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Staff Report

Bell County Adventure Tourism has been a successful program for the county. Recently, the Wilderness Trail Off-Road Park has been featured on the Outdoor Channel’s hit show “Fisher’s ATV World.”

The show aired this past Monday and Tuesday. Fisher came to the park in April and brought a crew from Progressive Insurance with him. The crew enjoyed riding the trails and fishing in the park. They also went to Hickory Star Marina on Norris Lake to do some fishing.

“The exposure that Fisher’s ATV World gives this park is phenomenal. We have grown exponentially in the last several years and it’s due to us being on this show. You can go to the park any given weekend and see the results. You can see them at gas stations, hotels, and rental houses. Brian not only promotes this park and area great, but he’s also a real down to earth dude,” said Adventure Tourism Director Jon Grace.

According to Grace, the group plans to be back this October for the annual Holler Crawler Haunted Forest Ride, which will take place on WTORP.

Wilderness Trail Off-Road Park currently offers trail riders over 120 miles of trails, with more being added. The park is currently mapped and marked, and maps can be downloaded for free at wildernesstrailoffroadpark.net. Maps can also be obtained from several local businesses listed on their website.

The park is open to ATVs, side by sides, dirt bikes, and also Jeeps and trucks. Adventure tourism is in the process of marking certain trails for certain types of off-road uses.

The local off-road club, the Holler Crawlers, help to maintain the trails and keep the area clean. The trails range from gravel and dirt tracks in open fields that have spectacular views of the Cumberland and Pine Mountain ranges, to old logging roads that run through the woods, and even a rocky, dried up creek bed or two.

Most of the trails on the park are suited for beginners, but there are several challenging ones as well.