Photo by Chuck Summers
Breaks Park will host an elk viewing tour on September 27, 2014 during their third annual Nature Weekend event.
The tour, which will begin at the Breaks Park Visitor Center at 5 pm, will take participants to view the elk herd that was released in Buchanan County two years ago. It is the inaugural event in what is expected to become a regular part of the interpretive programming at Breaks during the spring and fall of 2015.
“Our interpretive staff is excited to be able to offer our guests the opportunity to view these magnificent animals,” said Park Superintendent Austin Bradley, “We appreciate Leon Boyd and the local Chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation for the hard work they’ve put in to make this happen,” he said.
Bradley said the introduction of the elk in such close proximity to the park creates a wonderful opportunity to offer park visitors a unique wildlife viewing experience while attracting new visitors and increased tourism to the area. The herd that will be viewed during the tour is located about 25 minutes from the park. It is expected to become the largest herd in Virginia.
According to Bradley, the upcoming elk tour program will be the first of a larger tour schedule which he hopes will begin next year. Breaks Park officials are now working with land owners and members of the local chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation to coordinate tours during the spring and fall, which are the most popular viewing times for elk. Calves usually arrive in the Spring, and Fall is the best time to hear the bulls’ bugle call, he said.
The elk reintroduction plan in southwest Virginia calls for a goal of 400 elk in Buchanan County, where they will be stocked, and a population of 1,200 throughout the elk restoration area which includes Buchanan, Dickenson, and Wise Counties, he said. An elk restoration program has been successful in areas of southeast Kentucky, and elk tours have become a significant tourism draw there over the last few years, Bradley noted. “Similar tours at our sister parks in Kentucky have proven to be extremely popular, with advanced bookings required to get a seat on the tour,” Bradley said.
He said other areas were also reaping the benefits from increased tourism of elk herds, citing a Penn State economic impact study that showed an area around Benezette, Pennsylvania — a town with only 223 residents — where elk were introduced twenty years ago, is now seeing an average of $1.7 million in tourism related spending per year including food, transportation costs, and lodging.
Though no economic feasibility studies have been done for the introduction of elk herds in southwest Virginia, Bradley said based on the success that has been seen in other areas, the potential for increasing tourism is very exciting.
Beginning in 2015, there will be a charge for those who participate in an elk tour at Breaks, but the event planned for September 27 will be free. However, because of the limited seating, those interested in attending must pre-register at the Park Visitor Center.
For more information about the elk tour or other Nature Weekend programs, contact Park Naturalist Carl Mullins at 276-865-4413 ext. 3221 or [email protected].
Breaks Interstate Park is located on the Kentucky – Virginia border and is accessed by State Route 80. Commissioned by the U.S. Congress in 1954, it encompasses more than 4,600 acres and is one of only two interstate parks in the United States. For more information about the park, please visit www.BreaksPark.com.
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