areas of Ice Mountain affected by a 2008 tornado.

Guided hikes on Ice Mountain are offered on North River Mills and Ice Mountain Day in May and by appointment April through November.{{cite book |title=Off the Beaten Path West Virginia, Volume 6 |last=Clauson-Wicker |first=Su |year=2006 |publisher=Globe Pequot |isbn=0-7627-4218-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SQWqrt2lsDkC }}{{Dead link|date=July 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

{{Infobox mountain

| name = Ice Mountain

| photo =

| photo_caption =

| elevation_ft = 1509

| elevation_ref =

| prominence =

| range = North River Mountain, part of the Ridge-and-valley Appalachians

| listing = Mountains of the Alleghenies

| location = West Virginia, United States

| coordinates = {{Coord|39.3634320|-78.4669537|format=dms|region:US-WV_type:mountain_source:GNIS|display=inline}}

| coordinates_ref=

{{cite gnis

| id = 1540653

| name = Ice Mountain

| access-date = January 19, 2009 }}

| topo = USGS Capon Bridge

| first_ascent = unknown

| easiest_route = Hike, Climb

|fetchwikidata=ALL

}}

Ice Mountain is an arc-shaped forested ridge of the Allegheny Mountains, part of the Ridge-and-valley Appalachians. It is {{convert|1509|ft}} above mean sea level at its summit. Ice Mountain is a large mass of Devonian Oriskany (Ridgeley) sandstone and Marcellus shale with numerous bare rock slopes and vertical cliffs. Ice Mountain lies on the west side of the Timber Mountain anticline and to the west of North Mountain fault, which places it on the Martinsburg allochthonous sheet. Ice Mountain is situated along North River and is known for the several hundred yards of ice that form at its base all year long. At its southern end overlooking the community of North River Mills is located Raven Rocks, a set of stone chimney outcrops. Raven Rocks is {{convert|1230|ft}} in height above mean sea level with vertical cliffs measuring nearly {{convert|200|ft}} in height. Raven Rocks were named because of the presence of ravens during pioneer days. The present Raven Rocks is the remaining vestige of a once towering cliff that overlooked the North River. Geologically, Ice Mountain is a northern extension of North River Mountain.

Ice Mountain has played a significant role in the history of the North River Mills community. Among Ice Mountain's earliest descriptions are mentions in Henry Howe's History of Virginia (1845) and in a Silliman's Journal article by Charles Hayden from the same year. Ice Mountain was also detailed in Hu Maxwell and Howard Llewellyn Swisher's History of Hampshire County, West Virginia: From Its Earliest Settlement to the Present (1897), O. F. Morton's History of Hampshire County (1910), and Homer Floyd Fansler's "Ice Mountain: Nature's Deep Freeze" in the July 1959 issue of West Virginia Conservation. The mountain was also featured in the April 1861 edition of Harper's New Monthly Magazine. The Harper's publishing company sent the article to the Winchester Star where it appeared in their October 10, 1962, issue.

{{Infobox mountain

| name = Raven Rocks

| photo =

| photo_caption =

| elevation_ft = 1230

| elevation_ref =

| prominence =

| location = West Virginia, United States

| range = North River Mountain, part of the Ridge-and-valley Appalachians

| coordinates = {{Coord|39.3375994|-78.4966763|format=dms|region:US-WV_type:mountain_source:GNIS|display=inline}}

{{cite gnis

| id = 1545430

| name = Raven Rocks

| access-date = November 7, 2009 }}

| topo = USGS Capon Bridge

| first_ascent = unknown

| easiest_route = Hike, Climb

}}

Ice Mountain earned its nicknames "Nature's Ice Box" and "Nature's Refrigerator" because of its use by Native Americans and early settlers for storage of perishable food items during the warmer months of the year. During the American Civil War, Ice Mountain was used as a lookout point while the surrounding area served as the scene of numerous small skirmishes. Thomas McMackin's Confederate militia company camped alongside North River at the base of Raven Rocks, where a sentinel was placed from daybreak to dusk. Around the late 19th and early 20th centuries, North River Mills residents would celebrate Independence Day and other occasions as late as September by digging up ice from the talus for the making of ice cream and lemonade.

