Equity Method Investments (Details) (USD $)	9 Months Ended		3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended			3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended				3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended			3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended			3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended	24 Months Ended
	Jul. 31, 2013	Jul. 31, 2012	Jul. 31, 2013 Cardinal Pipeline Company [Member]	Jul. 31, 2012 Cardinal Pipeline Company [Member]	Jul. 31, 2013 Cardinal Pipeline Company [Member]	Jul. 31, 2012 Cardinal Pipeline Company [Member]	Oct. 31, 2012 Cardinal Pipeline Company [Member]	Jul. 31, 2013 Pine Needle Company [Member]	Jul. 31, 2012 Pine Needle Company [Member]	Jul. 31, 2013 Pine Needle Company [Member]	Jul. 31, 2012 Pine Needle Company [Member]	Jun. 30, 2013 Pine Needle Company [Member]	Oct. 31, 2012 Pine Needle Company [Member]	Jul. 31, 2013 South Star Energy Services [Member]	Jul. 31, 2012 South Star Energy Services [Member]	Jul. 31, 2013 South Star Energy Services [Member]	Jul. 31, 2012 South Star Energy Services [Member]	Oct. 31, 2012 South Star Energy Services [Member]	Jul. 31, 2013 Piedmont Hardy Storage [Member]	Jul. 31, 2012 Piedmont Hardy Storage [Member]	Jul. 31, 2013 Piedmont Hardy Storage [Member]	Jul. 31, 2012 Piedmont Hardy Storage [Member]	Oct. 31, 2012 Piedmont Hardy Storage [Member]	Jul. 31, 2013 Constitution Pipeline Company [Member]	Jul. 31, 2013 Constitution Pipeline Company [Member]	Oct. 31, 2015 Constitution Pipeline Company [Member]
Schedule Of Equity Method Investments [Line Items]
Equity Method Investment Ownership Percentage			21.49%		21.49%			45.00%		45.00%		40.00%		15.00%		15.00%			50.00%		50.00%			24.00%	24.00%
Additional Equity Method Ownership Percentage Acquired								In June 2013, we entered into an agreement with Hess Corporation (Hess) to acquire their 5% membership interest in Pine Needle. Effective July 1, 2013, we acquired Hess’ 5% membership interest for $2.9 million.
Pipeline Subscription Capacity Percentage																								100.00%
Related Party Transaction Expenses From Transactions With Related Party			$ 2,240,000	$ 2,030,000	$ 6,534,000	$ 4,077,000		$ 2,791,000	$ 2,714,000	$ 8,307,000	$ 7,696,000								$ 2,425,000	$ 2,425,000	$ 7,276,000	$ 7,276,000
Due To Related Parties Current			755,000		755,000		855,000	940,000		940,000			914,000						808,000		808,000		808,000
Due From Related Parties Current														427,000		427,000		473,000
Revenue from Related Parties														1,469,000	1,017,000	2,053,000	1,247,000
Contributions to and purchase of additional interest in equity method investments	15,008,000	3,566,000																						3,400,000	12,100,000
Estimated Piedmont Contributions To Pipeline Project																								163,000,000	163,000,000
Term Pipeline Subscription Agreements																								15 years	15 years
Approximate Pipeline Length																								120	120
Estimated Pipeline Development And Construction Costs																								$ 680,000,000	$ 680,000,000
Funding Percentage of Total Estimated Piedmont Contributions																										90.00%
Pipeline Target In Service Date																								March 2015
Number of Producer Shippers With Negotiated Rate Structure																								2	2