“For me Buchanan County is one of those special places that is hard to put into words. As someone passionate about nature studies, hiking, trail running, bird watching, and photography, this region is a perfect fit for my interests.

From the Breaks Interstate Park to Southern Gap, this area always provides an amazing array of sights, sounds and wildlife on my hikes and trail runs.

I live only a few miles from Southern Gap now and I feel that this area is a somewhat undiscovered diamond in the rough.  While it's renowned for its extensive ATV trails spanning over 100 miles, these same trails are ideal for hiking, trail running, mountain biking, and observing wildlife and birds. Our dense forests and mountain-top "prairies in the sky" boast some of the state's best birdwatching spots. Whether watching Prairie Warblers and Blue Grosbeaks in a sunlit field or discovering Cerulean and Kentucky Warblers in the forest canopy just yards away, the diversity of birdlife here is unparalleled.

I see Elk on many of my hikes here at Southern Gap.  Many times I'll turn a corner along the trails and see a dozen or more.  I feel that sunrises and sunsets are the most special times to be at the Gap and on most days you can easily see Pine Mountain, High Knob, and Clinch Mountain from the visitor's center there.

I grew up here in Buchanan County but have lived in many different parts of the country due to work.  Those areas were always just a place I lived and there was only ever one "home" for me.  I was so thankful for the opportunity to move back a several years ago and I have no plans of ever living anywhere else again."