The mountain had through generations been owned by the Deaver family, the last of which was Mrs. Virginia Pugh. On September 22, 1962 Hampshire County farmer Otis Baker purchased the {{convert|4|acre|adj=on}} Ice Mountain and an adjacent {{convert|106|acre}} for $23,000 at a public auction at the Hampshire County Courthouse in Romney. Ice Mountain was purchased by The Nature Conservancy in 1991.

File:Ice Mountain Historical Marker Augusta WV 2014 10 05 01.JPG

The text of the historical marker located at the U.S. Route 50/West Virginia Route 29 wye fork between Augusta and Pleasant Dale reads as follows:

{{quote|Huge natural refrigerator, five miles north along North River, where ice is found for several hundred yards on the hottest summer days. Raven Rock, on North Mountain, offers one of the finest views in West Virginia.}}

• List of National Natural Landmarks in West Virginia
• North River (Cacapon River)
• North River Mountain
• Climate change in West Virginia

{{Reflist|2|refs=

{{cite book| editor-last1=Munske| editor-first1=Roberta R.| editor-last2 = Kerns | editor-first2 = Wilmer L. | year=2004| title=Hampshire County, West Virginia, 1754–2004| publisher=The Hampshire County 250th Anniversary Committee| location = Romney, West Virginia | isbn=978-0-9715738-2-6 | oclc = 55983178 }}

{{cite web

|url=https://www.nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/places-we-protect/ice-mountain-preserve/

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190603133405/https://www.nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/places-we-protect/ice-mountain-preserve/

|url-status=dead

|archive-date=June 3, 2019

|title=Ice Mountain Preserve

|publisher=The Nature Conservancy

|access-date=November 7, 2009

}}

}}

• {{cite web

| url = https://www.nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/places-we-protect/ice-mountain-preserve/

| title = Ice Mountain Preserve

| publisher = The Nature Conservancy

| access-date = January 19, 2009

| archive-date = December 8, 2009

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091208002951/http://www.nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/westvirginia/preserves/art1208.html

| url-status = dead

}}

• {{YouTube|id =qBUUCESehms|title =West Virginia Public Broadcasting: Lab 304: A Trip to Ice Mountain}}
• {{MP3link|[http://www.wvpbmedia.com/news/2008/1231icemountain.mp3 West Virginia Public Broadcasting: A visit to West Virginia’s Ice Mountain]}}
• {{MP3link|[http://www.wvpbmedia.com/news/2008/0731Icemountain.mp3 West Virginia Public Broadcasting: The geological wonder known as Ice Mountain]}}
• [http://wvuscholar.wvu.edu:8881//exlibris/dtl/d3_1/apache_media/6553.pdf A Geological and Geophysical Investigation of Ice Mountain Algific Talus, Hampshire County, West Virginia]
• [http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2004AM/finalprogram/abstract_76777.htm Dynamics of Cold Air Flow from Talus at the Ice Mountain Ecological Refugium, West Virginia, USA] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007044650/http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2004AM/finalprogram/abstract_76777.htm |date=October 7, 2008 }}
• [http://www.historichampshire.org/aerial/ice-air.htm Historic Hampshire: Aerial View of Ice Mountain]
• [http://www.epnps.org/ice-mountain-plant-list/ Ice Mountain Plant List]

{{Hampshire County, West Virginia, in the American Civil War}}

{{Protected Areas of West Virginia}}

{{Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia}}

{{Mountains of West Virginia}}

{{Portal bar|Geology}}

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Category:Algific talus slopes

Category:American Civil War sites in West Virginia

Category:Ridges of Hampshire County, West Virginia

Category:Hampshire County, West Virginia, in the American Civil War

Category:Ice caves

Category:Ridges of West Virginia

Category:Nature Conservancy preserves

Category:Nature reserves in West Virginia

Category:Protected areas of Hampshire County, West Virginia

Category:Rock formations of West Virginia

Category:National Natural Landmarks in West Virginia

Category:IUCN Category V