Good Friday Morning!
Had a wonderful weekend “down on the farm” this last weekend. After the spring.I’ve had, the time to hang out and talk and visit and unwind was NEEDED.
A topic that’s on my mind today - the tensions, and maybe even disconnects, between the things that “locals” think they want and need for this region, and what “visitors” think. I spend a lot of time at that “pinch point”, between folks from outside, that have their own agendas - but also some good ideas and resources, and locals that need resources, but may not agree with the agenda.
Example - in southern WV, a great deal of focus is on generation of “adventure” tourism, including motorized recreation - Hatfields ATV trail, bike trail development, all of the activity around the New River Gorge. On the other end of the state, the conversation in the Potomac Highlands (Blackwater, Dolly Sods, etc) is very much hiking/preservation oriented - a funny thing, considering that the crowds coming over from the east have made it tough to go to the Sods on the weekend.
The locals like ATVs. The visitors want peace and quiet. The locals need jobs and resources. The visitors have them.
Who wins?
Hope folks have a great weekend - with a little luck, I have a “long format” piece coming from some adventures outwest. VERY excited to share those.
What Comes After - West Virginia