GLENVILLE, W.Va. — The evolution of the kayak and the exploding popularity of the personalized craft for fishing is a perfect fit for West Virginia. Public interest groups are using the groundswell of kayak activity as a catalyst to spotlight some of West Virginia’s smaller rivers which for years had been hidden and largely neglected.
We’ve reported in recent months here on MetroNews about the successful efforts to resurrect the Coal River, the Tug Fork, Tygart, and Cheat Rivers. Others are following suit with great work happening in places like the Guyandotte and the Little Kanawha.
“I know some of these other river trails have definitely been a huge inspiration to us,” said Kathy Gilbert, Executive Director of the Little Kanawha River Trail. “They have definitely given us great guidelines with their cleanups and some of them have really nice amenities like campgrounds and access. It’s definitely increased the use of the river.”
Kathy is a native West Virginian and for many years left the state to work. She’s home now and saw the opportunity to create a tourist attraction in her hometown of Glenville and decided to get involved.
“We formed to increase tourism and usage of boaters on our river,” she said. “From I-79 coming toward Glenville there are four public access points already. We designed a brochure to guide kayakers and boaters down the river.”
The organization formed two years ago with high ambitions. The group has already started volunteer cleanups of the waterway and is working on a major access point int he town of Glenville. An old building along the river was purchased and razed by the local Economic Development Authority. The goal now is to create a major access point in town to draw visitors.
“We wanted a nice place for the boaters to get on the river, rather than just an eyesore of a building,” she said.
The project has become more ambitious with the interest from a growing number of volunteers. The local economic development authority has put some more money into the access project and the plan is to create not only a walk down access, but also a ramp for motorized craft as well.
Fishing on the Little Kanawha River is strong, the waterway recently produced a new state record musky. The river also has an added bonus that other volunteer organizations haven’t enjoyed, the water quality is already in good shape.
“We have a nice, healthy river,” Gilbert explained. “Our biology students at Glenville State have partnered with us and done baseline tests on the water quality. We want to keep the river clean and keep it healthy and open for fishermen and tourists.”
The growing organization started in Gilmer County, but hopes to expand to the entire length of the river from Burnsville to Parkersburg in the coming years. You can learn more about the Little Kanawha River Trail on their Facebook page.