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While parts of western North Carolina are off-limits, other mountain towns seek fall tourists

After a few days of power outages due to Helene, shops and restaurants along Main Street in the Alleghany County mountain town of Sparta reopened for business, but traffic has been down from a typical fall.
Colin Campbell
/
WUNC
After a few days of power outages due to Helene, shops and restaurants along Main Street in the Alleghany County mountain town of Sparta reopened for business, but traffic has been down from a typical fall.

Parts of western North Carolina remain off-limits to tourists as the recovery from Helene continues. But other mountain communities are eager to welcome fall visitors to help keep their small businesses afloat as they try to get back to normal.

Daniel Cater’s pottery studio and gallery on Sparta’s Main Street is usually bustling this time of year. But while Alleghany County saw only minor damage from Helene, the area has seen fewer tourists at its shops and restaurants.

"The last half of October is usually really busy, and it hasn't been quite that busy, but, you know, it's understandable," Cater said, adding that half of the shop's sales typically come from out-of-town visitors.

Mangum Cater on Main Studio and Gallery in Sparta relies heavily on tourists, but it's seen a less busy fall this year in the aftermath of Helene.
Colin Campbell
/
WUNC
Mangum Cater on Main Studio and Gallery in Sparta relies heavily on tourists, but it's seen a less busy fall this year in the aftermath of Helene.

I’m one of the visitors who wasn’t sure about making a fall trip to the mountains this year. I wanted to make sure I wouldn’t get in the way of storm recovery efforts or go to places that are still without critical infrastructure to support visitors.

But that’s not a problem in Alleghany County. Beth Phillips runs the visitor’s center in Sparta.

"A lot of people forget that when you hear about western North Carolina, everyone thinks of Asheville and those towns down there, but we're in the northwest corner of the state, and we're open, and we are back ready for tourism," Phillips told WUNC. "We depend on tourism, and we're ready for them to come and see the beautiful fall leaves, enjoy the cool weather, and just to be up here."

Bluegrass band Gap Civil performs at the High Mountain Hope benefit concert for Helene recovery in Sparta.
Colin Campbell
/
WUNC
Bluegrass band Gap Civil performs at the High Mountain Hope benefit concert for Helene recovery in Sparta.

One of the challenges for mountain towns that are open for business is that the Blue Ridge Parkway remains closed in North Carolina, although it has reopened in much of Virginia. That’s a billion-dollar driver of local economies, according to Lisa Bottomley with the Blue Ridge Parkway Association.

"It creates thousands of local jobs, a benefit of over $1.7 billion in the area," Bottomley said. "So, when you eliminate the Parkway, it's going to be a huge economic hit. That's why it's so important that our local and state government advocates for money to help these small businesses rebuild, or to help them in some way with some small business grants."

There’s no timeline to reopen the Parkway, and the National Park Service says crews are working to remove thousands of downed trees. In the meantime, Phillips is handing out maps of scenic driving tours on local roads outside the Parkway that are open for normal traffic.

Another factor is that all North Carolina state parks west of Interstate 77 remain closed. That includes one of my favorite hikes in the area, Stone Mountain. So, for hiking, I drove a few extra miles across the state line to Grayson County, Virginia, where more parks are open.

Getting the right tourism messaging has been a balancing act for Visit NC, the agency that markets destinations across the entire state. Scott Peacock says their goal is to keep tourists informed about which areas are open while encouraging people to donate to recovery efforts in places that are still closed to visitors.

"So, either supporting relief efforts, or come and visit areas that are unaffected, that need you now or plan a trip ahead for areas that are currently off-limits," he said in a recent briefing for local tourism officials.

Visit NC's website includes a frequently updated map showing what’s open, color-coded with five counties showing in the red "closed to visitors" category as of this week. Alleghany County officials were initially frustrated that their county was shaded red due to a single road closure, but it's since been updated to green.

Towns from Banner Elk south to Spruce Pine, Asheville and Chimney Rock remain closed. But in the state's northwest corner, towns like Sparta, West Jefferson, Boone and Blowing Rock have been able to reopen. So have towns on the far-western end of the state, from Waynesville to Sylva, Andrews and Murphy.

They’ve even put up "Visitors Needed" billboards in strategic locations.

Back in Sparta, locals have been organizing events to attract visitors while raising money to help their neighbors further west who have a long recovery ahead.

Local musicians like the bluegrass band Gap Civil played an all-day benefit concert called High Mountain Hope on Saturday. The event brought in supplies and donations to help the local rescue squad with its relief work in nearby towns. And Alleghany County’s artists will be holding their NC Mountain Arts Adventure studio tour this weekend.

Colin Campbell covers politics for WUNC as the station's capitol bureau chief.
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