The all volunteer water restoration organization, the Coal River Group, established the 88 mile water trial in 2006. Since that time, West Virginia’s first water trail has gradually become the latest southern West Virginia recreational phenomenon.
“It’s a great way to get away from everything,” says Bill Simmons, the owner of the newly established Coal River Kayak and Canoe rental company.
Since his start up of the rental business in May, Simmons has seen business grow and grow.
“People from Charleston and Teays Valley are presently our biggest customers,” he said. “But others from Huntington, and many out of state visitors, are using our company’s boats to discover the Coal rivers.”
Simmons notes that, “the water trail on the Coal rivers offers visitors an exciting and relaxing way to get on the rivers and experience the great outdoors”.
Bill Currey, the Chairman of the Coal River Group and co-founder of the free water trail, says, “We wanted to restore the Coal rivers as a watershed group and the best way we have found to generate help and excitement about our many watershed improvement programs is to get folks out and float the rivers.”
The Coal River Water Trail is a unique way to expand West Virginia’s recreational offerings to visitors, Currey explained.
“The fact that the trails popularity is growing proves our original theory that if you make the river accessible through public boat launches and you mark the trail so it is easily understood and used, people will come,” he said.
“The development of water trails nationally has grown tremendously,” Currey added. “When we came up with the concept for the Coal River water Trail the only similar trail was in Pennsylvania on the Monongalia River.”
Part of that trail flowed through West Virginia’s section of the Monongahela River, near Morgantown, he explained.
The idea that the Coal rivers (Big, Little and Coal) could be successfully turned into the states first free water trail was kind of a leap in faith for its organizers, according to Currey.
“Many people back in 2005 and 2006 simply thought we were crazy,” said Currey. “But look at us now. We have no way to estimate total usage of the trail presently but it is easy to guess that over 1,000 people have used parts of the water trail this year alone. We had over 300 use the trail during our recent Tour De Coal, The Big Coal Branch of the Coal River Group began an event two years ago — Kevin’s Lazy River Adventure, which begins at Racine Park at 10 a.m. — and this year the July 31 event is likely to draw well over 100 participants.”
“The Coal River Kayak and Canoe business has helped to increase the number of river paddlers,” Currey said. “Bill Simmons business has helped to bring people to the rivers by offering a fleet of rental boats and livery services.”
Simmons added, “This is definitely not a get rich scheme but I have invested in a new business venture which is like investing in the future of southern West Virginia.“
“After 30 years working for the DEP, I could see that we need to diversify our economy and the Coal River Walhonde Water Trail has provided the infrastructure needed to make rentals of kayaks and canoes a good investment opportunity,” Simmons said. “Only time will tell, but in the mean time, I am having a ball being outdoors, meeting and helping people to enjoy the rivers and, hopefully, make enough money to see a return on my investment”.
The Coal River Group has published 18,000 copies of a fold out complete guide to the Coal River Walhonde Water Trail.
“All of these river guides have been distributed and we are working on a new revised trail guide with even more information regarding how to float the Coal Rivers,” Simmons said. “We have obtained grants from the Mid-Atlantic (EPA) Highlands initiative and recently obtained a new grant from the WVDOT Division of Highways Recreational Trails Program.”
The funding from this grant is helping the Coal River Group to add trail amenities such as picnic Kiosk centers, new launch and river signage, trail guides, and related signage.
“Presently we have obtained over $65,000 from grants to create and improve the Coal River Walhonde Water Trail,” Simmons said.
The WV DEP’s stream restoration funding program for the Coal rivers is adding new engineered structures — all natural materials — in the rivers that vastly improve the water quality, Simmons added.
The program is expected, when completed, to add over 300 such structures in the rivers. “The experience thus far has been that every place one of the carefully engineered sites is completed the bugs come back, followed by fish and the ripples created by the structures makes paddlers happy by adding new excitement in terms of light white water experience,” said Simmons.
“It’s a win-win program for all of southern West Virginia and we hope the funding will be increased to complete the entire planned program,” says Currey. “We want to bring life back to the Coal Rivers and getting people to float the rivers is the best single way to generate support and interest in the rivers.”
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