W.Va.'s pre-Lent Fasnacht bash chases off winter
Thursday - 2/7/2013, 12:52pm ET
This Feb. 18, 2012 photo provided by HelvetiaWV.com shows revelers wearing masks and costumes marching in a parade during the 2012 Fasnacht in Helvetia W.Va. Deep in the mountains of West Virginia, the descendants of Swiss and German immigrants have Fasnacht, which like Mardi Gras, is a last hurrah before Lent as well as chasing away winter. (AP Photo/HelvetiaWV.com)
VICKI SMITH
Associated Press
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -- The Gulf Coast has Mardi Gras. Deep in the mountains of West Virginia, the descendants of Swiss and German immigrants have Fasnacht. It's smaller by thousands and colder by about 40 degrees, but it's more than just a last hurrah before Lent.
On Saturday, hundreds will make the trek over winding country roads to Helvetia, a community now so small it can barely be called a village. (Population 59 in the 2010 census.) They will don papier-m
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