Appalachia County Questions (Virginia Beach, Burke, Danville: relocate, transplants, insurance)

[KewGee]

Any opinions from anyone pertaining to the Appalachia counties of Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell, and Wise would be appreciated. These counties look quite scenic on the web.

In checking stats, I see that some of them are a bit impoverished which isn't a problem for me if they're not trashed, so to speak.

PLEASE understand that poverty to me does not mean trashy as I've seen the well-to-do "trash" their property and many low-income recipients keep a nice and tidy place.

Thanks for any help!

[silverwing]

Originally Posted by amjb

[b]Any opinions from anyone pertaining to the Appalachia counties of Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell, and Wise would be appreciated. These counties look quite scenic on the web.

Tazewell is a pretty county. If you want to see the more picturesque parts, rent the 1994 version of "Lassie". It was filmed there
http://imdb.com/title/tt0110305/

However, like Grayson, SW Va seems to be a popular dumping ground for prisons. I got this from a recent blog
http://realcostofprisons.org/blog/ar..._proposes.html

A third prison is being constructed in Tazewell County and is scheduled to open in September.

And there was a squawk a few years ago about the area being portrayed as having a bad drug problem. How close the article came to the facts is debatable.
http://www.drug-rehabs.org/content.php?cid=1536&state=Virginia (broken link)

Now, the saving grace about that county is Burke's Garden. If you want to be in an area that is literally cut off, that would be it. That's the one place that is a "must do" for me this year on my rig. http://www.virginia.org/site/descrip...p?AttrID=15134
History has it that George Vanderbilt wanted to buy the area for construction of Biltmore (imagine what the area would be like if he had been successful!) but the landowners banded together to say "no". I also read that, in recent history, the Garden was home to several Amish families because of the fertile land, but I think they might have cleared out. Today, it's a popular area for bicyclists, bird watchers, and those who are just interested in visiting this unusual land feature.
http://www.craborchardmuseum.com/Burke's%20Garden.htm#Burke%92s%A0Garden

[KewGee]

Originally Posted by silverwing

Tazewell is a pretty county. If you want to see the more picturesque parts, rent the 1994 version of "Lassie". It was filmed there
http://imdb.com/title/tt0110305/

However, like Grayson, SW Va seems to be a popular dumping ground for prisons. I got this from a recent blog
http://realcostofprisons.org/blog/ar..._proposes.html



And there was a squawk a few years ago about the area being portrayed as having a bad drug problem. How close the article came to the facts is debatable.
http://www.drug-rehabs.org/content.php?cid=1536&state=Virginia (broken link)

Now, the saving grace about that county is Burke's Garden. If you want to be in an area that is literally cut off, that would be it. That's the one place that is a "must do" for me this year on my rig. http://www.virginia.org/site/descrip...p?AttrID=15134
History has it that George Vanderbilt wanted to buy the area for construction of Biltmore (imagine what the area would be like if he had been successful!) but the landowners banded together to say "no". I also read that, in recent history, the Garden was home to several Amish families because of the fertile land, but I think they might have cleared out. Today, it's a popular area for bicyclists, bird watchers, and those who are just interested in visiting this unusual land feature.
http://www.craborchardmuseum.com/Burke's%20Garden.htm#Burke%92s%A0Garden

What a shame that a prison is being constructed in Tazewell. Those thugs will get to view all that beauty, what a shear waste of lovely land. I surely hope the one in Grayson county falls through.

Thanks for the drug problem article, something possibly conducive to more crime. It's just terrible that is happening in so many places.

I may buy the Lassie movie; there are several for sale on eBay. That would be a great movie to have anyway.

Wow!! Burke's Garden will definitely be on my "too see" list. I'll check too to see if the Amish have cleared out.

Once again, I so appreciate all the great information you add to the threads.

[theburro]

Originally Posted by amjb

Any opinions from anyone pertaining to the Appalachia counties of Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell, and Wise would be appreciated.
In checking stats, I see that some of them are a bit impoverished which isn't a problem for me if they're not trashed, so to speak.

Unless you are a coal miner or a corrections officer, I fail to see why you would be interested in the Appalachian coalfield counties. I lived in 3 of the counties you mentioned and traveled extensively through the others. There are some exceptionally nice areas on the fringes, e.g., Thompson Valley, Elk Garden, and western Lee Co. near Cumberalnd Gap. However, the rest is basically trashed.

Look again at the data base I posted, www.vaperforms.virginia.gov, at things like suicide rates, school dropout rates, and housing and you will start to get a picture of the profound problems in those counties. Also, you would likely have a hard time obtaining the mineral rights to any property, meaning that strip mines could dig right up to your front yard or deep mines could undermine your house.

