ASHEVILLE — Buncombe County will see its first interpretive signs installed Tuesday on the new Blue Ridge Heritage Trail atThe North Carolina Arboretum, Biltmore Estate, Thomas Wolfe Memorial and in Pack Square Park. On Wednesday, a fifth sign will be installed in front of the Black Mountain Visitor Center.
The trail will be marked by 69 signs at special places throughout Western North Carolina, which embody the remarkable history and culture of the region. Words and photographs tell an illuminating story about each site and illustrate many aspects of the region’s natural and cultural heritage, including that of the Cherokee, traditional music, agriculture, and craft.
Signs will be located along main walkways at historic, natural and scenic sites, attractions, towns and cities, in some state parks, along the Blue Ridge Parkway, in Great Smoky Mountains National Park and at five NC Welcome Centers within the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area.
The trail doesn’t run from “Point A to Point B,” but rather many stops throughout the region, explained Jill Jones, a spokeswoman for the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area. People can enjoy a single stop or piece together several sites by theme or region. QR codes on each sign will let people with smart phones locate other nearby sites.
The goal is to encourage visitors and residents to discover places they may not know about. For example, most travelers know about Cherokee, but may not know how extensive the Cherokee nation’s land once was. They can learn more on signs being installed in the far western part of the region, in places like Robbinsville, Andrews and Hayesville.
The trail will be enhanced by five interactive kiosks in NC Welcome Centers at entry points to the BRNHA. The kiosks will help visitors to WNC or people passing through the state discover someplace interesting to explore along the way, encouraging a nearby stop or adding a scenic route.
An accompanying map brochure and website will also help visitors get around the region and learn more about each site.
The $450,000 project is an initiative of the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area Partnership and was made possible by Federal Highway Transportation Enhancement funding administered through the North Carolina Department of Transportation and Haywood County.
“We are very grateful to the NCDOT and Haywood County for helping us develop this signage program,” said Angie Chandler, Executive Director of the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area Partnership. “We believe the Blue Ridge Heritage Trail will be yet another cultural tourism product created by the BRNHA to encourage the traveling public to learn more about our region. By visiting these and other heritage sites, we hope they will extend their stay or plan to return, and thus stimulate the regional economy.”
Installation of all signs and the kiosks is expected to be complete by early November.
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