Unicoi County, roughly 35 miles northeast of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, is the first community in Tennessee to receive the designation, and only the fourth in the country, joining Boiling Springs, Pa., Hot Springs, N.C., and Franklin, N.C.
The designation comes from the ATC due to a partnership between the organization and Unicoi County and the significant conservation efforts in the county.ATC Regional Director Morgan Sommerville said an estimated 4 million people walk some portion of the nearly 2,180 mile Appalachian Trail annually. Hopes are that the designation will provide greater exposure to Unicoi County’s portion and increased economic benefits to the county as a whole.
“We hope that the Appalachian Trail Community designation will encourage hikers to spend at least one additional night in Unicoi County and perhaps more,” Sommerville said.
Joe Deloach, Appalachian Trail Committee chair of the Tennessee Eastman Hiking & Canoeing Club, said Unicoi County will likely be the only community in Tennessee to receive Appalachian Trail Community designation for the foreseeable future. Of the 17 counties in Tennessee and North Carolina through which the trail runs, Deloach said Unicoi County’s portion is the fourth largest with 51 miles.
Unicoi County’s portion of the Appalachian Trail includes Rocky Fork, Big Bald Mountain, Unaka Mountain as well as Beauty Spot.
You can read the full story from the Johnson City Press by clicking here.
Jeff
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