If you have a choice about where to relocate in Virginia, there are 2 parts of the state I would unambiguously avoid - northern Virginia (unless you are rich) and the coalfields (unless you are in the mining business or the prison system). Don't get me wrong, I have lived all over Virginia and it is an exceptionally beautiful state - but some regions should just be avoided and many of the nicer regions are getting very crowded.

[KewGee]

Originally Posted by theburro

Unless you are a coal miner or a corrections officer, I fail to see why you would be interested in the Appalachian coalfield counties. I lived in 3 of the counties you mentioned and traveled extensively through the others. There are some exceptionally nice areas on the fringes, e.g., Thompson Valley, Elk Garden, and western Lee Co. near Cumberalnd Gap. However, the rest is basically trashed.

Look again at the data base I posted, www.vaperforms.virginia.gov, at things like suicide rates, school dropout rates, and housing and you will start to get a picture of the profound problems in those counties. Also, you would likely have a hard time obtaining the mineral rights to any property, meaning that strip mines could dig right up to your front yard or deep mines could undermine your house.

If you have a choice about where to relocate in Virginia, there are 2 parts of the state I would unambiguously avoid - northern Virginia (unless you are rich) and the coalfields (unless you are in the mining business or the prison system). Don't get me wrong, I have lived all over Virginia and it is an exceptionally beautiful state - but some regions should just be avoided and many of the nicer regions are getting very crowded.

No, I don't work for a prison nor am I a coal miner. I appreciate your post and am glad to find out this information about the counties I mentioned. I don't know anything about coal mining and am glad you clued me in. I still would love to see that Burke's Garden but after silverwing mentioned a prison in Tazewell County, I knew I wouldn't want to live there.

No thanks to the strip mines. It is too bad the area is trashed although I will check out the areas in Lee County of which you speak. No interest in northern VA, only the mountainous areas.

Vaperforms is a good site; thank you.

[silverwing]

Originally Posted by amjb

I will check out the areas in Lee County of which you speak. No interest in northern VA, only the mountainous areas

Poor Amjb, you’re getting pulled left and right

I had thought to maybe mention that part of the state except I have a couple of prejudices against the Lee County area (a little background):we were there in 2000, I think. We visited Cumberland Gap; Middlesboro, KY (we saw the restoration of the Glacier Girl when it was still pieces on the floor of the hangar http://www.thelostsquadron.com/ here’s a film of one of its early restoration flights http://youtube.com/watch?v=NuE1B9fH9EU ); and Harrogate, TN (where they have a neat Abraham Lincoln Museum). We were there in early June and it was HOT and HUMID . We were staying at the Cumberland Gap Campground, which was nice, but it was HOT and HUMID. Frankly, it was kind of awful. I don’t know how the humidity would compare to Texas – probably not as bad – but it was uncomfortable for us. Perhaps the geography funnels certain types of air masses through there. For all that it is a higher altitude area, we found it hotter than other mountain regions.

Second prejudice: highway 58. That’s a 500-something mile road that goes clear across Virginia. You can hop on at Cumberland Gap and ride all the way to Virginia Beach. It passes thru an area I think I PM’d you about: Damascus, Grayson Highlands and on thru Galax and Independence. It’s being widened to 4 lanes which, to me, is fine in some sections. We hop on it at Danville to go to the eastern side of the state when we want to go to Williamsburg or that area. It’s a less-traveled/less crazy route than the interstate and is a boring drive, really. But it is 4-lanes through Lee County. Typically, that happens as “an incentive to economic development.” I suppose only a cloudy crystal ball can say if that will make the area grow. In fact, who's to know that Middlesboro and surrounding areas might be the next place to be "discovered". 25E is 4-lanes to Corbin (with a lot of stoplights) and connects to a major north-south interstate. I'm goggling over the herds of transplants pouring into NC; we've been here almost 20 years and have never seen the likes; so I guess you can never say "never" any more when it comes to mass migrations of people.

I only breathed a *sigh* of relief that the section between Damascus and Volney was to be let alone, as documented here http://www.expresswaysite.com/virginia_58.htm

Due to its low traffic volumes and its scenic nature, the section of US-58 between Damascus and Volney would remain 2 lanes, with improvement projects in a few places

*whew* That saves neat little waysides like Whitetop and Greencove, however, I wonder about the fate of that part of SW Virginia, as it will be affected by these plans:

He told me that the current plan, which is tentative due to the number of years that it would take to complete it all, is to upgrade US-58 to 4 lanes between Abingdon to Damascus, build a relocated 4-lane VA-16 to connect I-81 at Marion to US-58 at Volney, upgrade and relocate parts of US-58 to 4 lanes between Volney and Independence, and build a US-58 4-lane bypass of Independence to connect to the section of US-58 that is all 4 lanes between east of Independence and I-77 at Hillsville.

