As a result, more than a third of all the land TNC has helped protect in Virginia now lies within the boundaries of public lands. I will confess, though, to a certain bias not only in favor of my local parks, but also toward the public lands whose conservation stories I’ve been fortunate to help tell over the years for TNC.įor more than 50 years, our organization has worked in partnership with many dedicated conservationists, from visionary individuals to local, state and federal agencies to protect more than 500,000 acres in Virginia. Virtually anywhere you live or visit within the commonwealth will offer similar opportunities. In even less time, I can be paddling my kayak on one of many tranquil lakes protected within our Albemarle County parks. As the saying goes, though, there’s no place like home.įrom my home near Charlottesville, a half-hour drive will take me to Shenandoah National Park or the Blue Ridge Parkway and my choice of hikes to scenic waterfalls or stunning mountain vistas. My work for The Nature Conservancy has taken me to some of the most amazing places on Earth, including national parks from Arizona to Zambia.
Outdoor recreation in Virginia generates $21.9 billion in consumer spending and $1.2 billion in state and local tax revenues, while directly supporting 197,000 jobs that put $6.5 billion into people’s paychecks.More than 2.3 million acres of national parks, forests, wildlife refuges and other federal lands serve as a massive public playground for hiking, camping, wildlife watching and sightseeing.Virginia’s 46 wildlife management areas offer more than 200,000 acres for public recreation, including traditional activities such as hunting, trapping and fishing.Virginia’s 26 state forests provide 300 miles of trails exclusively for non-motorized uses such as hiking, horseback riding, and biking 81 miles of open roads and many lakes and rivers for fishing, canoeing and kayaking.Virginia’s 41 state parks offer thousands of campsites, hundreds of cabins, more than 500 miles of trails and easy access to activities such as boating, fishing and swimming.
Today, Virginia’s vibrant cultural tapestry owes much of its richness to the ongoing contributions of nearly a dozen recognized tribes, including Chickahominy, Eastern Chickahominy, Mattaponi, Upper Mataponi, Nansemond, Rappahannock, Monacan Indian Nation, Pamunkey, Cheroenhaka (Nottoway), Nottoway of Virginia and Patowomeck.īy any measure, there’s a lot to love about Virginia’s public lands. The Monacan, Powhatan and Cherokee were the predominant tribes here when Europeans arrived in the 17 th century and began displacing the Indigenous people. As Karenne Wood (Monacan) writes in The Virginia Indian Heritage Trail, “Our histories, our ancestral connections, and our traditions are intertwined with the land called Tsenacomoco by Virginia Algonquian peoples.” Of course, we acknowledge and pay our respect to the traditional custodians of these and all the lands that we know today as Virginia. From the smallest city parks to the vast George Washington and Jefferson National Forest, our shared green spaces provide vital natural services: clean water, recreation to boost our physical and mental well-being, habitat for diverse wildlife, and economic activity and jobs. Roughly 3.7 million acres of land across Virginia is managed for public benefit. The sheer diversity of local, state and federal lands protected for the benefit and enjoyment of Virginians and our visitors is cause for pride and celebration.
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