As some of you may already know, my handmade craft business is very much seasonal and tourist-based, particularly from May through October when travel on the Blue Ridge Parkway is heaviest. For those of us with tourism businesses, nature and our mountain climate can be our best friends ….or our adversaries. We watch our regional climate carefully for clues to our market and our business’ survival.
Nature has taught me many hard lessons over the last eleven years, most notably how little I can control some aspects of my business. September 2004 brought one of those lessons, when not one but two Hurricanes (Fran and Ivan) hit our area, damaging the Parkway in both North and South directions.
First Fran gave us 20 inches of rain and softened the ground so much that when Ivan came through 8 days later, the trees gave way along with the asphalt. The northbound lane of the Blue Ridge Parkway literally fell off the side of the mountain, and rockslides damaged what was left. Direct Parkway access to the South (Asheville) was closed for nearly one year, and Parkway access to the North (Boone and the state of Virginia) for nearly two. The small rural towns off each Parkway exit were devastated economically when tourists were unable to easily get to them.
Natural disasters certainly take their toll on seasonal businesses, but so do the seasons of Mother Nature. Each Summer we watch the drought carefully, knowing that the length of the drought will affect how much color we’ll see in the Fall leaves and how long those leaves will stay on the trees. That will determine how many weeks long ‘leaf season’ will be, and how many weeks the tourists will bring their money to the Blue Ridge.
In recent years, leaf season has been so delayed that peak season is now in late October and early November, which has actually changed the season of our businesses. Most tourist businesses along the Parkway used to traditionally close October 31st. Now they stay open until all the leaves disappear along with the tourists, however long it takes. One year that was close to Thanksgiving.
Yet all too often these signs that our climate is changing are not even noticed. Or quickly denied if they are.
So when I found announcement of a North Carolina conference organized around climate change in Appalachia, I really felt a sigh of relief that somebody else noticed and wants to take a look at what it all might mean for our rural towns.
“Climate defines tourism. North Carolina’s tourism business is seventh in the nation with revenues of more than $16.51 billion a year. In 2007 in Buncombe County (Asheville, North Carolina) alone, tourism revenue grew to $705 million. People come to our mountain sanctuaries to hike, fish, view scenic landscapes, raft and renew. Just last year, drought and heat reduced whitewater for French Broad River paddlers. And regional studies warn that by 2100, a significant percentage of our streams may no longer support certain species of trout. River rafting and recreational fishing are multimillion-dollar-a-year industries.
Tourism also is affected by air quality. With prolonged heat, stagnant air masses trap airborne pollutants and pose a threat to health. This is a risk at all elevations, but above 3,500 feet, a favorite zone for hikers, the mixture will be especially potent.”
Warren Wilson College, The Wilderness Society and Orion magazine will host “Headwaters Gathering: Southern Appalachia at the Crossroads … A Call to Action” on March 27-29, 2009. Warren Wilson College is in Asheville, North Carolina.
Speakers will offer diverse perspectives from world economics, climate change, and rural development, and presidents of the National Wildlife Federation and The Wilderness Society will be presenting sessions. You can register to participate at www.headwatersgathering.org.
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