If you do a mapquest connection between Marion and Volney, blowing up the map to get a good look at highway 16 (Marion ->Sugar Grove->Troutdale->Volney), you can see which area will be turned into a 4-lane transportation corridor. I only hope that, since road projects like this can run into decades of work, and are sometimes stopped at the whim of politics or economy, that we might be gone by the time all that happens. That is too nice a part of the state to be littered with 4-laners

Anyway, as all recommendations/descriptions/warnings about your interest in the area has been answered, you’ll really just have to check these places to see for yourself. I poked around and found these links which will give you an idea of the area and its appearance.

http://www.vahighways.com/photos/us058/index.html

http://www.deltaairport.com/about/project-lee-county.html (broken link)

http://www.leecountyvachamber.org/

http://www.mountaingateway.com/pages/index.htm

http://www.dof.virginia.gov/R6/lee-index.shtml

http://www.co-opliving.com/cooplivin...dh_1998Oct.pdf

http://www.co-opliving.com/cooplivin...dh_2002Jan.pdf

http://www.co-opliving.com/cooplivin...dh_2000Feb.pdf

http://www.leecountyida.com/

[KewGee]

SILVERWING:

I can't thank you enough for all of this information. I enjoyed viewing the different sites you listed in your post.

I believe you're right about some areas of the mountains having a higher humidity. If you say it was hot, I believe it. From that, I'm wanting to escape even though I'm sure it's not as bad as here. The Texas heat can make one keel over just standing still in the shade, no lie.

You're right. I've found out all the information I need to plan my trip; I just need to get out there and check it all out. I can hardly wait.

Thanks so much, silverwing, and everyone else who has pacified me on my never-ending list of concerns and wanted area information. I think I've finally run out of questions and now I need to read everything I've printed from all of the threads pertaining to SW VA.

All the best to all of you..............................

[Ridgerunner]

Hello, KewGee. Of the counties you mentioned, Lee County is probably the most scenic with Russell and Tazewell not far behind. The U.S. 58 corrider from Cumberland Gap to the Scott County line has fantastic views. Cumberland Mountain (known locally as Stone Mtn.) hugs the Va.-Ky. state line from Cumberland Gap to to a point about due west of the town of Pennington Gap. It runs northeastward from this point to Wise County. This mountain marks the southeast boundary of the Cumberland Plateau region and the coalfield region as well. The portion of Lee County northwest of the mountain has a more rugged landscape and topographical features that are in stark contrast to most of the county. Since the decade of the seventies not much mining has occurred in this region, and the strip mining scars have healed considerably. Near the above-mentioned point west of Pennington Gap, Little Black Mountain branches off Stone Mountain and runs northeastward along the state line to the northernmost point of the county and beyond. Near the Keokee community a secondary road crosses the Little Black into Kentucky and at its highest point offers nice views of both states. On U.S. 58 at the Scott County line atop Powell Mountain is a spectacular view looking southward and eastward to the Blue Ridge Mountain range. Easily recognizable from this point is Roan Mountain on the Tn.-N.C. state line. But the county's grandest view is atop Cumberland Mountain within Cumberland Gap National Historical Park from which one may view the Smokey Mountains to the south.

[twogrand]

I live in Lee County and it is a lovely county. The scenery is beautiful.
The coal mining areas are in a remote area so you can avoid seeing that completely.
We do get hot and humid in the summertime, but it would not compare to Texas.
Lee County is within driving distance to the Kingsport, TN area for jobs or to Middlesboro, KY for jobs, Bristol, VA or Johnson City, TN. These areas also have good shopping and medical treatment facilities.
We have a variety of people here from the super educated to the hill type person, but you will more than likely come more into contact with the super educated or the mid range person.
We have ATV clubs, horse back riding,nearby art museums, a lot of history, living history museums and re-enactments of the Civil War,Revolutionary War, and the Daniel Boone settler era.
I have no idea what problem the 4 lane would be. I really enjoy having 4 lanes to drive on now as compared to the 2 lanes we used to have when we got stuck behind logging or coal trucks. There has been very little increase in traffic in the area, so the 4 lane has not effected us that way at all.We do have some people retiring here now from other areas that were not from this area originally, so we must have something going for us.
We have jobs at the federal prison, minng, teaching, railroad, trucking, call centers, insurance, just like any other area in Virginia,except we don't have the crowding and the high volume of traffic.
If you like rural areas, we are a beautiful , rural area.I think you should come and visit Lee county and see if you might like it here. A lot of people do.

[KewGee]

Thanks twogrand and Ridgerunner for your input. Lee County sounds lovely, and I look forward to visiting it one day.